It’s not easy being a Brian De Palma fan. One is always defending him and his movies. Though the director-writer-producer has attained legendary status, both as an indie filmmaker and at major studios, most of his films have lost money, sometimes big money. There have been successes, with his 1996 adaptation of the ’60s TV show “Mission: Impossible’’ reaching megahit status. But for every film that made it well into the black (“Scarface,’’ “The Untouchables’’), there were two or three that didn’t come close to breaking even (“Phantom of the Paradise,’’ “The Bonfire of the Vanities,’’ “Femme Fatale’’).
De Palma has never been nominated for an Oscar, but he’s got five worst director Razzie nominations to his credit. Critics have rarely been kind, labeling his films garish and voyeuristic. That’s fairly accurate. The plentiful tension in them often leads to bloodbaths, and he’s always had a penchant for loading the screen with films within films, frequently having characters surreptitiously watching other characters on video monitors or through camera lenses. Moviegoers are generally split into two camps: those who say his earlier films (“Hi, Mom!,’’ “Get to Know Your Rabbit’’) were better because they’re scruffier and more offbeat, and those who prefer his later films (“The Untouchables,’’ “Carlito’s Way’’) for their slicker production values and more mainstream actors.
Yet, with 29 features under his belt, ranging from comedies to dramas to science fiction, De Palma perseveres. There’s talk that he’ll soon be directing an adaptation of the Sascha Arango novel “The Truth and Other Lies.’’ IFFBoston is presenting a mini-festival of his works (“The Untouchables,’’ “Scarface,’’ and “The Bonfire of the Vanities’’) June 13-15 at the Somerville Theatre. The new documentary “De Palma’’ (opens June 17), co-directed by Noah Baumbach and Jake Paltrow, is a two-hour chat with the 75-year-old filmmaker that mixes footage from his films with him reminiscing about his four-decade career and providing keen and occasionally droll, self-deprecating insight on the movie business.
We wondered what would happen if we randomly selected 10 of his movies, threw in a De Palma-directed music video by a certain New Jersey rocker, and went looking for a single notable highlight from each.
“Hi, Mom!’’ (1970)
Aspiring peep show filmmaker Robert De Niro tries out for the part of a short-tempered cop in a play, auditioning opposite a trash can, a ladder, and a mop, which he addresses as “young lady,’’ then goes crazy on all of them.
“Get to Know Your Rabbit’’ (1972)
A door buzzer wakes Tom Smothers, and a long, slow tracking shot from above moves with him as he wends his way through an absurd maze of a Manhattan apartment, making four rights and three lefts before he reaches the front door.
“Phantom of the Paradise’’ (1974)
In a demented homage to “Touch of Evil,’’ the screen splits in half, revealing a stage musical rehearsal on the right, and a bomb being put into the trunk of a prop car on the left. The music is poppy, the bomb ticks loudly. It’s all very unnerving.
“Carrie’’ (1976)
High school outcast Sissy Spacek (a set dresser on “Phantom’’) showers in the locker room to lilting music. Suddenly there’s blood on her leg (her first period, never explained to her by her mom), she freaks out, and her classmates start razzing her. A peaceful scene turns to emotional horror.
“Blow Out’’ (1981)
Movie soundman John Travolta thinks he caught a murder on audio tape. As he repeatedly listens to it on headphones, we see what he “sees’’ in his mind. He swivels back and forth to where the sounds came from, as the camera keeps cutting between his darting eyes and the reel-to-reel recorder.
“Scarface’’ (1983)
Novice drug dealer Al Pacino and his partner are double-crossed in an apartment. As a chain saw closes in on the partner, the camera lazily drifts outside to a carefree conversation between a guy and the woman he’s trying to pick up, then floats back upward to the off-screen carnage in the apartment.
“Dancing in the Dark’’ (1984)
Bruce Springsteen moves in fits and starts while singing “Dancing in the Dark’’ in concert and scoping out the crowd. At the lyric, “Hey, baby,’’ he reaches out to pull a young, starry eyed Courtney Cox up to the stage to join him.
“Mission: Impossible’’ (1996)
The opening credits feature the percussive theme song from the TV show, which only lasts 50 seconds. The exciting music climaxes, then segues into a bass guitar soloing on the familiar notes, before fading out, subtly pulling the viewer/listener right into the action.
“Snake Eyes’’ (1998)
A boxer tells the story of a fight he was supposed to throw. The film flashes back to the event, seen from his point of view. His opponent razzes him so mercilessly, the fighter knocks him down to shut him up, then realizes, with anguish on his face, he’s probably a dead man because he was supposed to lose.
“The Black Dahlia’’ (2006)
Detective partners and hobbyist boxers Aaron Eckhart and Josh Hartnett get in the ring for charity and, in a flurry of quick cutting and vicious action, pound the tar out of each other. The scene ends with two bloody teeth landing on a judge’s score card.
“Passion’’ (2012)
Noomi Rapace, accused of murder, is put in a cell. As the door slams shut, she wakes, gasping for air, sits up in her own bed, and realizes it was a dream. She lies down again, and seconds after her head touches the pillow, she realizes that her dream was a dream, and that she’s really in prison.
Ed Symkus can be reached at esymkus@rcn.com.
