Body Double (1984)

Country of Origin: USA
Year of Production: 1984
Running Times: 109 mins
Format: Metrocolor     35mm
Ratio: 1.85:1
Sound: Dolby Stereo

PRODUCTION
Production Companies: Columbia Pictures Corporation / Delphi II
Executive Producer: Howard Gottfried
Producer: Brian De Palma
Production Manager: Ray Hartwick
Production Co-Ordinator: Shari Liebowitz

SCRIPT
Script: Robert J. Avrech, Brian De Palma
Story: Brian De Palma

DIRECTION
Director: Brian De Palma
1st Assistant Director: Joe Napolitano
2nd Assistant Director: Robert Yannetti
DGA Trainees: Margaret Nelson, Carey Dietrich

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Stephen H. Burum
Additional Photography: Daniel Pearl (uncredited)
Camera Operator: Doug Ryan
1st Assistant Camera: Dusty Blanvelk?
2nd Assistant Camera: Michael Riba
Gaffer: Tim Griffith
Rigging Gaffer: Joel Stolt
Key Grip: Emmett Brown
Grip: John Englert
Dolly Grip: Bob Gaynor
Best Boy: Pete Portizo
Cableman: Margaret Seeman
Stills: Ralph Nelson
Lenses and Cameras: Panavision

EDITING AND POST PRODUCTION
Editors: Gerald B. Greenberg, Bill Pankow
Assistant Editor: Kristina Boden
Apprentice Editors: Tara Timpone, Etter D'Orazio

MUSIC
Music: Pino Donaggio
Conductor: Natale Massara
Songs: Peter Gill, Holly Johnson, Mark O'Toole (Relax)
Songs Performed By: Frankie Goes To Hollywood (Relax); Vivabeat (The House is Burning)
Songs Produced By: Trevor Horn (Relax)
Supervising Music Editor: Richard Stone, Segue Music

SOUND
Sound Mixer: James Tanenbaum
Re-Recording Mixer: Les Fresholtz, Vern Poore
Supervising Sound Editor: Stephen Flick
Sound Editors: J.H. Arrufat, John C.C. Dunn, David Whitaker, Linda Whittlesey
Assistant Sound Editors: Destiny Borden, John Hoeren
ADR Editors: Stephen Purvis, Avram D. Gold
Sound Effects Recording: D.M. Hemphill
Effects Mixer: Dick Alexander
Boom Operator: Rimas Tumasomis
Foley: John Roesch, Joan Rowe
Foley Recorded By: T.E. Sadler at TAJ

MAKE UP AND COSTUMES
Make Up: Barbara Guedel
Hair: Marlene Williams
Costume Designer: Gloria Gresham
Women's Wardrobe Supervisor: Francine Jamison
Men's Wardrobe Supervisor: Jim Tyson

SPECIAL MAKE UP EFFECTS
Special Make Up: Thomas R. Burman, Bari Dreiband

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Process Photography: Bill Hansard
Opticals: Modern Film Effects, LA; Computer Opticals Inc, NYC
Visual Effects Stills: Michael Douglas Middleton (uncredited)

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Production Designer: Ida Random
Art Director: William A. Elliott (uncredited)
Set Designers: Bill Elliott, Charles Butcher
Title Designers: R/Greenberg Associates Inc, New York City
Set Decorator: Cloudia
Property Master: Horst Grandt
Assistant Property Master: David Aaron
Leadman: Daril Alder
Construction Co-Ordinator: Lynn Price
Standby Painter: Kirk Hansen
Paint Foreman: Ed Freeman
Carpenter Foreman: Scott Goodale

MISCELLANEOUS
Script Supervisor: Wilma Garscadden-Gahret
Publicity: Smith and Siegal
Unit Publicist: Rob Harris
Production Accountant: Margaret Mitchell (uncredited)
Production Auditor: Margaret Mitchell
Production Associate: Jimsie Eason
Assistant to De Palma: Tani Cohen, Camilla Turnbull
Production Assistants: William Rosenfield, Kelliann Ladd, Lisa Horwitch
Transportation Co-Ordinator: Dan Anglin
Animal Handler: Karl Miller
Craft Service: Mary Ream
Trainers: Body by Jake, Jackson Sousa

LOCATIONS
Locations: Burbank Studios, Hollywood, California, USA; Los Angeles, California, USA; Beverly Hills, California, USA
Long Beach, California, USA
Location Managers: Frank W. Pierson, Eric Schwab

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Special Thanks To: Mr Amega of Princess Ermine Jewels

STUNTS
Stunt Co-Ordinator: Jerry Brutshe

CASTING
Casting: Janet Hirshenson, Jane Jenkins
Casting Associates: Michael Hirshenson, Elizabeth Leustig
Extra Casting: Rich-Mar Casting

