The scene of Buffalo Bill in the silence of the lambs which was totally improvised

The FBI is on the trail of a serial killer nicknamed "Buffalo Bill", who, at the start of the film, has already claimed five victims, partially skinning their corpses and leaving a cocoon of Death's Head Moth lodged in their throat. Senior Agent Jack Crawford (Scott Glenn) pulls Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) out of training for a special assignment. She must interrogate incarcerated Dr. Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lecter (Hopkins) to gain psychological insight into Bill's horrific crimes.

Meanwhile, Bill, real name Jame Gumb (Levine), snatches up his sixth potential victim, Catherine Martin (Brooke Smith), the daughter of a US Senator. He keeps her alive in a well in his basement, starving her to soften her skin so it's easier to remove once he murders her. We learn that Gumb was denied sex reassignment surgery and is now making a "woman's costume" out of real woman's skin to complete his transformation.

As Starling plays psychological cat and mouse with Lecter, we see Gumb diligently working on his skin suit. Down in the shaft, Catherine hatched a plan to take her beloved dog, Precious, hostage to negotiate her way out of the hole.

Gumb doesn't know she's enticing Precious with leftover chicken bones because he's busy getting ready for a performance in front of his video camera. Draped in a shawl and wearing the scalp of a previous victim, he dances to Q Lazzarus' "Goodbye Horses" before an idea strikes him. Slipping out of frame, he wedges his genitals between his legs to give the appearance of having a vagina. He stands back with his arms raised in a wing-like pose, continuing the moth and butterfly symbolism throughout the film.