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De Palma a la Mod

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Recent Headlines
a la Mod:

Domino is
a "disarmingly
straight-forward"
work that "pushes
us to reexamine our
relationship to images
and their consumption,
not only ethically
but metaphysically"
-Collin Brinkman

De Palma on Domino
"It was not recut.
I was not involved
in the ADR, the
musical recording
sessions, the final
mix or the color
timing of the
final print."

Listen to
Donaggio's full score
for Domino online

De Palma/Lehman
rapport at work
in Snakes

De Palma/Lehman
next novel is Terry

De Palma developing
Catch And Kill,
"a horror movie
based on real things
that have happened
in the news"

Supercut video
of De Palma's films
edited by Carl Rodrigue

Washington Post
review of Keesey book

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Exclusive Passion
Interviews:

Brian De Palma
Karoline Herfurth
Leila Rozario

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AV Club Review
of Dumas book

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Interviews...

De Palma interviewed
in Paris 2002

De Palma discusses
The Black Dahlia 2006


Enthusiasms...

De Palma Community

The Virtuoso
of the 7th Art

The De Palma Touch

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Carrie...A Fan's Site

Phantompalooza

No Harm In Charm

Paul Schrader

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The Master Of Suspense

Alfred Hitchcock Films

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a la Mod

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and the Infield
Fly Rule

Movie Mags

Directorama

The Filmmaker Who
Came In From The Cold

Jim Emerson on
Greetings & Hi, Mom!

Scarface: Make Way
For The Bad Guy

The Big Dive
(Blow Out)

Carrie: The Movie

Deborah Shelton
Official Web Site

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Welcome to the
Offices of Death Records

The Carlito's Way
Fan Page

The House Next Door

Kubrick on the
Guillotine

FilmLand Empire

Astigmia Cinema

LOLA

Cultural Weekly

A Lonely Place

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italkyoubored

Icebox Movies

Medfly Quarantine

Not Just Movies

Hope Lies at
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Motion Pictures Comics

Diary of a
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So Why This Movie?

Obsessive Movie Nerd

Nothing Is Written

Ferdy on Films

Cashiers De Cinema

This Recording

Mike's Movie Guide

Every '70s Movie

Dangerous Minds

EatSleepLiveFilm

No Time For
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De Palma a la Mod
site

Entries by Topic
A note about topics: Some blog posts have more than one topic, in which case only one main topic can be chosen to represent that post. This means that some topics may have been discussed in posts labeled otherwise. For instance, a post that discusses both The Boston Stranglers and The Demolished Man may only be labeled one or the other. Please keep this in mind as you navigate this list.
All topics  «
Ambrose Chapel
Are Snakes Necessary?
BAMcinématek
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Beaune Thriller Fest
Becoming Visionary
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Bill Pankow
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Blue Afternoon
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Books
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Carlito's Way
Carrie
Casualties Of War
Catch And Kill
Cinema Studies
Clarksville 1861
Columbia University
Columbo - Shooting Script
Congo
Conversation, The
Cop-Out
Cruising
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De Niro
De Palma & Donaggio
De Palma (doc)
De Palma Blog-A-Thon
De Palma Discussion
Demolished Man
Dick Vorisek
Dionysus In '69
Domino
Dressed To Kill
Edward R. Pressman
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Fatal Attraction
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Film Series
Fire
Frankie Goes To Hollywood
Fury, The
Genius of Love
George Litto
Get To Know Your Rabbit
Ghost & The Darkness
Greetings
Happy Valley
Havana Film Fest
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Hi, Mom!
Hitchcock
Home Movies
Inspired by De Palma
Iraq, etc.
Jack Fisk
Jared Martin
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Keith Gordon
Key Man, The
Laurent Bouzereau
Lights Out
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Magic Hour
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Mod
Montreal World Film Fest
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Murder a la Mod
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Newton 1861
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Palmetto
Paranormal Activity 2
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Print The Legend
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Raising Cain
Red Shoes, The
Redacted
Responsive Eye
Retribution
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Rotwang muß weg!
Sakamoto
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Sensuous Woman, The
Sisters
Snake Eyes
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Friday, August 26, 2016
MISSED CONNECTIONS

