Douglas Keesey
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781628466973
- eISBN:
- 9781628467024
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781628466973.003.0001
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
This introductory chapter takes on Brian De Palma's signature split-screen as the basis of discussion, with the intention of focusing on De Palma as a man divided. The split-screen is used here as a ...
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This introductory chapter takes on Brian De Palma's signature split-screen as the basis of discussion, with the intention of focusing on De Palma as a man divided. The split-screen is used here as a figure for the stark divisions within De Palma and his works. Four of these divisions are followed as thematic threads running throughout the book—as the key contrasts which underpin this analysis. These main themes or key contrasts are: Independence / Hollywood, originality / imitation, feminism / misogyny, and humility / megalomania. Furthermore, the chapter contends that while De Palma's movies are usually viewed as being devoid of biographical resonance, his movies are in fact profoundly connected to his life, but often in a metaphorical way, much as dreams act as strange reworkings of moments from our waking life.Less
This introductory chapter takes on Brian De Palma's signature split-screen as the basis of discussion, with the intention of focusing on De Palma as a man divided. The split-screen is used here as a figure for the stark divisions within De Palma and his works. Four of these divisions are followed as thematic threads running throughout the book—as the key contrasts which underpin this analysis. These main themes or key contrasts are: Independence / Hollywood, originality / imitation, feminism / misogyny, and humility / megalomania. Furthermore, the chapter contends that while De Palma's movies are usually viewed as being devoid of biographical resonance, his movies are in fact profoundly connected to his life, but often in a metaphorical way, much as dreams act as strange reworkings of moments from our waking life.
Douglas Keesey
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781628466973
- eISBN:
- 9781628467024
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781628466973.003.0030
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
This chapter examines the many elements of De Palma's work incorporated into Passion (2012), which in itself can be considered as a summa of his films, even constituting a kind of career ...
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This chapter examines the many elements of De Palma's work incorporated into Passion (2012), which in itself can be considered as a summa of his films, even constituting a kind of career retrospective in itself. The film centers around a rivalry between three women—the executive Christine (Rachel McAdams), her assistant Isabelle (Noomi Rapace), and Isabelle's assistant Dani (Karoline Herfurth). And among other things, Passion uses the repertoire of themes and techniques that De Palma frequently explores: female twins / doubles, voyeurism, long takes, video surveillance, and so on. Interestingly, the movie also turns to the cinematic conventions of film noir, furthering the uncertainties and ambiguities underlying the plot, including the lingering image of the dead female body present in De Palma's other works.Less
This chapter examines the many elements of De Palma's work incorporated into Passion (2012), which in itself can be considered as a summa of his films, even constituting a kind of career retrospective in itself. The film centers around a rivalry between three women—the executive Christine (Rachel McAdams), her assistant Isabelle (Noomi Rapace), and Isabelle's assistant Dani (Karoline Herfurth). And among other things, Passion uses the repertoire of themes and techniques that De Palma frequently explores: female twins / doubles, voyeurism, long takes, video surveillance, and so on. Interestingly, the movie also turns to the cinematic conventions of film noir, furthering the uncertainties and ambiguities underlying the plot, including the lingering image of the dead female body present in De Palma's other works.
Douglas Keesey
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781628466973
- eISBN:
- 9781628467024
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781628466973.003.0031
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
This concluding chapter looks back into De Palma's oeuvre in order to chart a brief history of his life and his attempts to move forward from the rivalries of his past to the compassion that he hopes ...
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This concluding chapter looks back into De Palma's oeuvre in order to chart a brief history of his life and his attempts to move forward from the rivalries of his past to the compassion that he hopes for his daughters' futures. It also examines the public reception of De Palma's works, particularly his lack of awards and distinctions in comparison to his peers, such as Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, and Steven Spielberg. De Palma, after all, has argued himself that he cannot be acknowledged as a “Great Director” by the public because of his frequently controversial, anti-establishment stance in his films. Hence the chapter delves into De Palma's own attitudes toward filmmaking, highlighting his own struggles to move past competition and emphasizing that he is a great director in his own right.Less
This concluding chapter looks back into De Palma's oeuvre in order to chart a brief history of his life and his attempts to move forward from the rivalries of his past to the compassion that he hopes for his daughters' futures. It also examines the public reception of De Palma's works, particularly his lack of awards and distinctions in comparison to his peers, such as Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, and Steven Spielberg. De Palma, after all, has argued himself that he cannot be acknowledged as a “Great Director” by the public because of his frequently controversial, anti-establishment stance in his films. Hence the chapter delves into De Palma's own attitudes toward filmmaking, highlighting his own struggles to move past competition and emphasizing that he is a great director in his own right.
Douglas Keesey
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- September 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781628466973
- eISBN:
- 9781628467024
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781628466973.001.0001
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
Over the last five decades, the films of director Brian De Palma (b. 1940) have been among the biggest successes (The Untouchables and Mission: Impossible) and the most high-profile failures (The ...
More
Over the last five decades, the films of director Brian De Palma (b. 1940) have been among the biggest successes (The Untouchables and Mission: Impossible) and the most high-profile failures (The Bonfire of the Vanities) in Hollywood history. De Palma helped launch the careers of such prominent actors as Robert De Niro, John Travolta, and Sissy Spacek. Picketed by feminists protesting its depictions of violence against women, Dressed to Kill helped to create the erotic thriller genre. Scarface, with its over-the-top performance by Al Pacino, remains a cult favorite. In the twenty-first century, De Palma has continued to experiment, incorporating elements from videogames (Femme Fatale), tabloid journalism (The Black Dahlia), YouTube, and Skype (Redacted and Passion) into his latest works. What makes De Palma such a maverick even when he is making Hollywood genre films? Why do his movies often feature megalomaniacs and failed heroes? Is he merely a misogynist and an imitator of Alfred Hitchcock? To answer these questions, the book takes a biographical approach to De Palma's cinema, showing how De Palma reworks events from his own life into his films.Less
Over the last five decades, the films of director Brian De Palma (b. 1940) have been among the biggest successes (The Untouchables and Mission: Impossible) and the most high-profile failures (The Bonfire of the Vanities) in Hollywood history. De Palma helped launch the careers of such prominent actors as Robert De Niro, John Travolta, and Sissy Spacek. Picketed by feminists protesting its depictions of violence against women, Dressed to Kill helped to create the erotic thriller genre. Scarface, with its over-the-top performance by Al Pacino, remains a cult favorite. In the twenty-first century, De Palma has continued to experiment, incorporating elements from videogames (Femme Fatale), tabloid journalism (The Black Dahlia), YouTube, and Skype (Redacted and Passion) into his latest works. What makes De Palma such a maverick even when he is making Hollywood genre films? Why do his movies often feature megalomaniacs and failed heroes? Is he merely a misogynist and an imitator of Alfred Hitchcock? To answer these questions, the book takes a biographical approach to De Palma's cinema, showing how De Palma reworks events from his own life into his films.