CAST
Craig Wasson (Jake Scully)
Melanie Griffith (Holly)
Gregg Henry (Sam)
Deborah Shelton (Gloria Revelle)
Guy Boyd (Jim McLean)
Dennis Franz (Rubin)
David Haskell (drama teacher)
Rebecca Stanley (Kimberly)
Al Israel (Corso)
Douglas Warhit (video salesman)
B.J. Jones (Douglas)
Russ Marin (Frank)
Lane Davies (Billy)
Barbara Crampton (Carol)
Larry 'Flash' Jenkins (assistant director Joe)
Monte Landis (Sid Goldberg)
Linda Shaw (Linda Shaw)
Mindi Miller (rela name: Ty Randolph) (Tina)
Denise Loveday (actress in vampire moovie)
Gela Jacobson (Corso's secretary)
Ray Hassett, Rick Gunderson, Jerry Brutsche (police officer)
Michael Kearns (male porno star)
Rob Paulsen (cameraman)
Jeremy Lawrence (theatre director)
Rod Loomis (TV director)
Gary F. Griffith (auditioning actor)
Michael White (security guard at Gloria's house)
Emmett Brown (studio guard)
H. David Fletcher (security guard at Bellini's)
Marcia del Mar (production assistant)
Phil Redrow (naked man)
Slavitza Jovan (saleslady)
Jack Mayhall (Jake's replacement)
Alexandra Day (aka: Sunny Daye) (girl in bathroom 1)
Pamela Weston (aka: Cara Lott) (girl in bathroom 2)
Melissa Christian (girl in bathroom 4)
Patty Lotz (girl #1 in Holly Does Hollywood)
Barbara Peckinpaugh (aka: Susanna Britton) (girl #2 in Holly Does Hollywood)
Brinke Stevens (girl #3 in Holly Does Hollywood - uncredited)
David Ursin (man #1 in Holly Does Hollywood)
Casey Sander (man #2 in Holly Does Hollywood)
Wes Edwards (man #3 in Holly Does Hollywood)
Chuck Waters (jogger)
Paul A. Calabria (man with dog)
Darcy DeMoss (uncredited)

Jake Scully is having a bad day - he's fired from his acting job when he suffers a claustrophobia attack and then finds his girlfriend in bed with another man. But his luck changes when he meets fellow actor Sam who asks him to take over house-sitting a luxury pad in the Hollywood Hills with a fabulous view - of neighbour Gloria Revelle who does a sexy dance every night. But Scully witnesses the woman's murder and when he attempts to unravel the mystery he begins to realise that nothing he saw was quite as it first seemed...

De Palma at his most excessive, Body Double is a convoluted and outrageous thriller, full of the expected De Palma trademarks and even more like an updated Hitchcock than ever. Infuriatingly, it has moments of brilliance but is ruined by stodgy acting, a script that makes no sense at all and some hopelessly childish sex fantasies (who on earth does Gloria get into a romantic clinch with Scully when she's only just met him?). Badly dated now and all but unwatchable, despite those brief flourishes of genius.

Germany
DVD Distributor: Columbia/Tristar (10582)

UK
Video Distributor: RCA / Columbia

USA
Theatrical Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Video Distributor: RCA / Columbia
Laserdisc Distributor: Columbia/Tristar (79296)
DVD Distributor: Columbia/Tristar (04119)

Finland
Rating: K-18

France
Rating: -12

Germany
Rating: 18

Italy
Rating: VM18

Norway
Rating: 15 (cut version); Norway:16 (uncut)

Portugal
Rating: M/18

Sweden
Rating: 15

UK
Rating: 18
The UK video was cut, removing an implied fist fucking scene and a shot of breasts covered in blood. The uncut version has nevertheless been broadcast a number of times on the Sky movie channels.

USA
Rating: R

1985
Golden Globes, USA
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture (Melanie Griffith) - nominated

National Society of Film Critics Awards, USA
Best Supporting Actress (Melanie Griffith) - winner

Razzie Awards
Worst Director (Brian De Palma) - nominated

1985
January
25: West Germany - theatrical release

February
20: France - theatrical release

March
7: Norway - theatrical release

May
3: Sweden - theatrical release

July
12: Finland - theatrical release

1994
April
27: USA - laserdisc release

1998
December
15: USA - DVD release

You can't believe everything you see.

Omicidio a luci rosse - Italian title
Der Tod kommt zweimal - German title

SEE ALSO
American Psycho (2000)
A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987)
Tenebre (1982)
Vertigo (1958)

MAGAZINES

Première February 1985 p.15 (France)
review (by Michèle Halberstadt)

Melody Maker 13 April 1984 p.3 (UK)
article

New Musical Express 21 September 1985 p.24 (UK)
review

Record Mirror 21 September 1985 p.54 (UK)
review

Sounds 27 April 1985 p.13 (UK)
article

Sounds 14 September 1985 p.16 (UK)
review

NEWSPAPERS

Daily Express 20 October 1985 p.39 (UK)
review

Daily Mail 20 September 1985 p.26 (UK)
review

Daily Mail 21 November 1984 p.6 (UK)
article

Diário de Notícias 18 August 1999 p.47 (Portugal)
review

Mail on Sunday 22 September 1985 p.38 (UK)
review

Sunday Observer 22 September 1985 p.323 (UK)
review

Sunday Telegraph 22 September 1985 p.16 (UK)
review

BOOKS

Hoffman's Guide to Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Movies 1991 - 1992 p.52
credits, review

Sex, Shocks and Sadism p.16
credits, review

X-Rated Videotape Guide VI p.118
credits, review

OTHER SOURCES

screen
credits

sex, film making, porn industry, infidelity, peeping tomism, hitchcockian, power drills, power tools, telescopes, actresses, claustrophobia, voyeurism

Last Updated: 15 October, 2008