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Body Double

Body Double

List Price: $9.95
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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Switching Stories
Review: This movie was good because it had a lot of nudity and the best parts were when they switched stories from one to another. There was one story where the director was shooting a vampire movie. The other was in his head - he had something else going on involving a murder.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: De Palma films don't get better over time--
Review: but they don't get significantly worse. Yes, De Palma's films are striking visually. Yes, his Hitchcock (whom I love!) homages are witty and give reason to watch his films more than once. Yes, De Palma is entertaining and full of style at all times.
That being said, time, maturity, and repeat viewings of de Palma's movies show the seams of his work more obviously. "Body Double" is a prime example; it is a film that has lost a star or two in my estimation of it over the years. It is high on style, and quite poetic at moments despite the sleazy elements on hand. All in all, however, it appears more superficial and simplistic on repeat viewings. Craig Wasson gives a terrible performance, while Melanie Griffith gives a thoroughly believable comic one. The Donnagio score is evocative of Bernard Herrmann, which is never a bad thing. The voyeuristic theme is both witty and sordid at once. Ultimately, the film is a mixed bag that de Palma fans will enjoy deconstructing.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Edgy Voyeurism
Review: A movie is an indulgence in voyeurism, so a movie about voyeurism is no stretch! Actually it is very effective, as it pulls the viewer into the movie connecting with the voyeur and compels the viewer to feel as though they are part of the movie!

The tension is built up very effectively throughout the film, especially during one particular scene that I won't give away. Let me just say it will have you on the edge of your seat, clenching whatever you can, completely engrossed in the action.

If this movie is a homage to Hitchcock, I think he'd be honored!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Don't waste your time or money on this one
Review: As a comedy it would be dramatically bad but as a drama it is laughable. Ridiculous plot, bad acting, the works!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: My favorite De Palma movie....
Review: Body Double, along with Blow Out, is my favorite Brian De Palma movie. I have watched it at least 20 times and whenever I get the chance I show it to friends and co-workers too. I cannot explain in a coherent or intelligent way why I love this film so much but the story, De Palma's staging of murder & suspense scenes (esp. when Craig Wesson is chasing the mysterious femme fatale through the beach and gets an anxiety attack in a tunnel...the scene is one of the best De Palma ever did and we get the feeling Hitchcock would've been proud). I love all of De Palma's Hitch rip-offs, and this is no exception. Although De Palma doesn't really "rip-off" so much as take techniques and camera movements/effects Hitch perfected and use them for his own suspense/thriller films. I like all of De Palma's movies...yes, even Bonfire of the Vanties, Snake Eyes, Mission Impossible, & Mission to Mars; all critical bombs (except for MI obviously); but Body Double is my fav. If you like De Palma or even just good ole' truly scary and thrilling suspense films.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Avoid at all costs
Review: Wow, what a clunker!

First of all, I could not believe that Leonard Maltin gave this 1 1/2 stars, should have been a [flop] for sure. After watching this bottom of the barrel, B-grade junk, I thought I'd have a look on Amazon, and see what sort of reviews this thing got from viewers around the world. Just for a laugh.

As it got some 5 star opinions, I was moved to actually write my very first Amazon review, ever. Let's start by saying, I like movies. I have a DVD collection of very slightly under 1,000 titles, and still building. My shelves range from "Citizen Kane" to "Baise Moi". Favourite is probably "Pulp Fiction".

I have to say "Body Double" is the worst movie I have ever seen. It is also the first DVD I've had to throw out.

So what's wrong with it?

1. Acting is below B-grade, below 1970's Italian exploitation flicks. In particular Craig Wasson is so unremittingly wooden and pathetically bad that he could not hold down a gig on daytime TV.

2. As a supposedly erotic movie, if fails miserably, cringingly and completely in that department. Melanie Griffith looks like she'd rather be somewhere else, and who can blame her. Try "Bound" or "9 1/2 Weeks" instead. As for Melanie, she was more erotic in "Milk Money".

