BODY DOUBLE

title: BODY DOUBLE
year: 1984
cast: Craig Wasson, Melanie Griffith, Gregg Henry, Dennis Franz
rating: ***

Suspense maverick Brian De Palma followed up his big budget/big name mob epic SCARFACE with a small thriller starring talented "no name" Craig Wasson, a claustrophobic b-list actor housesitting a domed high-rise: quickly introduced to a telescope with a naked woman on the other side. The voyeuristic life gets the best of Wasson, who, like James Stewart in Hitchock's REAR WINDOW, sees more than expected. Two gorgeous ladies (one being a porn star played by Melanie Griffith), a deformed "Indian" psychopath, and lots of near-death experiences makes for a combination of DRESSED TO KILL and Paul Schrader's HARDCORE that, while often meandering, has something intriguing around every corner. De Palma fans won't be disappointed, while others must submit to survive.