Body Double (1984)

Director:

Brian De Palma

Writers:

Brian De Palma (story)
Robert J. Avrech (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

26 October 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

A seduction. A mystery. A murder.

Plot:

Jake comes home to find his girlfriend with another man and has to find a new place. In between his acting workshops and his job in a vampire B-movie...

Plot Keywords:

Neighbor | Neo Noir | Acting Lesson | Atmospheric | Erotic Thriller

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Craig Wasson	...	Jake Scully
Melanie Griffith	...	Holly Body
Gregg Henry	...	Sam Bouchard
Deborah Shelton	...	Gloria Revelle
Guy Boyd	...	Det. Jim McLean
Dennis Franz	...	Rubin the Director
David Haskell	...	Will the Drama Teacher
Rebecca Stanley	...	Kimberly Hess
Al Israel	...	Corso the Director
Douglas Warhit	...	Video Salesman
B.J. Jones	...	Douglas
Russ Marin	...	Frank
Lane Davies	...	Billy
Barbara Crampton	...	Carol
Larry Flash Jenkins	...	Assistant Director (as Larry 'Flash' Jenkins)

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Canada:R (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Singapore:R21 (re-rating) (cut) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) (re-rating) (2003) | Australia:MA (TV rating) | New Zealand:R18 | Canada:18+ (Quebec) (original rating) | Italy:VM14 (re-rating) | Finland:K-18 (uncut) (1985) (theatrical) | Singapore:R(A) (cut) | Finland:K-16 (uncut) (2000) (DVD) | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1988) (VHS) | Australia:R | Argentina:18 | France:-12 | Italy:VM18 | Norway:15 (cut) | Norway:16 (1985) | Portugal:M/18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18 | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

802 N. Bedford Dr., Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

'Deborah Shelton' 's voice is dubbed.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the dressing room, the saleswoman pulls a curtain partly closed. In the next shot, the curtains are in their original position until Gloria Revell herself closes them further.

Quotes:

Sam Bouchard: Don't be so melodramatic.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Desperately Seeking Seka (2002) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Main Theme

De Palma Gets Kinky

Beware, revisiting old favorites can be a heartbreaking experience. Ever since I saw Carrie (1976), I've tried to watch all the films made by Brian De Palma that I could get my hands on. I watched Body Double right after it was released on VHS for the very first time, and I remember being pleased by this movie. Unfortunately, I don't think the film holds up well - it is definitely one of De Palma's less effective thrillers. As with most films by this director, the movie is an obvious homage to the cinema of Hitchcock. This time around, De Palma attempts to widen the scope of the film by making references to more than just one of Hitch's classic films. The end result is a film that has a few great individual sequences, but overall, the movie fails to offer something besides the intended tribute. It is a clever copycat, but a copycat nevertheless. Moreover, at some point, De Palma seems to be paying homage to himself, with some sequences looking too similar to scenes in his own previous movies. It does not help that he has an impossibly bland actor (Craig Wasson) in the leading role. De Palma needed someone we could have identified with (I would have settled for John Travolta, the star of De Palma's "Blow Out"). It is not a complete waste of time (especially if you are a fan of the director), but it is definitively minor De Palma. Still, Pino Donaggio's music score and Stephen Burum's cinematography are top class.