Welcome to Split Decision! Each week, Ryan will pose a question to our staff of knowledgable and passionate film lovers and share the responses. Chime in on Twitter, Facebook, our Instagram, or in the comments below.

This week’s question:

In honor of his February 22 birthday, what is your favorite film by Jonathan Demme?

Jonathan Demme is one of my all-time favorite directors, and I’ve enjoyed all of the films of his I’ve seen so far. Since I get to write my entry last, I will say I echo all the sentiments below, but I also want to single out Melvin and Howard and Married to the Mob, two comedies about people who find themselves in unusual situations, and never robs their protagonists of their dignity, all while being hilariously funny.
–Ryan Silberstein, The Red Herring

The summer it came out, I went to see Stop Making Sense only because Demme directed it. The film was so infectious, I was literally dancing in the aisles by the third song, and I went back to see it seven more times that summer. I’ve watched it numerous times since then and it never loses it’s magic. Demme made an extraordinary concert film. He always selected the best music for films (and he could talk for hours about what he was listening to!) I’d be remiss if I didn’t give a shout out to Something Wild, because that is my other favorite Demme film for its mix of satire/black comedy and sheer terror (Ray Liotta is amazing in it) and then there’s its soundtrack....–Gary M. Kramer, Staff Writer

I will watch ANY music documentary or concert film. Even if it’s about an artist I’m not really into, I will at least give it a shot. I have some pretty… unique go-to picks that people may scratch their heads wondering about, but no one wonders why Stop Making Sense is my favourite. It’s an incredible experience and every time I watch, I get very excited about making music. This film is upbeat, joyful, and so well-made. It brings home the excitement of attending a concert, with total focus. There’s no interviews, no shots of the audience (until the very end), so you are immersed in the show. There’s even the nod to Fred Astaire’s coat rack dance in Royal Wedding. To me, this is a musical. It’s displaying the art of Talking Heads, true. But it is art all on its own. Plus, I love drooling over all the music gear (I have a list of my top 5 fave instruments shown in this film, it’s true). –Ashley Jane Davis, Staff Writer

I wouldn’t be me, especially in the year I’ve declared as “Hannibal Lecter Year” for myself, if I didn’t continue to talk about The Silence of the Lambs, to a deeply annoying level. (Sorry, folks!) Demme changed the world 30 years ago with this film, for better and for worse. But since I spent a lot of words talking about the bad in my anniversary piece, I want to re-highlight the thing that I always find so remarkable about The Silence of the Lambs: Demme’s humanity. He brings Clarice Starling to life in such a full and remarkable way. He was able to allow the audience to not just see what it was like to be a woman in a workplace dominated by men, but to feel it. Without being patronizing. A feat that many have tried, especially in the crime fiction so inspired by this film, to replicate and have failed at miserably. He was a truly remarkable filmmaker, through and through.–Emily Maesar, Staff Writer

Silence of the Lambs was such a brilliant, taut thriller. Demme did such a good job adapting the novel that even when I later read the book, I kept seeing Hopkins as Lecter and Foster as Starling and was still scared. Honorable mention to Married to the Mob, my third-favorite soundtrack from that era. –Anthony Glassman, Contributor

So most of the big ones have already been chosen so I am going to cheat with my answer. However its important to mention that Demme-directed the music video “Perfect Kiss” by one of my favorite bands, New Order. It is a 10 minute video of close ups of the band playing their instruments up close and it looks amazing. Gillian Gilbert looks superb with her perfectly 80s makeup jamming on the keyboard. Its perfect. –Victoria Potenza, Staff Writer

Something Wild is as good as movies get, and I’m glad it seems to gain a little more acclaim every year. I sometimes wonder if it would be the consensus Demme masterpiece if he hadn’t been so good at filming music and terror. It’s possible that 20 years from now we’ll finally get to see his original cut of Swing Shift and that’ll become my favorite, but until that comes to pass, I’m all about that movie that stars The Feelies and some other actors who do well too, I guess.–Alex Rudolph, Staff Writer

Demme’s close-ups are the stuff of legend, but what really sells those shots is the remarkable skill Demme had with his actors. Film after film, even in misfires like Ricki and the Flash, Demme had a gift for bringing out the unexpected in his performers and then immersing us in their world. One of my favorites, Rachel Getting Married, proved that Demme’s work with actors was truly the heart of his style. Even without his usual stylistic touches, Demme still showcased career-best performances from Anne Hathaway, Rosemarie DeWitt, and Debra Winger in this harrowing but hopeful portrait of a family reconciling their past and present. I can’t tell you how many times my sister and I have watched this together, but I can tell you were overdue to watch it again. –Ryan Smillie, Staff Writer