Posted by Geoff at 12:46 AM CDT
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Thursday, August 25, 2016
DE PALMA ON JURY FOR TIFF PLATFORM PROGRAM
3-PERSON JURY ALSO INCLUDES ZHANG ZIYI & MAHAMAT-SALEH HAROUN, 12 FILMS IN COMPETITION
Brian De Palma will be part of the three-person jury for the Platform section of this year's Toronto International Film Festival. The other two jury members will be director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun and actress Zhang Ziyi. Platform, named after the Jia Zhang-ke film from 2000, features "12 films from filmmakers with strong voices and distinct styles," from all over the world, according to the TIFF website. It was started last year for TIFF's 40th birthday, with a jury made up of Claire Denis, Agnieszka Holland and Jia Zhang-ke.

On September 18th, the best Platform selection will be awarded a $25,000 prize by the jury (TIFF 2016 runs Sept. 8-18). Last year's jury chose to give the prize to Alan Zweig's documentary Hurt, out of a line-up that included Ben Wheatley's widely acclaimed High Rise. TIFF director and CEO Piers Handling is quoted at Broadway World: "We are honoured to have De Palma, Haroun, and Zhang on the Platform Jury for the programme's second year. Each one of them brings a breadth of expertise and experience in visionary filmmaking, artistic direction, and unprecedented, bold narratives. We are thankful to our esteemed jury for making the time to be here this September to celebrate our renewed commitment to artistically ambitious filmmaking with Platform."

Cameron Bailey, TIFF's artistic director, is also quoted at Broadway World: "Platform's vision is championing aesthetic magnificence and De Palma, Zhang, and Haroun, have all either created or been a part of films that have inspired, revolutionized, and transformed the filmmaking industry. We are thrilled the jury members will be able to share their wealth of knowledge with this year's Platform filmmakers who are creating groundbreaking narrative forms. We can't wait for the jury to join us in Toronto and be a part of Platform's history."

Below is the list of 12 Platform films the jury will be viewing:

Daguerrotype (Le Secret de la chambre noire)
Kiyoshi Kurosawa, France/Japan/Belgium (world premiere)

Goldstone
Ivan Sen, Australia (international premiere)

Heal the Living (Réparer les vivants)
Katell Quillévéré, France/Belgium (North American premiere)

Hema Hema: Sing Me a Song While I Wait (he-mà he-mà)
Khyentse Norbu, Bhutan/Hong Kong (North American premiere)

Home
Fien Troch, Belgium (North American premiere)

Jackie
Pablo Larraín, United Kingdom (North American premiere)

Lady Macbeth
William Oldroyd, United Kingdom (world premiere)

Layla M.
Mijke de Jong, Netherlands/Belgium/Germany/Jordan (world premiere)

Maliglutit (Searchers)
Zacharias Kunuk, Canada (world premiere)

Moonlight
Barry Jenkins, USA (international premiere)

Nocturama
Bertrand Bonello, France/Germany/Belgium (international premiere)

Those Who Make Revolution Halfway Only Dig Their Own Graves
(Ceux qui font les révolutions à moitié n’ont fait que se creuser un tombeau)
Mathieu Denis and Simon Lavoie, Canada (world premiere)


Posted by Geoff at 10:29 PM CDT
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Wednesday, August 24, 2016
5 INCLUDE 'FEMME FATALE' ON BBC CENTURY LIST
CRITICS SENT TOP TEN LISTS TO CREATE THE 21st CENTURY'S 100 GREATEST FILMS
The BBC polled 177 critics from around the world, asking them to submit their top ten films of the 21st century. The lists were then tallied to create a list of the 100 best films since 2000. The BBC also posted the individual critics' lists, and while Brian De Palma did not land a film in the top 100 so far in this century, five of those critics did include De Palma's late-career masterpiece Femme Fatale on their top ten lists. Here they are:

Ed Gonzalez – Slant Magazine (US)

