Body Double (1984)
Average Rating: 6.4/10
Reviews Counted: 28
Fresh: 22 | Rotten: 6
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 1
Fresh: 1 | Rotten: 0
liked it
Average Rating: 3.2/5
User Ratings: 7,991
Movie Info
In Body Double, director Brian DePalma pays homage to the Alfred Hitchcock movies Vertigo and Rear Window, adding a few grotesque touches all his own. Craig Wasson plays Jake, a struggling actor who keeps losing jobs because of his claustrophobia. To make matters worse, his girlfriend has walked out on him, so he has no place to sleep. His pal offers him the use of his apartment for the evening. The apartment happens to be equipped with a huge picture window and telescope, enabling him to spy on
Jan 1, 1984 Wide
Mar 6, 2001
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Watch It Now
Cast
-
Craig Wasson
Jake Scully -
Ty Randolph
Tina -
Gregg Henry
Sam Bouchard -
Melanie Griffith
Holly, Holly Body -
Phil Redrow
Naked Man -
Deborah Shelton
Gloria Revelle -
Guy Boyd
Jim McLean -
Dennis Franz
Rubin -
David Haskell
Drama Teacher -
Linda Shaw
Herself -
Casey Sander
Man #2 (Holly Does H... -
Barbara Peckinpaugh
Girl in Holly Does H... -
Nanci Rogers
Stuntperson -
Rob Paulsen
Cameraman -
Russ Marin
Frank -
Chuck Waters
Jogger -
Richard Warlock
Stuntperson -
Michael White (I)
Security Guard -
Rebecca Stanley
Kimberly -
Brinke Stevens
3rd Girl in Bathroom -
Douglas Warhit
Video Salesman -
David Ursin
Man in Holly Does Ho... -
Jerry Wills
Stuntperson -
Ted Grossman
Stuntperson -
Alexandra Day
1st Girl in Bathroom -
Ray Hassett
Police Officer -
Al Israel
Corso -
Emmett Brown
Studio Guard -
Lane Davies
Billy -
Jerry Brutsche
Police Officer -
Barbara Crampton
Carol -
Denise Loveday
Actress/Vampire Movi... -
Jeremy Lawrence
Theater Director -
Monte Landis
Sid Goldberg -
Roi Loomis
TV Director -
Gela Jacobson
Corso's Secretary -
Larry Flash Jenkins
Assistant Director -
Michael Kearns
Male Porno Star -
B.J. Jones
Douglas -
Slavitza Jovan
Saleslady -
ADVERTISEMENT
Body Double Trailer & Photos
All Critics (32) | Top Critics (4) | Fresh (22) | Rotten (6) | DVD (10)
Is Body Double Brian De Palma's most underrated film or merely a guilty pleasure on my part? Naturally, I make the case for the former.
Sleaze dominates the thin plot and absurd story line.
Classic De Palma. Stylish and Sexy.
It's a mystery, a romance, a horror flick, and a straight-faced parody all rolled into one unique little movie.
...De Palma's expectedly grandiose directorial choices go a long way towards keeping things interesting...
Emblematizes De Palma's refusal to take Hollywood seriously.
Body Double, while not his finest, is the best candidate as Brian De Palma's signature film.
enough to portend the downfall of civilization... a guilty pleasure
Another sexed-up Hitchcockian thriller from Brian De Palma. Plays much better today than it did in 1984.
Kinda stupid, really.
A gripping murder mystery in which director Brian De Palma offers sly tributes to Alfred Hitchcock.
No one can rip off Hitchcock quite like De Palma
A minor De Palma with a few great moments and a soggy leading man.
Uneven, but underrated De Palma effort.
Ultimately, Body Double feels like a film that seems more interested in pleasing itself than pleasing the audience.
Sneaky, bloody but clever reworking of Vertigo
Audience Reviews for Body Double
Super Reviewer
"You Can't Believe Everything You See"
Body Double is Brian De Palma at his core. This is a film that driven by erotica and violence, and De Palma balances the two of the really well, while paying homage(or ripping off, however you want to look at it) to Hitchcock's Vertigo and Rear Window. The film is odd for sure. De Palma isn't known for making non-odd films, but this one is even weirder than his norm.
