Brian De Palma’s films are known for their palpable sense of atmosphere. He finds ways to blend a bevy of genres to create dreamy and nightmarish journeys through twisty plot seductions. Known as being a student of Alfred Hitchcock’s style, De Palma’s reputation hasn’t carried the weight and acclaim as many of his contemporaries. He came into the industry and befriended legends Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, George Lucas, and Francis Ford Coppola. Unfortunately, much of De Palma’s work was maligned and ridiculed for either being misogynistic or knock-offs of Hitchcock’s past work.
However, what’s clear when watching his films is his impeccable, unvarnished perfect execution of set pieces and control over the mood of his stories. Often repeating shots, De Palma created a signature style, finding ways to use the split-diopter shot that many would try to replicate, but none could harness quite as the devilish auteur did. It’s been more than a decade and a half since Hollywood let De Palma make a film, as his last few releases have been made overseas with international money. Of course, in his wake, he left a bevy of thrilling and suspenseful classics. Here are his best movies.
Updated September 5, 2022: If you love Brian De Palma’s work, you’ll be happy to know we’ve updated this article with additional content and entries.
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11 Scarface (1983)
Universal Pictures
An indelible piece of American pop culture and also an epic depiction of the American dream gone awry, swallowing up anyone who thinks they can get out of the drug game alive, Scarface is epic. De Palma directed the Oliver Stone script, laced with a bevy of quotable lines and the iconic portrayal of Cuban immigrant Tony Montana from Al Pacino. Scarface is a violent odyssey in the vein of American excess and prestige. Tony’s rise from immigrant to drug king is a story that will live forever, as will the memorable line “Say hello to my little friend!”
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10 Snake Eyes (1998)
Paramount Pictures
De Palma’s grandiose visual style and Nicolas Cage’s highly expressionistic, over-the-top performance were a perfect match for the auteur’s genre-blending blockbuster Snake Eyes. Opening with one of the most technically innovative shots of De Palma’s career, a 10-minute-long take, putting all the chess pieces into play in the classic De Palma style. Cage is the snakeskin jacket-sporting and out-of-control detective who finds himself in the middle of government conspiracy because of an assassination during a highly coveted boxing match. Cage shuts down the entire casino, racing to find the murderer before getting killed with seedy plot twists courtesy of a dirty military officer, played by Gary Sinise. Snake Eyes has everything you could want in a thriller.
9 Femme Fatale (2002)
Warner Bros. Pictures
For better or worse Femme Fatale is De Palma’s Mulholland Drive. Recalling David Lynch’s uncanny ability to balance dueling realities and shifting dimensions, De Palma abandons the plot, creating a shroud of mystery around the unreliable narrative of a con woman played beautifully by Rebecca Romijn. After pulling off a masterful heist at the Cannes Film Festival, Romijn abandons her team to start a new life. However, seven years later, that criminal life she thought she abandoned comes back to find her. Always using her sexuality and cunning to make fools of men, Romijn attempts to escape with her mind and body left intact.
8 Dressed to Kill (1980)
Filmways Pictures
De Palma is known for being an heir to the suspense throne after the master, Alfred Hitchcock, and Dressed To Kill is his blatant homage. Partly inspired by Psycho, De Palma’s film features a protagonist who gets killed off early, a shower-scene, a gender-blurring killer on the loose, and heavy-handed psychoanalysis in the climax to put the killer away. Featuring a stunning museum chase sequence where the killer stalks his prey, De Palma once again showcases the visual capability to keep his audience in a trance.
7 Mission: Impossible (1996)
Cruise/Wagner Productions
A film that came to him after having dinner with Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg, during which Cruise was confident he had to hire De Palma, Mission: Impossible saw the auteur back in the good graces of Hollywood. Not only kick-starting a major franchise that is set to see its seventh film released sometime next year, but also using his aesthetic control to bring a sense of mystery and dread that hasn’t been seen in the franchise since. Especially with the twist in the first 20 minutes and his introduction to franchise staple, Ving Rhames.
6 Body Double (1984)
Columbia Pictures
De Palma’s depiction of voyeurism in Body Doubl is akin to the classic Rear Window. Both he and Hitchcock have a knack for creating suspense out of the action of simply looking and placing the audience directly in the protagonist’s shoes. In a film rife with 80s artifice but cracking suspense, De Palma crafted yet another thriller in the vein of Hitchcock. However, setting it in the world of Hollywood gave it a gloss and veneer of industry satire while also using the song “R-E-L-A-X” to create an air of suspense and anonymity in a surreal visit to a movie set. Body Double is one of De Palma’s most accomplished and thrilling works.
5 Casualties of War (1989)
One of De Palma’s most humane and devastating films, Casualties of War did not receive much acclaim upon release. Upsetting the director at the time because he had felt he had given so much of himself to the film, but, as time has passed, it is clear to see that is evident. Based on a true story that shows the barbarism of US soldiers during the Vietnam War. The troop, led by a bulldog Sean Penn performance who goes toe-to-toe with the film’s moral compass, Michael J. Fox, De Palma’s one Vietnam film will say with you long after the credits roll.
4 The Untouchables (1987)
After building an empire with bootleg alcohol, legendary crime boss Al Capone (a knockout Robert De Niro) rules Chicago with an iron fist. This is the premise of De Palma’s The Untouchables. The storyline follows Prohibition Agent Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner) as he attempts to take Capone down, but even his best efforts fail due to widespread corruption within the Windy City’s police force. Recruiting an elite group of lawmen who won’t be swayed by bribes or fear, including Irish-American cop Jimmy Malone (Oscar-winner Sean Connery), Ness renews his determination to bring Capone to justice. The film is a thrill ride from start to finish, and watch out for that shootout on the stairs that was wonderfully inspired by Battleship Potemkin’s most epic scene.
3 Carrie (1976)
United Artists
The first Stephen King adaptation to grace the big screen, Carrie was the perfect project for a young De Palma. Still making headway in the industry, De Palma seized on the horror of King’s novel to create a level of unease in the atmosphere, which perfectly suited his talents. Also, gifted with a riveting and terrifying performance from the bullied Carrie was Sissy Spacek, who shines amid De Palma’s brooding but tightly wound set-pieces. Ending with an all-timer of a last shot, Carrie stands the test of time as one of the great horror films ever made.
2 Carlito’s Way (1993)
Epic Productions
Carlito’s Way is a masterpiece of style. Teaming once again with Pacino to portray the life of a drug kingpin, this time one who wants to escape, De Palma finds himself mixing tones of swooning romance and a tightly wound thrill ride that recalls the work of Michael Mann. Starring an incredibly seedy and scummy performance from Penn as Pacino’s lawyer the two meet at odds. Leading to one of the great set-pieces of De Palma’s career as Pacino tries to escape the criminal life before it comes crashing down on him.
1 Blow Out (1981)
De Palma’s masterpiece Blow Out as an amalgamation of genres that would create a tone and style unique to itself is the director at the height of his powers. The director took inspiration from the Kennedy assassinations, Watergate, Hollywood satire, and Hitchcock to craft his story around an audio engineer who gets in over his head. John Travolta is perfect, as he uses his technical prowess of audio equipment to delve deep into the mystery of the murder he witnessed, and De Palma’s commentary on how governments commit big crimes to cover up their small ones is perfect.
