What Silence of the Lambs got wrong about Buffalo Bill

by Nate Hoff | June 18, 2019

 

The Silence of the Lambs is a solid story. I consider myself a creative person, but I could never come up with a story quite like that. I've been thinking lately, that they might have missed the mark on Buffalo Bill though. I mean, they obviously did a good enough job that his character has been copied time and time again in various films and TV shows. But I can't fight this feeling that maybe Bill would have led a slightly different life than we see in the movie or book. This all started yesterday when I was at the gym.

As I walked into the basement of the gym yesterday, which has a very nice spa lined with rock walls, like you're stepping into the rain forest, I started to think, If this wasn't an incredibly nice health club that might feel a bit different. If the entrance into that basement spa was in an old gym in downtown Philly or the suburbs of Gary Indiana, it would have a totally different feel. Just like how if the guy from 50 Shades of Grey worked at a junkyard it too who be a different story.

That's when it dawned on me that that's the type of place Buffalo Bill (Jame Gumb) would really lure someone into. I mean, let's look at the facts. Buffalo Bill loved skin, he was obsessed with the health of people's skin, and he was pretty handy (he was a trained tailor after all). All these things would make for a pretty good masseuse. Besides, why dig a basement pit when people will gladly walk into it? 

I know what you're thinking, "Wouldn't he have been a dermatologist instead?". Let's be honest here though, Bill ain't doctor material, and his people skills were complete shit so he couldn't be a Mary Kay lady either. What better way to scope out your next skin suit than to see and massage it closely beforehand. Besides, everyone knows if you want a job done to your specifications you do it yourself. Plus, he still gets to put the lotion in baskets...Buffalo Bill's Brand Precious Skin Lotion to be exact.

I know this might be a small detail in the grand scheme of things, but it's the small details that make a story good. LIke how Dexter is a serial killer, and how most arsonists are firefighters. If they remake The Silence of the Lambs it will probably start with Buffalo Bill throwing a temper tantrum at a Game Stop after a long day of massaging great big fat people. 

 

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