'Forthcoming' Lists Discussion and Random Speculation Vol.2

[zachhh]

De Palma has a ton of obscure early work, so it really could be anything. That said, I think it's going to be one of the De Niro pictures: The Wedding Party, Greetings, or Hi, Mom. I hope it's not Obsession.

His early work with De Niro was anything but memorable and would be a waste of time for CC in my opinion. i'm sure it will be Obsession

[MyNameCriterionForum]

Pleeeeeeeeease be Femme Fatale

[Cold Bishop]

I'd buy Obsession in aheartbeat IF it included Schrader's original screenplay in the booklet, considering he always felt that De Palma "butchered his masterpiece", and of course, De Palma did drop the complete final act of the narrative.

[Caged Horse]

Sorry, but have I overnight slipped into some parallel universe where Body Double is regarded as anything other than an excruciatingly hammy and misogynist, cinematic coke-trip-cum-wank-fantasy?

[tojoed]

Sorry, but have I overnight slipped into some parallel universe where Body Double is regarded as anything other than an excruciatingly hammy and misogynist, cinematic coke-trip-cum-wank-fantasy?

No, you've always lived in a different world to the rest of us. It didn't take long for the word "misogynist" to appear, did it? Sigh.

[Caged Horse]

Robert Kolker said it best in an earlier edition A Cinema of Loneliness, words to the effect that De Palma has spent his entire career trying to emulate Hitchcock, without once realising that there's more to Hitchcock than violence against women.

I'm happy to steer well clear of a world in which porn stars are raped with power drills to the tune of Frankie Goes To Hollywood (hard to decide which is worse!).

Though, that said, Frankie was a perfect fit with De Palma: empty, eye-rolling transgressiveness that's good for some free publicity but not a lot else, and whose genuine hits can be counted on the fingers of one hand (with fingers to spare).

[MoonlitKnight]

I trust Criterion wouldn't waste their time on an utter turkey like The Fury.

It's pretty clearly gonna be Hi, Mom!

Works for me!

I'd rather see its predecessor, "Greetings" finally rescued from public domain purgatory. But, hey, a double feature would be even better!

[zachhh]

Sorry, but have I overnight slipped into some parallel universe where Body Double is regarded as anything other than an excruciatingly hammy and misogynist, cinematic coke-trip-cum-wank-fantasy?

You sound like roger ebert reviewing Blue Velvet

[justeleblanc]

Hi Mom is actually brilliant, haters. But what about a collection of his early shorts partnered with Scorsese's?

[Highway 61]

Imagine if it were actually Scarface. The forum backlash would be epic.

[aox]

Imagine if it were actually Scarface. The forum backlash would be epic.

Yep. So much so that I am sort of rooting for it.

[stereo]

Hi Mom is actually brilliant, haters. But what about a collection of his early shorts partnered with Scorsese's?

Agreed. I love that De Palma divides people so much. I remember being in line at Scarecrow Video in Seattle and the guy ahead of me loudly ripping on Criterion to his friend to show off his elite taste in hating Sisters so much. People seem to either think he's a master (ala Tarantino and Kael) or a worthless hack --a Hitch wannabe. I'll take his hack over many an 'auteur's' output most days of the week. There are some stinkers (The Fury, Mission to Mars, Wise Guys, Bonfire of the Vanities), but they're not Greetings or Hi Mom! which are actually quite strong and from the era when he was trying to be the American Godard; they blend farce and dark political satire. He's been adored in France for quite awhile now as an auteur (Cahiers du Cinema named Carlito's Way the best film of the 1990s) and my guess is they'd pull in some of the shorts from the Carlotta release. However, I wish they'd get some of the even more obscure shorts not covered on that release. Home Movies is a key De Palma film, but I'd be surprised to see it. Body Double, Obsession, and Dressed to Kill would be a lot of fun for various reasons. Casualties of War is brutal, but full of strong performances. Films like Get to Know Your Rabbit and Snake Eyes were notoriously cut outside his grasp and one wishes they weren't. I liked the Something Weird release of the very odd Murder ala Mod, but The Wedding Party doesn't quite work (although it introduced De Niro, pre-Scorsese even though De Palma never properly receives that credit). Raising Cain and Blow Out are both undervalued IMO and of late I felt Black Dahlia overhyped, but loved Femme Fatale and liked the multimedia experiment of Redacted. People often cringe at the hyper-melodrama as a lower art form which I find a banal critique. And Scarface, while not a masterpiece, is not a bad film at all and certainly attached itself to popular culture in a way few films ever have. Still, it's fun to watch people get so angry over De Palma; people seem to like to use him on both sides: love him or hate him, to affirm their sense of cinematic taste (I'll count myself guilty as well).

--oh yeah, and if I had to place my bets on CC spine, it would be Phantom of the Paradise.

[Fortisquince]

Don't know about the rights issues, but wouldn't Redacted be a likley candidate for a Criterion release?

[aox]

(Cahiers du Cinema named Carlito's Way the best film of the 1990s)

Really? Thank you so much for letting me know that.

Cahiers du Cinema credibility = Gone

Won't bother to read it ever again. I can't tell you how much I appreciate that.

[Tribe]

I've only walked out of three movies in my life. Hitchcock's Family Plot, Lynch's Dune, Altman's Prêt-à-Porter and Carlito's Way....and I have to add that of the three, the only one I walked out on because it was superbly awful was Carlito's Way.

[tojoed]

You mean 4?

[stereo]

(Cahiers du Cinema named Carlito's Way the best film of the 1990s)

Really? Thank you so much for letting me know that.

Cahiers du Cinema credibility = Gone

Won't bother to read it ever again. I can't tell you how much I appreciate that.

I'm here for you, aox, for you.

[tojoed]

I bet Cahiers are devastated that Aox won't be reading them again.

[swo17]

It's a moot point though really, since Cahiers doesn't publish in Blu-ray.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

I think Carlito's Way is better than Goodfellas, generally, but then I think Donnie Brasco is better too.

As for DePalma's early work, I think it's some of his most ambitious stuff, but also falls farthest from reaching its mark.

I'd be elated with a CC Phantom or Femme or Blow Out and merely pleased with Carlito or Scarface.

Obsession was okay but felt derivative (shocking, I know) and truncated at the same time.

[Highway 61]

Don't know about the rights issues, but wouldn't Redacted be a likley candidate for a Criterion release?

Unlikely. This would mean that Criterion had cut a deal with Mark Cuban's HDNet, which we likely would have heard rumors about by now. Plus, whatever Redacted's merits, this would also mean that Sasha Grey would likely be entering the collection, and we should all hold out hope that that never happens.

And regarding Carlito's Way, I'm surprised it engenders such extreme reactions, positive or negative. It's clearly not the greatest film of the 90s, nor is it the outright travesty some are making it out to be.

[tavernier]

this would also mean that Sasha Grey would likely be entering the collection, and we should all hold out hope that that never happens.

Wha--? Anal Cavity Search 6 with the wacky C would be amazing!

[aox]

I never said I didn't like Carlito's Way. I found it entertaining for what it is. I even own a copy.

Did Armageddon and In the Line of Fire make numbers 2 & 3 on the Cahiers du Cinema 1990s list? Where did the Pelican Brief fall with its deep environmental commentary?

[swo17]

No, but they were also very fond of Face/Off. And Cloverfield.

[CSM126]

I bet the de Palma is Raising Cain just to piss everyone off.