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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
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The Black Dahlia 2006


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De Palma a la Mod
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Friday, December 19, 2014
BORDWELL ON DE PALMA'S 'MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE'
VISUAL STORYTELLING & THE IMPORTANCE OF SOUND (AND LACK THEREOF)
Thanks to Peter for sending in this link to a David Bordwell essay about Brian De Palma's Mission: Impossible, which was posted almost two weeks ago. Bordwell begins by stating, "The phrase 'visual storytelling' is a very modern invention." And yet, Bordwell points out, "Visual storytelling is seldom purely visual. In film, it needs concepts and music and noises and even dialogue to work most fully. We can learn a lot, I think, by starting with 'purely visual' passages and see how they’re reinforced by other inputs."

Bordwell briefly discusses Alfred Hitchcock as "the most vociferous defender of visual storytelling," before moving on to De Palma, defender of "the purity of the pictures in motion pictures." (Bordwell then lists four quotes from De Palma, including one from my own interview with the director from 2002.) This all leads up to Bordwell's discussion of the invasion sequence in De Palma's Mission: Impossible, which "runs an astonishing eighteen minutes and, as typical of a film’s Development section, constitutes almost pure delay. You can imagine doing it in a couple of minutes, or a lot more," states Bordwell.

Screenwriter David Koepp provided Bordwell with information about the production, and is quoted in the essay: "[De Palma] had another great idea, which was a reaction to the current state of summer movies at the time. He was tired of all the noise, of the bigger bigger bigger noisier noisier noisier setpieces, and desperately wanted to come up with one that used silence instead. He cackled at the idea of a big summer movie set piece that was predicated on silence."

"The result," Bordwell points out, "is nice case study in visual storytelling. It also indicates how even a pure instance needs non-visual elements to be understood."

Perhaps even more interesting is the next section of the essay, in which Bordwell analyzes the opening sequence of Mission: Impossible, focusing on the visual and audio information happening behind Emilio Estevez as Jack:

"Once the official Kasimov has given the name Ethan needs, the team’s goal is achieved and Jack can search it on his computer. In the meantime, Kasimov needs to be dragged off without fuss, and so must be given a drugged drink. That, we now understand, is the task of the woman hovering in the background of Jack’s shots. We’ve also been primed by the tray with bottle and glasses in the first shot.

"One option would be to pan or cut to the woman behind Jack and show her doping the drink. (This is what the shooting script seems to call for.) We might even see the woman’s face as she does it, but even if we don’t, a shot emphasizing her would give us a lot of other inessential information about the room.

"De Palma makes another choice. This woman is important only in terms of what she does. Panning to her, or supplying a separate shot, and showing her face might make her seem as important a character as Jack, Ethan, or Claire. She’s not. So De Palma reduces her to her function: doping the drink. And for economy, she does it in the same setup previously devoted to Jack’s reaction. She’s kept in the background."

As always, Bordwell illustrates his essay generously with many stills from the film.


Posted by Geoff at 1:15 AM CST
Post Comment | View Comments (5) | Permalink | Share This Post

Friday, December 19, 2014 - 5:55 PM CST

Name: "harry georgatos"

The film is sublime visual storytelling but the story and premise is undemanding, simple and predictable! The first 30 minutes was excellent and a genuine espionage feel. Once Ethan meets Max it bogs down in dull exposition till we get to the CIA heist sequence which is pure visual storytelling similar to a silent movie. Only problem seeing Ethan hang over a computer console seems so familiar, from films such as TOPKAPI, RIFFI to THE RED CIRCLE, countless tv programs and commercials. There's really nothing new in that set-piece apart from De Palma's visual treatment. Then there's another dull section in a London safe house with a two minute flashback of Ethan's assassinated IMF team at Prague that was brilliantly realized by De Palma, with further dull exposition leading to the TGV set-piece which is brilliantly put together but ultimately laughable and unbelievable. Anyone who could not see Phelps as the villian should be ashamed of themselves. I got nothing against Phelps being the culprit but not as obvious and predictable as this. If the film had the level of characterization as Richard Boone's character in THE KREMLIN LETTER I would have loved this film but unfortunately this film is a spy film for kids!! It's not the story I was expecting. The opening scene with Jack behind the console should have been a detailed set-piece where the Russian was followed, drugged and transported to the fake hotel room in the warehouse. That type of detailed methodology would have given more believability to the operation. The story is extremely simple and unbelievable and has none of the mindbending aspects to the vintage tv show. The premise isn't believable and has plot-holes that can't be forgiven!

Sunday, December 21, 2014 - 4:44 PM CST

Name: "silencio"

Brian is the best director the franchise has had.

Monday, December 22, 2014 - 7:37 PM CST

Name: "jane"

I think Brian DePalma wanted to write the screenplay himself but they wouldn't let him.

Monday, December 22, 2014 - 9:57 PM CST

Name: "movie geek"

I don't care that much about the finer detail and logic. What I love about Brian DePalma is his style. DePalma's style for me is more important then logic.

Tuesday, December 23, 2014 - 12:37 AM CST

Name: "nick"

the meaning a DePalma film is in the image. Style with substance instead of images without substance.

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