1. Mulholland Drive (David Lynch, 2001)
2. In the Mood for Love (Wong Kar-wai, 2000)
3. The New World (Terrence Malick, 2005)
4. Certified Copy (Abbas Kiarostami, 2010)
5. Femme Fatale (Brian De Palma, 2002)
6. Margaret (Kenneth Lonergan, 2011)
7. Under the Skin (Jonathan Glazer, 2013)
8. This Is Not a Film (Mojtaba Mirtahmasb and Jafar Panahi, 2011)
9. Two Lovers (James Gray, 2008)
10. Heart of a Dog (Laurie Anderson, 2015)

Michael Koresky – The Film Society of Lincoln Center (US)

1. Mulholland Drive (David Lynch, 2001)
2. AI: Artificial Intelligence (Steven Spielberg, 2001)
3. The Tree of Life (Terrence Malick, 2011)
4. Syndromes and a Century (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2006)
5. What Time Is It There? (Tsai Ming-liang, 2001)
6. The Intruder (Claire Denis, 2004)
7. The Son (Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, 2002)
8. Before Sunset (Richard Linklater, 2004)
9. The Headless Woman (Lucrecia Martel, 2008)
10. Femme Fatale (Brian De Palma, 2002)

Adrian Martin – Lola Magazine (Australia)

1. Holy Motors (Leos Carax, 2012)
2. Lifeline (Víctor Erice, 2002)
3. Certified Copy (Abbas Kiarostami, 2010)
4. Kung Fu Hustle (Stephen Chow, 2004)
5. Instructions for a Light and Sound Machine (Peter Tscherkassky, 2005)
6. Un lac (Philippe Grandrieux, 2008)
7. Detention (Joseph Kahn, 2011)
8. A Vingança de Uma Mulher (Rita Azevedo Gomes, 2012)
9. Mia Madre (Nanni Moretti, 2015)
10. Femme Fatale (Brian De Palma, 2002)

Charles Taylor – The Yale Review (US)

1. Blue Is the Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche, 2013)
2. Only Lovers Left Alive (Jim Jarmusch, 2013)
3. Mulholland Drive (David Lynch, 2001)
4. Somewhere (Sofia Coppola, 2010)
5. 25th Hour (Spike Lee, 2002)
6. Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino, 2009)
7. The Artist (Michel Hazanavicius, 2011)
8. Phoenix (Christian Petzold, 2014)
9. Femme Fatale (Brian De Palma, 2002)
10. Fantastic Mr Fox (Wes Anderson, 2009)

Stephanie Zacharek – Time Magazine (US)

1. Mulholland Drive (David Lynch, 2001)
2. Kings and Queen (Arnaud Desplechin, 2004)
3. Yi Yi: A One and a Two (Edward Yang, 2000)
4. Oldboy (Park Chan-wook, 2003)
5. Antichrist (Lars von Trier, 2009)
6. Children of Men (Alfonso Cuarón, 2006)
7. Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola, 2003)
8. Femme Fatale (Brian De Palma, 2002)
9. Casino Royale (Martin Campbell, 2006)
10. Blue Is the Warmest Color (Abdellatif Kechiche, 2013)


Posted by Geoff at 8:58 PM CDT
Updated: Friday, August 26, 2016 6:18 PM CDT
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Tuesday, August 23, 2016
BRIAN DE PALMA BLOGATHON SEPT 11-21
The blog Seetimaar-Diary of a Movie Lover is proposing a Brian De Palma Blogathon, to run from September 11-21. Here is the post from yesterday:
Very few directors have been as polarizing as Brian De Palma is, you either end up hating him totally, or adoring him. It does not help that his output has been truly inconsistent, great movies, followed by equally dud movies. Maybe this is the reason, why among the movie brats of the 70s he is not as highly regarded as a Scorsese or Copolla, nor has been as popular as a Spielberg. But personally, he remains among my favorite directors. He is one of the best when it comes to shooting action sequences, be it the Odessa steps one in The Untouchables, the pool room shootout in Carlito’s Way or the ending of Scarface.

One thing for sure, subtlety is never the strong point of Brian De Palma, his movies are right in your face, often over the top, absolutely gory. But they crackle with a sort of raw energy and intensity, that keeps you hooked. And this is one director, who has made great movies across all genres, horror( Carrie), gangster( Untouchables, Carlito’s Way, Scarface), war ( Casualties of War), thriller( Blow Out). So after a long time, doing a blogathon in tribute to Brian De Palma. It would start from September 11( his birthday) to September 21st. You could contribute to the blogathon, with posts on his movies, or his directorial style, anything related to him.