I liked it for sure. Actually, I loved it for the first hour or so. I loved the scene where Jake follows the woman for like 15 minutes straight on screen. There's little dialogue, but it works perfectly because of genuine suspense being built by watching Jake follow a woman who's being followed by another man. The movie falls apart in its last third, but not enough to change how much I liked the movie, especially the first hour.
Jake is a struggling actor who was just fired from his acting job as a vampire because he is claustrophobic and can't handle the coffin scene. He also just broke up with his girlfriend and doesn't have a place to live. A friend of his sets him up with a nice place and shows him a woman that does a little naked dance in the window every night. Like any guy, Jake watches her every night. Through watching her, he notices another guy watching her, and sees him follow her one day. The guy steals her purse, but Jake gets it back for her. Later that night, Jake views the same guy breaking into her house. He tries to save her, but is too late. Yeah, that's just the set up.
If you are a De Palma fan, you should get a lot of satisfaction out of watching this one. If you aren't a De Palma fan, this movie is why you hate him. It definitely is not anywhere near his best, but there is something that is incredibly interesting about it. I could never recommend this to anyone though, because most people would probably be turned off to it. And I would completely understand why.
Super Reviewer
Discussion Forum
What's Hot On RT
New Desolation of Smaug trailer!
Naomi Watts is Princess Di
The Hangover 3, The Purge, and More
Trailer for a squirrely heist flick
See what's on TV tonight
Fresh Links
Featured
Halloween Movies For Wimps
Scary movies too scary for you? Here are some alternatives for October 31st.
10 Best Superhero TV Shows
HitFix combs through TV history to compile a superpowered list.
Ridiculous Movie Mistakes
RollingStone proves even the best movies miss a details here and there.
Deadly Movie Kids
Moviefone lists 11 Movie Kids Who Could Kick Our Asses.
50 States, 50 Movies
For July 4th, TimeOut has compiled 50 state-specific movie choices.
Promos
Follow RT on Twitter!
Spice up your feed with hourly Tomatometer updates!
Featured on RT
- Primetime Preview: Supernatural, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and More 0
- RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: The Hangover Part III, The Purge, and More 11
- Primetime Preview: Beauty and the Beast, Sleepy Hollow and More 0
- NYFF: Joaquin Phoenix and James Gray talk The Immigrant 2
- Box Office Guru Wrapup: Gravity Stuns with Record $55M Launch 80
- Primetime Preview: Witches of East End, Once Upon a Time and More 4
- Weekly Ketchup: Disney Plans Live Action Cruella de Vil Movie 37
Top Headlines
-
Fox Animated Series, ABC Comedies Tumble in Sunday Ratings
0
-
Bong Joon-ho Reportedly "Furious" About Snowpiercer Cuts
0
-
Record-Setting Number of Films Competing in Foreign-Language Oscar Race
0
-
Woody Allen Cancels Blue Jasmine's India Premiere
1
-
Lionsgate Wants Gary Ross and Jennifer Lawrence's Burial Rites
1
-
ABC Plans Kevin Hart-Inspired Series
0
-
The Shining's Danny Torrance Is All Grown Up
1
Foreign Titles
- Der Tod kommt zweimal (DE)
I enjoyed the performances of Craig Wasson, Dennis Franz, and others, but Body Double may be best remembered for Melanie Griffith's breakthrough role. She's sexy and totally hilarious. Her list of adult acting "restrictions" is one of the all-time greatest monologues. Wasson, who I liked in Ghost Story, is similar to De
Palma's idol Hitchcock's hero in Vertigo Scotty (Jimmy Stewart). He is paralyzed by claustrophobia and "can't act." Wasson as Jake Scully is the perfect unpretentious "set-up witness." I can't fail to mention former Miss America Deborah Shelton as Gloria Revelle, one of the most beautiful women who ever graced the silver screen.
There's a lurid fascination about this film. Its got sex, voyeurism, a power-drill murder, and the most palpable claustrophobia I've seen. You've also the Frankie-Goes-To-Hollywood "Relax" tie-in. It will harken you back to the glory days of MTV. All in all, its great tongue-in-cheek entertainment and, for my money, the most notable voyeur fantasy movie ever.