3. Continuity - non-existent. Editing also very poor.

4. Intent?? Serious thriller, all out comedy?? We actually switched this thing off about half way through. Then we said - hang on, these guys could not have been serious, there must be some huge punchline coming, or a complete turnaround a-la "From Dusk Till Dawn"... So we wasted another 50 minutes, and it just got worse.

5. Direction: DePalma must have been out to lunch for this one, and left the guy who gets the coffee in charge. I mean, this just went nowhere.

6. Locale used : some reviewers have praised the use of locale, but it really was used in the blandest fashion only. For an example of a movie that makes the most of a good locale, watch "Charlotte Gray", and think again.

7. Suspense : None. Wholly predictable from the start, we picked who was under the indian mask when ...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent mature thriller
Review: You have to hand it to Brian De Palma, he is not going to pull any punches with what he wants to show us. This film proves that De Palma is a voyer at heart (as if shower scene in "Carrie" or the taxi sex scene in "Dressed to Kill" didn't). But it is actually played out literaly when out of work actor Creig Wessen is spying on his neighbor doing a strip tease in her bed room. Yes, as with most of De Palma's flics, it gets much deeper, with a mysterios Indian also watching, a murder mystery, and a sleezy Dante like decent into the mid 80's L.A. porn world. I loved the movie and thought it was criminaly underrated. It is smart, occasionally funny, with a good puzzel at it's center. (Heres a hint, think about what the title means). There is one little problem I had with the movie, the centrel murder. I do not want to give too much away, but the 3 foot long drill as the murder weapon is more apporopriate in something like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre than this. But I wholely recoment it. For 18 years old and older, though.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: HOLLY BODY ROCKS!
Review: That's right, bro. The plot is cool, but if there is one good reason to watch this flick it's to see Melanie Griffith as "sexational" porn queen Holly Body. Not necessarily for her nude scenes (which aren't bad, by the way). As a fan of '80s porn starlets I can truly say that her performance was wonderful and absolutely believable. There were times while viewing this movie that I actually forgot I was watching a mainstream Hollywood actress and not an adult film star. Kinda reminded me of Amber Lynn back in the days. Makes me think just how outstanding Ms. Griffith would've been had she chosen that profession instead. It's a pity she didn't. Oh, well. Her performance as Holly Body is a tribute to that fantasy.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: To me, this is the weakest of De Palma's 'Hitchcock' films
Review: This is one of several Brian De Palma films that pay tribute to the Master of Suspense, director Alfred Hitchcock. While De Palma has never come close to equaling his hero, he has done some great imitations of him in movies like "Dressed to Kill" and "Blowout". "Body Double", however, is a weak effort by any standard. It has been branded a blatant rip-off of "Vertigo", but I don't think it's even that.

In the convoluted plot, an actor needs a temporary place to stay, and an acquaintance puts him up in a spectacular Hollywood Hills home. The friend points out that, through a telescope in the house, one can spy on a woman in a house across the way. Said woman puts on quite a striptease show every evening. One night, the actor sees the woman being robbed by a very spooky character. Already obsessed with her, he begins to follow her around town to make sure she is okay. His spy games lead to danger, murder and some rather graphic encounters in the world of porn video making.

This is one of those movies that hinge on a totally improbable plot device. Though he uses a whole bag of cinematic tricks which make some of the movie rather interesting to look at, De Palma never manages to fool the audience into going with the flow of the ludicrous story. The movie can be looked at as a spoof of suspense thriller; however, it doesn't succeed very well on that level either.

De Palma had directed some fine movies in his time. "Body Double" is definitely a low point, in my opinion. Besides the films mentioned above, the good ones include three crime sagas - "The Untouchables", "Scarface", and "Carlito's Way", as well as the horror classic, "Carrie".

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: an honest review
Review: ok all these critics out there like to complain about the Hitchock comparisons in DePalma's film and yes, DePalma does use elements of his style to spice up his movies or take similiar plots and give it a DePalma twist. as far as this film is concerned, to look at it simply, is it worth your money and will you like it? the answer is yes, an excellent little gem about a man who witnesses a murder and now must get to the bottom of it. great suspense and great artistic direction, highly recommened.


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