Brian Russell De Palma (born September 11, 1940) is an American film
director and screenwriter. With a career spanning over 50 years, he is
best known for his work in the suspense, crime and psychological
thriller genres. His prominent films include mainstream box office
hits such as Carrie (1976), Dressed to Kill (1980), Scarface (1983),
The Untouchables (1987), and Mission: Impossible (1996), as well as
cult favorites such as Sisters (1972), Phantom of the Paradise (1974),
Blow Out (1981), Body Double (1984), Casualties of War (1989),
Carlito's Way (1993), and Femme Fatale (2002).De Palma is often cited
as a leading member of the New Hollywood generation of film directors.
His directing style often makes use of quotations from other films or
cinematic styles, and bears the influence of filmmakers such as Alfred
Hitchcock and Jean-Luc Godard. His films have been criticised for
their violence and sexual content but have also been championed by
prominent critics such as Roger Ebert and Pauline Kael.De Palma was
born on September 11, 1940, in Newark, New Jersey, the youngest of
three boys. His Italian-American parents were Vivienne DePalma (née
Muti), and Anthony DePalma, an orthopedic surgeon who was the son of
immigrants from Alberona, Province of Foggia. He was raised in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire, and attended various
Protestant and Quaker schools, eventually graduating from Friends'
Central School. He had a poor relationship with his father, and would
secretly follow him to record his adulterous behavior; this would
eventually inspire the teenage character played by Keith Gordon in De
Palma's 1980 film Dressed to Kill. When he was in high school, he
built computers. He won a regional science-fair prize for a project
titled "An Analog Computer to Solve Differential Equations".
director and screenwriter. With a career spanning over 50 years, he is
best known for his work in the suspense, crime and psychological
thriller genres. His prominent films include mainstream box office
hits such as Carrie (1976), Dressed to Kill (1980), Scarface (1983),
The Untouchables (1987), and Mission: Impossible (1996), as well as
cult favorites such as Sisters (1972), Phantom of the Paradise (1974),
Blow Out (1981), Body Double (1984), Casualties of War (1989),
Carlito's Way (1993), and Femme Fatale (2002).De Palma is often cited
as a leading member of the New Hollywood generation of film directors.
His directing style often makes use of quotations from other films or
cinematic styles, and bears the influence of filmmakers such as Alfred
Hitchcock and Jean-Luc Godard. His films have been criticised for
their violence and sexual content but have also been championed by
prominent critics such as Roger Ebert and Pauline Kael.De Palma was
born on September 11, 1940, in Newark, New Jersey, the youngest of
three boys. His Italian-American parents were Vivienne DePalma (née
Muti), and Anthony DePalma, an orthopedic surgeon who was the son of
immigrants from Alberona, Province of Foggia. He was raised in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire, and attended various
Protestant and Quaker schools, eventually graduating from Friends'
Central School. He had a poor relationship with his father, and would
secretly follow him to record his adulterous behavior; this would
eventually inspire the teenage character played by Keith Gordon in De
Palma's 1980 film Dressed to Kill. When he was in high school, he
built computers. He won a regional science-fair prize for a project
titled "An Analog Computer to Solve Differential Equations".
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