Angie Dickinson stars in this thriller from director Brian De Palma that earned him comparisons with Alfred Hitchcock, master of suspense. I can confirm that De Palma told this tale with shock after shock in the Hitchcock tradition!
Angie stars as Kate Miller, a frustrated housewife, still beautiful but unfulfilled. Her surprising opening scene will make you sit up and take notice. Her fantasies get unexpectedly fulfilled when she visits the museum, catching the eye of a handsome stranger. Another surprising scene takes place in the taxicab on the way to the stranger's apartment. When she awakens, she is alone. She searches through the stranger's desk and finds something. As she leaves the apartment, another surprising turn of events takes place. The only witness to this is a prostitute, Liz, played by Nancy Allen. She plays a prominent part in the rest of the story.
We are introduced to Dr. Robert Elliott, (Michael Caine), who lends a mysterious air to his portrayal of the psychiatrist. Dr. Elliott is Kate's analyst and we are embarrassed to be a witness to Kate's sharing of her sexual fantasies. We also meet Kate's son, Peter, a techno-geek, whose hobby helps him find out whodunit. These characters all pick up the story until the end.
Another surprise, at least for me was the police detective was portrayed by Dennis Franz, one of my old favorites from Hill Street Blues. Dennis makes a heck of a detective and really digs to get to the bottom of the tangled mess De Palma has given him.
Dressed to Kill has a lot going for it. The story and direction are a tribute to Alfred Hitchcock, with twists of its own. No, it is not a blatant rip-off of Psycho, Rear Window, Vertigo, or other Hitchcock films. It uses scenes in the same way that Hitchcock would, but they are De Palma's scenes. The photography and film editing are terrific. The use of pictures to tell the story rather than dialog is particularly well done. Interesting camera angles abound. De Palma also uses split screen to show two separate stories at the same time. Combine that with a beautiful original score by Pino Donaggio and you have one terrific film.
Not recommended for children due to nudity, sexual situations, and graphic violence.
Fans of this film will also like Brian De Palma's Scarface, Carlito's Way, and The Untouchables, and Alfred Hitchcock's suspense classic Psycho. Four stars.
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