Body Double (1984)
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A struggling actor becomes entangled in a web of voyeurism and murder after discovering a secret involving a woman he watches from afar.
The story
In Los Angeles, struggling actor Jake Scully is left homeless after losing a role and being cheated on by his girlfriend. While attending a method acting class, he meets Sam Bouchard, who offers him a place to stay in a friend's ultra-modern home in the Hollywood Hills. While touring the house, Sam shows Scully a telescope through which he can watch a neighbor, Gloria Revelle, dancing erotically each night. Scully becomes obsessed with watching her, eventually witnessing her being abused. His voyeuristic fascination deepens as he begins to follow her, leading to a series of dangerous encounters.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After discovering Gloria being abused, Scully follows her to a seaside motel where she is stood up. During a chase involving a disfigured Indian, Scully's claustrophobia is triggered, and they share an impulsive kiss. Later, Scully watches through the telescope as the Indian breaks into Gloria's home; he rushes to save her but is attacked by her dog, and the Indian murders her with a drill. Scully alerts the police, but Detective Jim McLean becomes suspicious of his voyeurism. Scully later sees porn actress Holly Body dancing like Gloria and is hired as a porn actor to meet her. Holly reveals that Sam hired her to impersonate Gloria to lure Scully into witnessing the murder. Holly is then kidnapped by a man in a Ford Bronco. Scully follows them to a reservoir, where he discovers the man is actually Sam in disguise. Sam, who is Gloria's abusive husband Alex, set Scully up as a scapegoat. Scully overcomes his claustrophobia, escapes the grave, and Sam is drowned by Gloria's dog. Scully is eventually recast in his original vampire role.
- First release year
- 1984
- Runtime (minutes)
- 114
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Brian De Palma
- Writers
- Robert J. Avrech · screenplay; Brian De Palma · screenplay; Brian De Palma · story
- Cast and characters
- Craig Wasson · Jake Scully; Gregg Henry; Melanie Griffith · Holly Body; Deborah Shelton · Gloria Revelle
- Genres
- neo-noir; erotic thriller; mystery; psychological thriller; satire; slasher
- Themes
- artifice and illusion; voyeurism and exhibitionism; satire of Hollywood; fantasy vs reality
- Tone and mood
- erotic; suspenseful; satirical; cynical
- Premise and plot tags
- Hollywood; pornography; stalking; murder mystery; body double
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received a divided response at release, with mixed reviews and a commercial failure at the box office. However, it has since gained a cult following and received positive appraisal from cinema fans for its visual style and performances.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 69 · scale: 100 · review count: 18
- Awards and nominations
- Golden Globe Award · Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture · nomination
- Production trivia
- The film was a direct homage to Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window, Vertigo, and Dial M for Murder.; The scene featuring the song 'Relax' was converted into a music video and shown on MTV.; The 1989 film Vampire's Kiss takes its title from the B-movie Jake Scully acts in.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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