Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		2.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		2.5

Dressed to Kill Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 31, 2015

Brian De Palma 's "Dressed to Kill" (1980) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include exclusive new video interviews with the American director, actress Nancy Allen, producer George Litto, composer Pino Donaggio, former model, and photographic art director Stephen Sayadian; appreciation piece by actor Keith Gordon; in-depth look at the differences between the Unrated, Rated-R, and Network versions of the film; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring Michael Koresky's essay "The Power of Two". In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

"I moaned with pleasure at his touch. Isn't that what every man wants?"

Kate Miller (Angie Dickinson, Rio Bravo, Ocean's 11) is a frustrated New York housewife who has strange fantasies. In the film’s opening sequence she is raped by an unknown man while showering. She screams but her husband can’t hear her, even though he is also in the bathroom, slowly shaving his face. Sometime after that Kate makes love to him - and pretends that she likes it.

When Kate sees Dr. Elliott (Michael Caine, Pulp), she confesses to him that her sex life is hugely disappointing. She wants more but does not know how to tell her husband. When Dr. Elliott encourages her to be brave and talk to him, she asks if he ever wanted to make love to her.

Not long after her session with Dr. Elliott, Kate visits the Museum of Modern Art. While taking notes, an attractive man (Ken Baker) sits next to her. She drops her glove, he picks it up, and later on the two make love in a taxicab while the driver watches. They finish what they have started in his apartment. Before she leaves, Kate discovers that the man has a venereal disease. In the building’s elevator, a blond woman wearing dark sunglasses cuts her throat with a razor. The murder is witnessed by Liz (Nancy Allen, Blow Out, 1941), a beautiful prostitute, who has been entertaining a client from Cleveland.

In the days that follow, Liz is questioned by detective Marino (Dennis Franz, Body Double) who warns her that she is his prime suspect and in a couple of days will end up behind bars – unless she helps him track down the blond woman with the dark sunglasses. Liz is also approached by Kate’s son, Peter (Keith Gordon, The Legend of Billie Jean), who has been working on an exciting new device for the city’s upcoming science championship.

Hitchcock’s influence can easily be felt but the film most definitely has an identity of its own. Its attitude towards sex, in particular, gives it an edge that no other mainstream American film from the early ‘80s has.

Brian De Palma’s direction is flawless. The film flows, never stumbling or overwhelming with an attitude. There is sleaze and there is gore but they are perfectly mixed, effectively adding to the tense atmosphere not detracting from it. Each sequence is expertly shot – the camera moves and the manner in which shadow, light and color are utilized ought to be studied by aspiring young directors.

De Palma’s script is also first-class. Virtually all of the exchanges between the actors are full of incredibly sharp lines. When they remain silent, the camera carefully studies their faces or spends time observing objects that would reveal what the viewer needs to know about them. There is absolutely no fluff.

The film has many stars, but Dickinson impresses the most. What she manages to accomplish for the short period of time she is in front of the camera is quite remarkable. The museum sequence, in particular, where she follows the man is truly amongst the best of its kind. Allen and Caine are also outstanding in their respective roles. Franz, still looking very young and slim, is absolutely hilarious as the cocky detective.

Dressed to Kill was lensed by cinematographer Ralf D. Bode (John Badham’s Saturday Night Fever, Jack Fisk’s Violets are Blue...). The film’s soundtrack is by long-time De Palma collaborator Pino Donaggio (Carrie, Blow Out, Body Double).

Dressed to Kill Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

UPDATE:

Criterion have announced that due to a mastering error the Dressed to Kill release date has been moved to September 8. All customers, including those who have placed pre-orders, and all major retailers will have corrected product in time for the new street date. To be certain that you have the correct version, look for the words "Second printing" on the back of the package and on the disc. If you receive a copy from the First printing, you can request a corrected copy by contacting Criterion. Simply e-mail Jon Mulvaney (mulvaney@criterion.com).

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Brian De Palma's Dressed to Kill arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the leaflet provided with this Blu-ray release:

"The version of the film included here is director Brian De Palma's original and preferred unrated cut. Supervised by De Palma, this new digital transfer was created in 4K resolution on a Scanity film scanner from the 35mm original camera negative; a 35mm interpositive was also used for additional footage for this cut. Benjamin Sutor at Sony Colorworks in Culver City, California, supervised the conform of unrated content to the original R-rated theatrical version to correctly assemble this master. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, and warps were manually removed using MTI's DRS, while Digital Vision's Phoenix was used for small dirt, grain, noise management, jitter, and flicker.

The original monaural soundtrack was remastered at 24-bit from the 35mm magnetic tracks. Clicks, thumps, hiss, hum, and crackle were manually removed using Pro Tools HD, AudioCube's integrated workstation, and iZotope RX 4.

Transfer supervisor: Brian De Palma.
Colorist: Lee Kline/Criterion, New York."

The new 4K restoration of Dressed to Kill is very disappointing. There are various areas of the film where substantial improvements in terms of detail and clarity are easy to see, but there are numerous serious framing anomalies. For example, a number of different close-ups reveal obvious stretching (see screencaptures #14, 16, 18, and 28), but similar anomalies also appear in larger panoramic shots (see screencaptures #4 and 12). Elsewhere the top end of the frame is lowered a bit too much (compare screencapture #9 and screencapture #1 from our review of this European release; also see screencaptures #24 and 25). Needless to say, the overwhelming majority of the film looks very awkwardly framed. There are no problematic degraining or sharpening adjustments. Colors are stable and healthy, never appearing artificially boosted. There are no large debris, cuts, damage marks, or torn frames, but I noticed a few tiny flecks. Finally, overall image stability is outstanding.

