L'esprit de Caïn

Yes, it's bad for the man who made Carrie, but it's not as bad as it might be. A lot of it is tongue-in-cheek (witness the long tracking shot of the pet psychologist explaining split personalities) and it has some terrific bizarre moments, not least the scariest drowning-in-a-car scene in film history. It's a very weird movie and John Lithgow gives a great camp performance in it. I don't know if Brian set out to make a schlocky trash movie but that's what he did, and as such, it's fun. Watch it and see.

Raising Cain (1992)

*** (out of 4)

Jenny (Lolita Davidovich) believes that her husband Carter (John Lithgow) is the perfect man but what she doesn't realize is that his father messed with his mind a little too much and now his past is going to come back and haunt him.

Brian De Palma's RAISING CAIN was always a very disappointing movie to me because I felt it had so much potential but it never fully came out in the film. Director Peet Gelderblom would eventually re-edit the movie in a cut known as RAISING CAIN RE-CUT and director De Palma would praise it saying that this version is what he originally wanted to do with the film but he regretted changing his mind at the last second. Now this "Director's Cut" is available on Blu-ray and we can finally see this film for what it was meant to be.

I'm not going to give away any major spoilers but it should be said that the Director's Cut contains every frame that was in the Theatrical Cut. The only difference between the two is the way that they are edited and I must say that it's really amazing how much better the Director's Cut is. In fact, after viewing this version it becomes a complete nightmare why someone as great as De Palma would turn in the Theatrical Cut because it just doesn't play very well and a lot of the build up in the suspense department is just lost.

What is also more apparent in the Director's Cut is the flow of the film. If you're familiar with De Palma's work then you already know that he loves to keep a certain style and flow in his films and it's much more clear in this cut of the movie. The opening scenes really set you up for the thriller that is going to follow and I thought the entire movie played much better. It certainly helps build up the suspense as the madness of the Lithgow character slowly builds until he eventually breaks. The "clues" that De Palma gives off are a lot more shocking when they finally reveal themselves as well.

The one great thing about whichever version you watched was the performance of Lithgow. He's playing multiple characters here with multiple personalities and he perfectly brings them to life and really creates a rather creepy and mentally disturbing character. I thought Davidovich was a bite too light here but we get some nice supporting performances including the one from Steven Bauer and Frances Sternhagen.

Most people considered RAISING CAIN a major disappointment but I would ask, or beg, those people to give the movie another chances in the Director's Cut. It really goes to show how important editing is and how a bad edit of a movie can ruin it.

If there's one word that sums up Raising Cain, it's 'audacious': Brian De Palma, a director not known for his restraint, goes all out with this crazy psychological thriller, delivering a baffling non-linear narrative, commanding a bonkers performance from star John Lithgow, and shamelessly showboating with some outrageous visual set-pieces, including plenty of his trademark slow-motion (accompanied by a lush Psycho-style score by Pino Donaggio) and an extremely impressive, very long continuous take. Raising Cain is a film that appears to be self-parodic, De Palma seemingly mocking his own ostentatious style; I don't know whether this was by design or by accident - either way, it's hard to not have fun with such a delightfully daft, OTT movie.

Lithgow plays husband and doting father Carter, whose wife Jenny (Lolita Davidovich) embarks on an affair with her previous lover, Jack (Steven Bauer). Unfortunately, unbeknownst to Jenny, her husband suffers from multiple personality disorder, and is instrumental in a spate of local kidnappings, which ultimately leads to him framing Jack for murder. The plot jumps back and forth through time, making it extremely hard to follow at times, but it eventually pulls together for the final act, in which Carter (as one of his alter-egos, Cain) and his presumed dead father (also Lithgow), threaten the life of Jenny's daughter Amy (Amanda Pombo).

In addition to the Bernard Hermann style score, De Palma references Psycho with a scene in which Carter pushes a car with his wife's body inside into a marsh, and has his villain dress up as a woman (to evade the police), but this film is not a slavish homage to all things Hitchcock: it's way too unhinged for that. And if I'm not mistaken, there's also a nod to De Palma's Italian counterpart, Dario Argento, the shot in which Jenny kneels down to hug Amy only to reveal that Carter/Cain is standing behind her being borrowed from Tenebrae.

The lunacy culminates in a wonderfully overblown, meticulously orchestrated piece of slow motion chaos that attempts to outdo De Palma's Odessa Steps sequence from The Untouchables, but the preposterous nature of proceedings renders it laughable - and consequently very entertaining if you enjoy schlocky cinema.

6.5/10, rounded up to 7 for the single take that ends in a hilarious close-up of a victim's face: even if you don't like the film as a whole, it's impossible to deny the technical brilliance of that continuous shot.

Despite the fact that he wrote a rather unintelligent script for his 1992 effort, director Brian De Palma's "Raising Cain" is still fast, funny, and, occasionally, very scary.

In order not to reveal too much and spoil this wild little roller coaster ride, all I will say is that John Lithgow plays or at least speaks for five very different roles(!)

De Palma isn't at his all-time best, but Lithgow proves that he is one of the great character actors of our time. Rated R. 95 minutes. 6 out of 10.

This has a seemingly convoluted plot. Carter (et al., played exceptionally well by John Lithgow) begins to grow strange when he learns that his wife is having an affair with her ex. He becomes more obsessed with their young daughter and a rash of kidnapping/ killings occur. His wife (Lolita Davidovich) must figure out if he is behind the crimes or if his "dead" father, who committed experiments on children to develop multiple personality disorders, is to blame. Whew…

What makes this film interesting, other than the above-stated reasons, is that they give away one of the twists at the very first scene. The audience is already aware that Carter has multiple personalities. What makes it more intriguing is that de Palma tricks the audience with constant flashbacks, dream sequences, and appearances made by "dead" people that are not really dead.

The film starts a tad slow during the first 15 minutes and seems Lifetime Channel worthy. But as the film progresses, it gets trippier and more Hitchcockian (paranoid, obsessive, and voyeuristic with a knock out ending). Oddly enough, this is rated "R", but for very little reason. There is no nudity, minimal sex, minimal violence, and no gore at all. Most of the violence is implied and the tension comes from the suspense built by de Palma, the disturbing subject matter, and dark atmosphere.

There are a few standout scenes that will creep the viewer out. My favorite was the hospital scene. It literally had me sinking into my couch as this thing slowly turns towards me. It scared the bejesus out of me and had me rewinding to catch a glimpse again. Other noteworthy scenes include the interrogation scene where Lithgow weaves in and out of his different personalities and the ending that is incredibly reminiscent of "Dressed to Kill".

Favorite Quote: "Hickory dickory dock. Cain has picked his lock. He did a bad deed and Josh comes to bleed. Hickory dickory dock."

DVD Extras: The barebones from Universal. Only Brief Production Notes and Original Trailer.

Bottom Line: A great psychological thriller. Gorehounds should pass though. A must for de Palma and Hitchcock fans.

Rating: 7/10