Dressed To Kill The Reel Image 2 reels

DRESSED TO KILL.

(1980) Filmways Pictures Inc.

Kate Miller (Angie Dickinson) is an attractive but ageing woman, dissatisfied with the sexual side of her marriage. She suffers from vivid erotic fantasies and visits a psychiatrist (Michael Caine). After failing to seduce him she picks up a man at an art gallery, and when leaving his apartment is savagely murdered in the lift. The murder is witnessed by a young woman who is then hunted by the killer.

Brian De Palma has made quite an impact in recent years with a string of highly individual horror movies (Obsession, Carrie" The Fury etc.). His distinctive visual style coupled with gruesome horror and often a strong sexual theme all a up to a powerful cinematic experience. Carrie, his most successful film to date is certainly worth seeing (a very good 4 reeler is available on Super 8 ). Dressed To Kill is possibly a less satisfying work than Carrie, but all the De Palma style is there. His powerful framings give an almost surreal feeling, with shots of quite ordinary objects taking on a weird and disturbing aspect, The way lie builds tension with dramatic visuals certainly owes a lot to the \York of directors like Hitchcock and Nick Roeg and in fact Hitchcock is acknowledged in both the lift and shower scenes, but the overall feeling is 100% De Palma there's no plagiarism here.

This 17 minute version is not a cut down in the usual sense, It is, as stated on the box, selected scenes and no real attempt has been made to tell a coherent story, Therefore the editing, such as it is, can't really be criticized. If you saw the feature and enjoyed it, this version will make an exciting addition to your collection. As there is little or no editing within scenes the pace is just as it should be and the nail - biting tension is allowed to build up. However. if you have not seen the original, the 1 plot' as presented in this version won't make much sense, so perhaps the 6 reeler would be a better buy. Incidentally this film is totally unsuitable for children.

Definition is very slightly soft, but the excellent colour and tonal range more than make up for this. Sound is a little thin, but otherwise good.