Brian De Palma was obsessed with Alfred Hitchcock and was never shy about it. We've covered his pastiche and homage, but we've never really talked about how to appreciate these two auteurs at the same time. Early in his career, critics said that De Palma was just ripping off the greats, and maybe they had a point. If you look at Sisters, his 1973 breakout, the evidence is pretty damning. You've got a journalist who witnesses a crime from her window, a score from Bernard Herrmann, and all the complex themes of voyeurism, identity, and murder.But there’s a massive difference between imitation and conversation.De Palma wasn't just tracing Hitchcock's lines; he was grabbing the master's playbook and scribbling in the margins. To understand this, I wanted to show you this great TCM clip with Ben Mankiewicz and Mario Cantone looking at Hitchcock's Rear Window and De Palma's Sisters back-to-back.Let's dive in. TCM Breaks Down Hitchcock and De PalmaOkay, so when Rear Window came out, it was a massive hit and entered the cultural lexicon. It made Alfred Hitchcock one of the most popular directors in Hollywood and solidified his legend.Hitchcock actually built a neighborhood on Paramount to shoot, and cast the biggest actors of the day in starring roles. He has complete control of the time, weather, and got all the shots he wanted. The movie's resounding success echoes through history. So, almost 20 years later, is it any surprise that a young Brian De Palma would be inspired to...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Today