DE PALMA

A disappointment in some ways. Some good parts, and it's always interesting to get to know a well-known filmmaker a little more. But the movie never asks him about his obsession with stairs and stairways. It's a thing he returns to time and time again, all the way back to his student films, and yet, it's never brought up as the PATTERN it clearly is. Sure, they talk about the stairs scene in UNTOUCHABLES, but don't mention all the other ways stairs figure into his films. I always wanted someone to ask him about that. Finally, De Palma also comes across as a bit of a creep, in terms of how much he seems to enjoy the portrayal blood and guts and violence in his films.

SCORE: 45.