dromasca They do not make films like this one any longer. Usually this sentence when found in the review of a movie is supposed to be appreciative. Not in the case of Brian De Palma's Obsession. The film is made in 1976, the year Hitchcock was making his last movie, and owes a lot to the style of story building and telling, and to the cinematographic tricks of the master. One thing is however missing - the element of novelty and permanent search that was characteristic to Hitchcock, which made each of his movie different from the previous. Obsession is a film a la Hitchcock without the surprises. Even worse, without the humor.The idea is interesting and 'Obsession' may have been one of the first to use it. A rich man's wife and girl are kidnapped and a fat ransom is demanded. The man (acted by Cliff Robertson) decides to call the police, and the story turns into a tragedy when the car with the kidnappers, the wife and the girl explodes in the events following the police action. The hero is overwhelmed by remorse and guilt for his decision to turn to the police rather than just pay the ransom. 16 years later, in the same place where he first met his wife, he meets a young woman with a striking resemblance. He falls for her, and ends by asking her into marriage. Actually, here are some of the good moments of the film. Is he really in love or is the guilt driving his actions? Is he attracted by the young girl or by the memory of the deceased wife (double role for Geneviève Bujold)? Can the past be really fixed that easy? All is almost fine with the questions, the problem is with the answers and the way these are given. The way the conflict is solved is predictable in the big lines. There are some surprises at the very ending, they do not change to much of the essence of the story, and make the final scenes very hard to sustain in facts and in the psychology of the characters. In order to present the facts in the past, director Brian De Palma uses a technique inside the flash-backs which I did not like too much, probably because it was not built well visually (cannot tell more, would be too much of a spoiler). Techniques from Hitchcock's films are reused intensively, especially the musical score, but they seem already out of fashion already for the mid-70s. So is the style of acting, especially of the lead character acted by Cliff Robertson. On the other hand watching Geneviève Bujold is a real pleasure, it is her that maestro Hitchcock would have loved to include in the cast of one of his movies.'Obsession' fails in my opinion and to my taste first of all because it tries to explain too much. I think that explaining less and trusting the cinema viewers to fill in the missing details would have been better.

blazesnakes9 Brian De Palma is not one of my favorite directors. At least not in a long shot. But, his films are very good, if not, great or good. Frequently, most of his movies are focus on some of the concepts that were conceived from the films of Alfred Hitchcock. In the film Obsession, De Palma takes on Hitchcock once again after making his third feature film, Sisters, which was released three years ago.In 1959, Michael Courtland, (Cliff Robertson), an wealthy New Orleans businessman, is celebrating his 10th wedding anniversary with his beautiful wife, Elizabeth, (Genevieve Bujold). But, as the night ends, his life is about to turn upside down. Kidnappers have took his wife and his daughter, Amy. The kidnappers demanded Michael to pay the ransom. He does come up with the money. But, the kidnapping ends in tragedy when his wife and daughter are killed in a car explosion.Fast forward to 1975. Courtland and his business partner, (John Lithgow), travel to Florence to look at a job. Courtland is still grieving about the loss of his dead wife and daughter. At Florence, he visits the same church that he and Elizabeth got married. Inside the church, he finds out that the person working inside the church is his dead wife! But, how did she survived the explosion in 1959?A lot of critics complained that Obsession is a complete rip off of Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece, Vertigo. But, there's a catch. Rip offs are done in a poor taste to be failure. Obsession is not a rip off of Hitchcock's Vertigo. But certainly, Brian De Palma does know how to shoot a well made mystery thriller. This is a man who loves movie-making. And like his other movies such as Dressed to Kill and Blow Out, he knows how to shoot certain scenes that build suspense or create tension between characters. Characters that we are interested in watching.The movie isn't a great one, but it is worth seeing if you are a fan of De Palma or fans of Hitchcockian thrillers. Cliff Robertson does a good job of playing the grief stricken Michael as well as a man infatuated by his wife. There even several good scenes where Michael seems to follow his wife around Florence. What makes those scenes work and maybe the entire movie work is that the music score by Bernard Herrmann is very appropriate to empathizes the sorrow and mystery of Michael's obsession. He is a man of certainty and will follow his mind and especially his heart by solving this complicated mystery that ends in a unexpected manner. I won't reveal to you how it all ends. See it for yourself.Another person who should receive credit and someone who I really think stole the movie from Robertson and Lithgow is Genevieve Bujold. I really like her in this movie as Robertson's wife. She is not like any other movie actress I saw. Her character is played as a smart and intelligent woman who uses her wit and her charm to move the movie's story along. She also have a way of bringing the movie to life and propelling us into this mystery. This is a good stylish thriller that does have some double crosses and twists. De Palma uses his style of filmmaking to make the movie works on a technical level. On a storytelling level, it does have little plot holes. But, De Palma is able to deliver a strong thriller that does works so beautifully and mysteriously. ★★★ 3 stars.