Posted by Geoff at 11:59 PM CDT
Updated: Wednesday, August 24, 2016 12:01 AM CDT
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Monday, August 22, 2016
'DRESSED TO KILL' SOUNDTRACK FRESH REMASTER
INTRADA NEEDED TO RE-PRESS POPULAR TITLE, DECIDED TO RE-DRESS, AS WELL
Intrada announced today a newly re-dressed, re-mastered, and re-worked version of Pino Donaggio's Dressed To Kill soundtrack. Intrada previously released a Special Collection limited version of this title in 2013.

Here is how Intrada describes this new edition: "Re-dressing a popular Intrada title! As needs to re-press Dressed To Kill arose, Intrada elected to return to original source mixes and remaster entire CD, making new enhancements to audio as well as judicious changes to original track assembly. Additionally, slightly re-worked packaging design by Kay Marshall enhances this new remastered edition."

The changes to the track assembly involve more separation of cues, including "Mike Arrives" (which had previously been included in the track "Marino And Elliot"), "Policewoman Follows Liz" (which had previously been part of "Peter Sets Camera"), "After Flight" (previously part of "Liz Chased By Hoods"), "Elliot And Levy" (previously part of "Liz And Peter Watch Film"), and "Romantic Interlude" (previously part of the track now called, simply, "Liz And Peter").

(Thanks to Bill!)


Posted by Geoff at 11:58 PM CDT
Updated: Tuesday, August 23, 2016 12:12 AM CDT
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Saturday, August 20, 2016
WRIGHT TO PRESENT 'PHANTOM' IN LONDON OCT 10
PART OF CULTURE SHOCK SERIES AT PICTUREHOUSE, "EDGAR WRIGHT PRESENTS.."


Hot on the heels of its Nicolas Winding Refn Presents… series, which included Brian De Palma's Body Double, Picturehouse and Culture Shock bring a season of Edgar Wright Presents.... This series, which begins September 12th, will include a screening of De Palma's Phantom Of The Paradise on October 10th.

Edgar Wright's Verdict: "Brian De Palma’s only rock-and-roll horror opera! Does that not grab you? For my money it’s better than The Rocky Horror Picture Show, with a satirical script, eye-popping visuals, and iconic cult performances by Paul Williams, Gerritt Graham, Jessica Harper and William Finley. Obsessed over by Guillermo Del Toro, Daft Punk and myself, this will become your new favourite cult movie."

The series page states, "Mr Wright will try and introduce them all in person, but as he is a very busy man look out for confirmation via social media as the dates approach!" The other films chosen by Wright are: Michael Cimino's Thunderbolt And Lightfoot, John Landis' The Blues Brothers, Joel and Ethan Coen's Raising Arizona, Walter Hill's The Driver, and Russ Meyer's Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls.


Posted by Geoff at 6:10 PM CDT
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Friday, August 19, 2016
SONY 'BODY DOUBLE' BLU-RAY MOD COMING IN OCT
According to Blu-ray.com, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment today revealed five titles as part of its first waves of Manufactured on Demand Blu-ray releases. One of those titles is Brian De Palma's Body Double, which will be available beginning in October. Body Double will be presented in full high definition with lossless audio, as will the others in the program.
(Thanks to Adam!)

Posted by Geoff at 5:17 PM CDT
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Thursday, August 18, 2016
'BLOW OUT' & 'CARRIE' HAUNT 'MR. ROBOT'
PINO DONAGGIO THEME FROM 'BLOW OUT' SCORES FLASHBACK INTRO TO LAST NIGHT'S EPISODE
Last night's episode of USA's Mr. Robot (season 2, episode 7, "eps2.5h4ndshake.sme"), which was directed by the show's creator, Sam Esmail, opened with a flashback set to Pino Donaggio's theme from Brian De Palma's Blow Out. The theme is the first significant sound heard in the episode (after a couple of footsteps), runs over the opening title and beginning of the credits, and includes a direct homage to De Palma's Carrie, a film which was also scored by Donaggio.

