Born on September 11, 1940, in New Jersey, USA, director De Palma grew up in Philadelphia. His father was an orthopedic surgeon. His father's profession is important; because the master director says that he always acquired his curiosity for blood and violence while watching his father at work.
De Palma, who was initially interested in physics, started attending Columbia University to study the subject. The artist, who changed his mind soon after, first studied theater and then cinema.
His first medium-length film, "Ikarus", shot in 1960, was followed by "6601224, The Story of an IBM Card" and "Wotan's Wake", which brought him various awards.
Brian De Palma shot his first feature film, "The Wedding Party", while he was studying at Sarah Lawrence University. This semi-improvised comedy work is also the first film of Robert De Niro and Jill Clayburgh.
Brian Russell De Palma (born September 11, 1940) is an American film director and screenwriter. With a career spanning over 50 years, he is best known for work in the suspense, crime and psychological thriller genres. His films include mainstream box office hits such as Carrie (1976), Dressed to Kill (1980), Scarface (1983), The Untouchables (1987), and Mission: Impossible (1996), as well as cult favorites such as Sisters (1972), Phantom of the Paradise (1974), Blow Out (1981), Body Double (1984), Casualties of War (1989), and Carlito's Way (1993).
After this first film, De Palma opened an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, in addition to making many documentaries and short films such as "The Responsive Eye".
The artist shot his second feature film "Murder A la Mod" in 1967. This movie was a quality thriller and made reference to Hitchcock.
The anti-establishment attitude that prevailed in the 60s pushed De Palma to make satirical films. Of these, “Greetings” won the Silver Bear Award at the Berlin Film Festival; “Hi Mom” helped him rank high among young American directors.
After this, De Palma attracted the attention of major Hollywood studios. However, the work that brought him his first big success was the modest and independent production "Sisters". Leaving behind the semi-improvisational style of his previous films, the artist proved that he is on par with the best Hollywood directors by demonstrating his talent in elements such as writing structure, image planning, and rhythm.
Two years after this success, De Palma shot the musical thriller "Phantom of the Paradise" and was awarded the Grand Prize at the 1975 Avoriaz Film Festival. In 1976, the romantic thriller "Obsession", which he wrote and directed with Paul Schrader and starring Cliff Robertson and Genevieve Bujold, was followed by "Carrie", which earned an Oscar nomination for Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie and became a worldwide success. This movie, which also stars Nancy Allen, John Travolta, and Amy Irving, is still one of the best Stephen King adaptations. Both the last scene and other scenes have been imitated many times over the years.
RESPECT TO HITCHCOCK
De Palma was farsighted enough to see that anti-organization films would soon become obsolete. That's why he started imitating Alfred Hitchcock in "Sisters" by using the "split-screen" technique popular in 60s movies such as "Grand Prix" and "The Boston Strangler".
De Palma not only admitted that he was inspired by Hitchcock in "Sisters", but also underlined his respect for Hitchcock by working with Hitchcock's musical director Bernard Herrman.
“Obsession” was one of several films in which De Palma imitated Hitchcock’s “Vertigo,” and this film revealed the director's interest in 360-degree camera pans. De Palma's most successful film to date, "Carrie", saw a return to the split-screen technique. The story ends with a "reverse shock" ending, one of De Palma's hallmarks, turning out to be a nightmare.
RETURN TO THRILLER WITH “DRESSED TO KILL”
In 1977, De Palma directed "The Fury," starring Kirk Douglas, John Cassavetes, and Amy Irving. This spy movie was a production that combined cult and political fiction.
In 1978, with the help of fellow students at Sarah Lawrence, he made "Home Movies," a semi-autobiographical film starring Kirk Douglas and Nancy Allen.
De Palma returned to the thriller genre in 1980 and directed "Dressed to Kill," starring Michael Caine, Nancy Allen, and Angie Dickinson. De Palma, who then wrote and directed “Blow Out,” used his two favorite themes in this film: Voyeurism and manipulation.
In 1982, he worked with Al Pacino and Michelle Pfeifer in the new adaptation of "Scarface", which contained extreme violence, written by Oliver Stone. "Body Double", which he directed in 1984, was Melanie Griffith's debut film. Leaving behind the film genre that brought him fame, Brian directed the stunning visual epic “Untouchables.” The film brought an Oscar to Sean Connery, one of the leading actors, and Kevin Costner and Andy Garcia to moviegoers.
In 1989, he watched the war movie "Casualties of War", starring Michael J Fox and Sean Penn, and in 1990, "The Bonfire of War", adapted from Tom Wolfe's satirical novel and starring Tom Hanks, Melanie Griffith, and Bruce Willis. The Vanities” followed. De Palma returned to the thriller genre in 1992 with "Raising Cain" starring John Lightow and Lolita Davidovich and "Carlito's Way" starring Al Pacino.
FIRST SCIENCE FICTION EXPERIENCE
The famous director turned "Mission Impossible" into a movie in 1996, which was a great success as a television series, and brought together Tom Cruise, John Voight, Emanuelle Beart, and Jean Reno. This movie became an international success. The next movie, "Snake Eyes", starred Nicholas Cage and Gary Sinise. In his first science fiction work, "Mission to Mars", Gary Sinise again starred with Tim Robbins, Don Cheadle, and Connie Nelson. The director abandoned the earthly tension and violence in this film, but this time he moved them to another place in the solar system.
THE QUEST FOR FREEDOM
De Palma, who likes to benefit from the opportunities provided by the studio system, like most American directors, says that he does not like the rigid and studio-oriented attitude of the producers, lawyers, and marketing departments who hold all the power.
ON ‘FEMME FATALE’
In the shooting of the film, which uses an aesthetic style specific to noir cinema, a very mobile camera system was used, although it contradicts this style. There is too much camera movement in the film to allow it to be categorized as cinema noir. The director, who also draws attention with his ability to play with visual memory, makes light touches on reality with repeated scenes in this film. It is said that Brian has clear ideas about costumes. Bruce Willis, who is surrounded by extras in black and white in 'The Bonfire of the Vanities', or Melanie Griffith, who wears an orange dress while all the other women wear black and white... We frequently encounter similar details in 'Femme Fatale'.
“HE PLANS SCENES LIKE A PAINTER”
Antonio Banderas, one of the leading actors in the film, said his thoughts about De Palma: “Among the directors I know, Brian has the most developed visual ability. He plans the scenes like a painter, does not hide them, and allows the actors to act for 6-7 minutes continuously while capturing complex and beautiful movements with the camera. I also like that he doesn't care much about realism and doesn't constantly try to justify his actions. "Like Almodovar and Kubrick, Brian does not feel the need to explain every behavior of the characters," he says.
He was married to Nancy Allen, with whom he frequently collaborated in his early films, from 1979 to 1983. He was married for the second time to producer Gale Anne Hurd from 1991 to 1993, and their daughter Lolita De Palma was born from this union. The director, who had a short marriage with Darnell Gregorio, had a daughter named Piper in 1996.