De Palma (2016)
* * * - Okay
There was a time when Brian De Palma was my favorite director working. My love started when I watched Dressed to Kill in the early 80s, it survived Bonfire of the Vanities and died during my first viewing of Snake Eyes. That said, I understand what a bucket of hot coal De Palma is. So while I was going to love this movie on one level no matter what, it's too bad the documentary chooses a path of ignorance. It basically pulls the pin on the filmmaker's career and lets it explode. De Palma frequently cites his obvious influences and frequent misogyny with no apology or even an explanation as to what he thought he did to transform the influences. De Palma is a captivating speaker, but he essentially proves his harsh critics correct. This didn't re-ignite my appreciation of the filmmaker or his films. One insight I did realize, he's worked with the greatest composers in film history: Herrmann, Williams and Morricone