The episode opens with a hint of the way Donaggio's music brings us into Kate Miller's world in the first part of De Palma's Dressed To Kill. The Blow Out theme, lush and melancholic, is accompanied by a camera (us, the viewer, a.k.a. Elliot's "friend") consistently pushing in toward Joanna Wellick, the wife of Tyrell Wellick, a character we are so far led to believe is no longer alive. The flashback is centered on a gift, earrings, that Tyrell had given to Joanna just before a social gathering. As the camera gets closer to Joanna, and Donaggio's music offers sad reflection, Tyrell appears, and even when the scene shifts to the gathering (which includes the woman Tyrell murdered last season, leaving us without a doubt that we're in a flashback), the movement keeps moving from wide shot and, with help of a dissolve, into Joanna's face, seemingly moved by the earrings, the camera eventually providing the viewer a close-up view of an earring in Joanna's ear which, via a match-cut, takes us out of pre-Tyrell's disappearance and into a more present-day, post-Tyrell flashback, where Joanna is tending to her baby in a stroller on the street.

Donaggio's theme here enters into its sparse piano portion (the part that Tarantino used for a tender texting moment in Death Proof), as the episode's opening credits also begin. An older woman is walking by, and Joanna smiles at her, but the woman turns out to be one of the many angry members of society walking around the city in the wake the E Corp hack. Targeting Joanna (and while we as viewer are still focused on the fact that she is wearing the expensive earring gift), the woman suddenly throws a bucket of what appears to be red paint onto Joanna, while shouting, "Capitalist pig!" The use of the word pig, a bucket, and the color red (whether actual pig's blood or red paint) mark the moment as an overt homage to De Palma's Carrie, as does the way Joanna then begins to scream out at the world while splattered in red, yet we can't hear her screams, only the quiet piano of Donaggio's theme from Blow Out, as the title "Mr. Robot" starkly appears overlayed upon Joanna's rage.

As Donaggio's theme trails off to its poignant final notes, the scene shifts once again into present day, as Joanna is now gazing upon a new gift set on top of her kitchen counter: a framed ultrasound sonogram of the baby she and Tyrell created. Joanna has been receiving gifts that seemingly come from Tyrell, who may be dead, and as the camera looks up from the countertop to Joanna sipping on a glass of wine as she looks down at the gift, we hear Elliot's voice ("I see you"), and for a moment, juxtaposed against Joanna's face, we sense that Elliot has been sending the gifts, and perhaps watching Joanna, until we realize Elliot is addressing us, his "friend," the viewer. Or is he...?

In any case, it is a brilliantly-conceived opening sequence by Sam Esmail. Looking forward to seeing how it all fits in once we know the truth about everything that is actually going on.



Posted by Geoff at 8:20 AM CDT
Updated: Friday, August 26, 2016 6:17 PM CDT
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Wednesday, August 17, 2016
'SCARFACE' POSTER IN 'WAR DOGS'
AND TWO OTHER DE PALMA FILMS IN FILMS




Previously:
Scarface Poster A Key Part of Trainwreck Joke


Posted by Geoff at 9:10 PM CDT
Updated: Wednesday, August 17, 2016 9:13 PM CDT
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Tuesday, August 16, 2016
FREE DE PALMA SERIES IN MADISON THROUGH SEPT.
DOUBLE FEATURES ON FRIDAYS BEGINNING AUGUST 26, PLUS 'DE PALMA' DOC, ALL FREE


Cinematheque at University of Wisconsin has scheduled a Brian De Palma series around a September 2 screening of the De Palma documentary. Four tantalizing double features are included: Dressed To Kill and Blow Out (both from DCP) on Friday August 26th, Sisters and Raising Cain (both in 35mm) on Friday September 9th, Obsession and Body Double (both from DCP) on Friday September 16th, and Mission: Impossible and The Untouchables (both in 35mm) on Friday September 23rd. Also included is Scarface (DCP), doubling as part of the Cinematheque's "Marquee Mondays" series on Monday September 19th. All screenings will be free of charge.

Posted by Geoff at 11:57 PM CDT
Updated: Wednesday, August 24, 2016 8:36 PM CDT
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