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| Dressed to Kill | 
| Category: Movie
Buy New: $7.49
Avg. Customer Rating:  104 reviews
Sales Rank: 25654
Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: Video On Demand
Running Time: 105 minutes
ASIN: B000IZ2YH4
Theatrical Release Date: July 24, 1980
Release Date: November 20, 2008 (New: Last 30 Days)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
De Palma's mastery of the craft August 2, 2005
10 out of 13 found this review helpful
There are sequences in DRESSED TO KILL that may be as formally accomplished as any film sequences ever made. The scene in the police station, with multiple framings and glass partitions mirroring De Palma's use of the split screen in other sequences (and with the characters secretly eavesdropping and spying on one another while being oblivious to how they are being spied on by others) is a virtuoso example, but the most stunning--and the most famous--may be Angie Dickinson's cruising sequence in the museum, with Dickinson lured and teased by a mysterious man with whom she's flirting. Although this was a big hit when released, DRESSED TO KILL has not sustained its reputation quite so much over the years as much as other De Palma films have, such as CARRIE and THE UNTOUCHABLES and even SISTERS. In part this may be because the homages to Hitchcock in this film are a bit TOO over the top, even for De Palma. (The dream sequence at the end, as beautifully accomplished as it is, was a mistake to include after the similar dream sequence ending CARRIE.) It's also hurt by the feeble acting of Nancy Allen, De Palma's Tippi Hedren and wife at the time: although memorable as the spoiled beauty queen in CARRIE, Allen just didn't have the chops to compete onscreen with Michael Caine or, particularly, the astonishing Dickinson, who gives a superbly nuanced and sympathetic performance as the lonely aging beauty despite the fact that she has so few lines in the first half of the film. But the great technical virtuosity of this film carries all before it: no one can play with multiple points of view like De Palma can, and his very jokey script allows him numerous opportunities to play hilariously mean pranks on his characters.
This edition of the film comes with a fine featurette with Keith Gordon, who plays the teenage hero of the film, analyzing De Palma's techniques in this film with genuien insight; it also has another featurette that seems like a real mistake about the controversies surrounding the film's release, with De Palma still bitterly whining about accusations at the time of the film's putative misogyny and sensationalism (given his spectacular subsequent career in Hollywood, and the film's financial success when it was released, his grousing seems churlish).
 dressed to thrill italian style April 18, 2005
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
I think this is one of the best american thrillers ever. Yes i said it. It captures perfectly the atmosphere of the 1980s slasher craze, but De Palma bathes his film in a beautiful light which makes everything look smooth and sensual. Much in contrast to many other cheap looking slasher films of this period De palma has always been compared to Hitchcock, and it is obvious in parts of the construction of this film, but what a lot of reviewers miss is his obvious debt to the Italian thrillers of the 60s and 70s. Like Mario Bava and Dario Argento. with fluid camera movements, straight from Bavas Blood an Black Lace and black clad killers like that of Argentos The Bird With the Crystal Plumage 1971. Dressed to Kill is very stylish and is ajoy to watch. Great actors ,great music, sets camera action slash slash slash. Tenebrae by Dario Argento has some similarities to this film. So De Palma and Argento obviously have a close eye on each other. Ciao for now.
Murder never goes out of fashion. March 10, 2005
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
First of all, kudos to MGM/UA for a great disc that gives a lot of bang for buck. As on the 'Carrie' disc, they have gone out of their way in the extras department. And this is the first really satisfying visual presentation I have seen, restoring the film's lucious widescreen cinematography to its uncut version - which was around on VHS for a lot of years, but mutilated by the extreme cropping.
A lot has been said about this film's relationship to 'Psycho'. With it's bookend shower scenes and borrowed structure, it is clear that DePalma wants us to know who he is referencing.
But the style comes straight from Italy, and the actual experience is much closer to watching a giallo than a Hitchcock picture. The slinky stalking camerawork, heightened atmosphere, perverse visual fetishism, copious sex and bloodletting... This movie owes at least as much to Mario Bava (and probably Argento) as it does to Hitchcock. Bava's seminal giallo (inspired by 'Psycho') 'Blood and Black Lace' established all of these elements back in the sixties - but the influence of the Italian thrillers didn't hit American movies until the late seventies/early eighties with 'Eyes of Laura Mars', 'Halloween', 'Alien' and 'Friday the 13th'. All of these movies have direct ties to Italian thrillers and horror films - and I think we can add 'Dressed to Kill' to the list.
For my money, this is the best of that bunch, although I wouldn't sniff at 'Alien' or 'Halloween' - solid enough pictures to be sure. But 'Dressed to Kill' captures the intoxicating feel of the best gialli and localizes it. Its also a lot wittier than the others - and head and shoulders above the timid Hollywood 'thrillers' of today, that are afraid of alienating anyone in the audience by actually thrilling them.
DePalma has no such qualms - a flash here, a goose there, the dialogue is littered with little surprises... This one is elegant and juicy.
Don't bother with the cajones-free R rated version. The disc thankfully gives us a choice between that 'gotta-have-it-to-get-into-Blockbuster' cut and the down-and-dirty real deal.
A helluva movie.
 All you have to do is watch this film March 10, 2005
3 out of 6 found this review helpful
to understand exactly why it's so purely mediocre (hint: the acting. Allen and Dickinson aren't capable of better and Caine needed the bucks, apparently), or you can just read some of the "reviews" below that give the whole film away, and save the time.
By the way, I borrowed your razor... January 16, 2005
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
First-class entertainment with a great cast, superb direction, a classy script, great suspense and a beautiful music score. Angie Dickonson, Michael Caine and Nancy Allen are the main cast members and are also the main highlights of the film. The elevator scene is absolutely chilling. In the vein of "Psycho," this is one of Brian De Palma's best in the entertainment and shock department. Highly recommended. See the uncensored version if possible.
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