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Raising Cain

Raising Cain

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Superb, flawless depiction of psychological brilliance
Review: This picture, much to the dissatisfaction of many critics tends to infect the sanctums of the mind that lie hidden; tucked away behind that wall of psychosis....this film is a superb depiction of depalma's camera usage, Lithgow's Flawless acting ability; both make this picture an A+++

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: More Good Fun from a true Movie-Loving Director
Review: Those who expect movies to teach moral lessons ought to stay away from most of the work of De Palma (with the weird exception of "Untouchables" which the moral lesson-types will enjoy until the very last scene, when the real De Palma has the last laugh, indicating that the entire "moral drama" of the picture has been a big joke!). For those who enjoy giving themselves over to De Palma when he is at his most inspired with in-jokes, absurdly brilliant cameras moves, and bravura scares, this is a total gem. One of De Palma's best for those with a sense of humor!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Bizarre Thriller.
Review: When a Child Psychologist (John Lithgow in a Over the Top Performance), who was a Spilt Personality, he also Kidapped Children to study under the control of his abused father (Also Lithgow). Then, it`s gets complicated-When his Wife (Lolita Davidovich) caught him and finds out his secert, While he did kidapped his daughter but his wife is Unfaithful, while is she falling in love with her old flame (Steven Bauer).

Written and Directed by Brain De Palma (Sisters, Phantom of the Paradise, Carrie) is not for the Faint-Hearted. A true Mixed-Bag at Best but Those who enjoy Lithgow Bizarre Performance will have a great time with this Oddball Thriller. Grade:A-.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: It may be stupid, but it's also scary!
Review: When it comes to bad movies of the '90's, "Raising Cain" is one of those pictures that get's blasted with bad reviews by just about everyone.

However, I think most people tend to misunderstand the effect this picture is supposed to have on the audience.

Critics have said that this picture is "campy", it's "bizarre" and that it "makes no sense". Well, actually, that's the point. This picture has such an outlandishly twisted storyline, that there's no way you can figure out what happens next. One of the worst things to be found in a movie intent on scaring the heck out of an audience is to be predictable. There is nothing predictable in this movie.

Writer / director De Palma is a student of Hitchcock. And what Hitchcock did to scare people was to have the audience mistrust him. De Palma, like Hitchcock, also understands the importance of having the audience anticipate the worst: in the film, when a coroner in about to pull back the sheet on the body of a drowned woman, the audience is already wincing, knowing the sheet is goind to be pulled back super-fast on the body's dead screaming face to the acompaniment of loud music.

Yes, this picture is campy and over the top, but in it's way, it works. Brian De Palma understands these little fears the audience feels. You gotta give De Palma credit for unveiling a fear that has been plaguing humankind since "The World According to Garp": JOHN LITHGOW LOOKS SCARY IN DRAG!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Very Entertaining but Rather Slight
Review: When Jack, an old flame (Steven Bauer), resurfaces, Jenny (Lolita Davidovich) justifies the adulterous fling she embarks on to herself by the thought that her husband Carter (John Lithgow) is starting to act a bit weird. Not half he is. In fact, influenced somehow by his bonkers child psychologist father, he has taken to killing off the local women who hang out at the same play park as his daughter Amy and kidnapping their children for psychological experiments. He's a bit tender-minded about all this, it must be said, but he has a weird alter ego by the name of Cain who has lacks any scruples and makes sure he goes through with his various crimes.

De Palma is very clearly a man who really wishes he was Hitchcock and this is very much his tribute to `Psycho' in its picture of a strange mixed up serial killer. It's very silly but pretty good fun. It doesn't work as well as it might largely because it really does call for a tour de force of a performance from the actor plying Carter/Cain and Lithgow doesn't quite deliver. He's not bad, just not as good as he needs to be to make this odd role work. (Bauer, on the other hand, is positively bad as Jack, Davidovich rather good as Jenny.) Great fun then but for sure it falls a long way short of `Psycho'.



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