Ultimate Giallo

Dressed to Kill (1980) - De Palma






Dressed to Kill is nothing but one elaborate set piece to another, strung together with plenty of nudity and blood for your pleasure. Boobs, pubes and talk of erections for everyone to hear. De Palma has a technical craft that many Italian giallo directors lacked. In that sense, the film is an ultimate giallo. Is it as enjoyable as, Deep Red or Strip Nude for Your Killer? No. Even though De Palma possesses that perverse voyeuristic tendencies and technical know-how, it lacks sensuality. The film's endless optical trickery and parallel actions, time bending slow-mo scenes, high camera angles and dolly shots are way too showy. I get the feeling that De Palma is a great student of cinema and takes elements and techniques from others but remains only to be a great copycat, never an auteur, even more so than Tarantino. He lacks the beauty and grace some other visualist directors - Argento, Park Chan Wook, Refn possess. Dressed to Kill was enjoyable and I am willing to explore more from his filmography. Let's see if I change my mind on him.

Hawkeyed Badassery

Get Carter (1971) - Hodges

This was on TCM last night and it was the reason I stayed up until 2am. The godfather of all contemporary revenge flick, ain't it? You can see its influences everywhere from Scarface to countless Nic Cage movies. And of course it's Michael fucking Caine.

Caine plays Jack Carter, a small time crony hell bent on finding out just who killed his brother. His no-nonsense, hawkeyed badassery slowly but surely penetrates the tight lipped small time organization and easy broads alike. But its Hodges' abrupt style in dreary industrial, row houses set England that makes the movie great. His paralleling action sequences are not that of smooth, time defining, showy nonsense we are now used to by talentless hacks but has real sense of rhythm and purpose. The phone sex scene (with sexy Britt Ekland of Wicker Man, no less) is obviously way ahead of its time. And of course the legendary ending at the muddy beach.... They don't make 'em like this anymore.