‘Why Do Critics Love Those Repellent Movies?’

In Benson’s impassioned defense of “Lambs” we are assured that characters such as Dr. Lecter “do exist.” Oh really?

Lecter is, I suppose, just another psychiatrist with near-superhuman strength who happens to be a serial killer and a cannibal.

Perhaps Benson could provide us with a few biographical details about the real person whose life inspired the Dr. Lecter character: Where did he go to medical school? Did he enjoy his surgical clerkship, perhaps spending some elective time studying otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat)? Did his analytic training come to a premature end when he ate his psychoanalyst?

MARK FISHER, MD

Santa Monica