Because some of the visual anomalies are quite extreme and I have not been able to confirm that they were not caused by a technical error of some sort, I will attempt to gather additional information and will update our review with my findings before the official release date. However, folks interested in owning Dressed to Kill on Blu-ray should keep in mind that our review was produced with a final market version (packaging photos can been seen below).

(Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Dressed to Kill Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The lossless track is excellent. I did some direct comparisons with the lossless track from the Region-B release and I think that fluidity is slightly improved. Pino Donaggio's score again sounds terrific. There are no pops, cracks, background hiss, audio dropouts, or digital distortions to report in this review.

Dressed to Kill Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Interviews -
  
  1. Brian De Palma - in this brand new video interview, director Brian De Palma discusses with filmmaker Noah Baumbach the evolution of his style, Dressed to Kill and the structure of its narrative, the use of specific sounds in different sequences, Pino Donaggio's score and how the anxiety and paranoia in the film are linked to it, Michael Caine's performance, the film's controversial reception, Alfred Hitchock's influence on his work, etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2015. In English, not subtitled. (20 min, 1080p).
  
  2. Nancy Allen - in this brand new video interview, Nancy Allen explains how she was approached to play the character of Liz Blake and how she prepared for the role, and discusses her interactions with costume designer Ann Roth, her work with Keith Gordon and Michael Caine (with some great comments about the seduction sequence), etc. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2015. In English, not subtitled. (17 min, 1080p).
  
  3. George Litto - in this new video interview, producer George Litto discusses his collaborations with Brian De Palma on Obsession, Dressed to Kill, and Blow Out. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2015. In English, not subtitled. (17 min, 1080p).
  
  4. Pino Donaggio - in this new video interview, composer Pino Donaggio discusses the score he created for Dressed to Kill as well as his long professional relationship with Brian De Palma. The two began working together in 1976, after Brian De Palma heard the score for Don't Look Now, and their first project was the horror thriller Carrie. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2015. In Italian, with optional English subtitles. (16 min, 1080p).
  
  5. Victoria Lynn Johnson - in this new video interview, former model and 1978 Penthouse Pet of the Year Victoria Lynn Johnson explains how she was approached to do the erotic shower scene in the very beginning of Dressed to Kill. (She was Angie Dickinson's body double). The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2015. In Italian, with optional English subtitles. (9 min, 1080p).
  
  6. Stephen Sayadian - in this new video interview, Stephen Sayadian, the photographic art director for the original Dressed to Kill one-sheet poster, describes how the original design was created and discusses the importance of poster-driven promotion at the time. The interview was conducted exclusively for Criterion in 2015. In Italian, with optional English subtitles. (11 min, 1080p).

• Trailer - original trailer for Dressed to Kill. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080p).

• Version Comparison - this piece compares the various visual and audio differences between the R-rated theatrical cut, the director's preferred unrated version, and the television version of Dressed to Kill. In English, not subtitled. (6 min, 1080i).

• An Appreciation by Keith Gordon - in this archival video piece, actor Keith Gordon, who plays Peter Miller, discusses the visual composition of various sequences from the film. The piece was produced in 2001. In English, not subtitled. (7 min, 1080i).

• Slashing "Dressed to Kill" - in this featurette, director Brian De Palma, Nancy Allen (Liz Blake), Keith Gordon (Peter Miller), Angie Dickinson (Kate Miller), editor Jerry Greenberg, and producer George Litto discuss the controversy that once surrounded the rating of Dressed to Kill. Also included are clips highlighting some of the differences between the R-rated and Unrated versions of the film. The piece was produced in 2001. In English, not subtitled. (10 min, 1080i).

• Defying Categories: Ralf Bode - in this new featurette, filmmaker Michael Apted (Gorky Park, Blink) and experimental video artist Peer Bode (We Can't Go Home Again) discuss the legacy and working methods of the late cinematographer Ralf Bode, who lensed Dressed to Kill. The featurette was produced exclusively for Criterion in 2015. In English, not subtitled. (11 min, 1080p).

• The Making of "Dressed to Kill" - in this documentary, director Brian de Palma, actors Angie Dickinson and Keith Gordon, and producer George Litto recall their work on Dressed to Kill. There is terrific information here about some of the key sequences in the film, how and where they were shot, what were some of the technical challenges that had to be overcome, etc. The documentary was produced in 2001. In English, not subtitled. (44 min, 1080i).
  
  1. Beginnings
  2. Casting
  3. Visual complexity
  4. Cop talk
  5. Call girl character
  6. The key to horror
  7. A charmed experience

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring Michael Koresky's essay "The Power of Two". (The author is a staff writer at the Criterion Collection and a cofounder and editor of the online film magazine Reverse Shot).

Dressed to Kill Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

UPDATE:

Criterion have announced that due to a mastering error the Dressed to Kill release date has been moved to September 8. All customers, including those who have placed pre-orders, and all major retailers will have corrected product in time for the new street date. To be certain that you have the correct version, look for the words "Second printing" on the back of the package and on the disc. If you receive a copy from the First printing, you can request a corrected copy by contacting Criterion. Simply e-mail Jon Mulvaney (mulvaney@criterion.com).

There are some very strange anomalies on this upcoming release of Brian De Palma's classic thriller Dressed to Kill. The film has been recently restored in 4K and the new transfer that was created was supervised by Mr. De Palma, but I wonder if he has seen the Blu-ray. Because some of the visual anomalies are quite extreme and I have not been able to confirm that they were not caused by a technical error of some sort, I will attempt to gather additional information and will update our review with my findings before the official release date. However, folks interested in owning Dressed to Kill on Blu-ray should keep in mind that our review was produced with a final market version.