Spikeopath Obsession is directed by Brian De Palma and written by Paul Schrader. It stars Cliff Robertson, Genevieve Bujold and John Lithgow. Music is by Bernard Herrmann and cinematography by Vismos Zsigmond.You either love him or hate him, it seems. Brian De Palma that is. He's an amazing stylist who made some piercingly great thrillers in the tradition of Maestro Hitchcock, or he's a knock off artist using style to hide his inadequacies as a story teller? One thing for sure, for a good portion of the 70s and 80s his films would not be ignored, for better or worse depending on your own proclivities of course.Obsession, as has been noted numerous times, is De Palma's homage to Hitchcock's masterpiece, Vertigo. It's not a straight out copy as some reviewers have somehow managed to convince themselves, but narrative drive is similar. Robertson in grief for a passed on wife (Bujold) and daughter meets a doppelganger (also Bujold) of his dead wife 16 years down the line and becomes obsessed with her. As the new woman reciprocates the attraction, the relationship becomes wrought and borderline unhealthy, reaching a crescendo when muddy waters are stirred and revelations force the can to open and worms to spill everywhere.When remembering that for a long time Vertigo was out of circulation in the 70s, Obsession was sure as hell a good second option for anyone hankering for a superbly stylish thriller boiling over with psychological smarts. Even if you buy into the style over substance argument, what style there is here though. Roving camera work, up tilts, haze surrounds, canted frames, pan arounds, dream shimmers and personalised focus. Add in the splendid use of New Orleans and Tuscany locations and Herrmann's sensually dangerous score (lifted in part and re-worked from Vertigo) and it has style to burn. While the big reveals at pic's culmination are in turn intriguing and daring; even if the original ending planned would have really put the cat among the pigeons and made for a more potent piece ripe for heated discussion.Lead cast are on fine form, Robertson plays it superbly as a wistful and damaged wastrel, guilt and obsession seeping from every pore. Bujold is just darling, a telling twin performance that actually doesn't demand to be noticed until late in the play. While Lithgow stomps around the edges of the frame like some shyster lawyer whose tie is on too tight. Ultimately Obsession is a film crafted in the mode of Hitchcock, but not in anyway disgracefully so. This is no illegitimate relation to Vertigo, it's more like a reliable brother-in-law. Pulpy, Trashy but also Classy. Great. 8/10

Scott LeBrun Director Brian De Palma and screenwriter Paul Schrader pay tribute to Hitchcock's "Vertigo" with this slow, dreamy, romantic thriller, a fine and involving film with some great acting. Cliff Robertson plays Michael Courtland, a New Orleans businessman whose wife and daughter are kidnapped and held for ransom. The attempt to rescue them goes horribly bad and Michael's life is shattered. 17 years later, he and business partner Robert Lasalle (John Lithgow) are in Rome on business when Michael catches notice of Sandra (Genevieve Bujold), an art historian who is the spitting image of his wife, and he falls in love with her. Now, the twists coming at around the 80 minute mark make this all worth it. De Palma's theme of obsession has recurred in his work and in this case it's a romantic obsession as Michael is determined to right the wrong he feels he made and not lose the woman he loves for a second time. The pacing is deliberate but the atmosphere is excellent, with some great location shooting. And the music score by Bernard Herrmann is one of his absolute best, setting the mood for each and every scene. The acting is top notch; Bujold's classic beauty is well utilized in her multiple roles, and she's extremely appealing to boot. Lithgow is solid as always in his supporting role, while Robertson comes off as a little reserved, although it would be hard to watch this and not feel some sympathy for the guy. The story is entertaining and De Palma and company make this an appropriately somber affair, with not much in the way of humour, and handle the material with a fair amount of subtlety and dignity. It's very well shot in Panavision by the great Vilmos Zsigmond, and it just draws you right in, right from its unnerving first act to its final scene. It's a fine effort from all concerned. Eight out of 10.