Sunday, June 16, 2013 - 7:40 PM CDT

De Palma shot PASSION on 35m and transfered the film to digital. That would explain the flat cold and empty look of the film which I found unappealing. The shot composition of FEMME FATALE was truly cinematic which is what I can't say for PASSION. PASSION like REDACTED are films where DePalma is into survelliance cameras, IPHONES, cam-corders as tools of POV shots. I'm not a fan of films shot with digital cameras but understand how it can be a tool for the filmmaker. Hope now DePalma has experimented with digital cameras he can move back to film which does not have cold flat look of digital.

Monday, June 17, 2013 - 1:13 AM CDT

Harry, shooting on film and transferring to digital does not give the film its cold look; obviously this was a decision on De Palma's part, and I think it fits because offices are very flat, cold places.  When the scenes take place outside of the office, it is not so flat and the lighting is very dramatic.

Monday, June 17, 2013 - 9:55 PM CDT

I'm sure you're right, it's because FEMME FATALE is a more cinematic movie with more interesting camera angles that PASSION lacked in the first half of the movie. The second half with the split-screen segment and the dreams within dreams did the film become visually interesting. PASSION is basically a murder who-dunnit that one would have seen constantly on midday telemovies throughout the '80's. I can see why this movie is getting released VOD and  straight to DVD in most countries.

Monday, June 17, 2013 - 11:16 PM CDT

I found the shots in the first part of PASSION to be rather pointed-- maybe nothing stands out too specifically as it does in the first shots of, say, DRESSED TO KILL or BLOW OUT, but the shots are specific, and the pacing is deliberate. The film moves fast, kind of like the first 20 minutes of THE BLACK DAHLIA. PASSION to me has the manic feel of RAISING CAIN, and it feels fresh (despite my familiarity with Corneau's LOVE CRIME) and fun, like RAISING CAIN did when it first came out. FEMME FATALE feels like a different, wonderful world altogether. The shots in FF are definitely more elaborate. But whereas the opening scene of FF is one long take, beautifully and masterfully done, the opening scene of PASSION uses cutting to get across a certain idea about creativity. Instead of pulling back slowly from the front of a TV set (as at the start of FEMME FATALE), in PASSION, the camera pulls back quickly from the back of a laptop to show the two protagonists looking on. That difference right there shows, I think, that De Palma simply rendered PASSION with a different sort of aesthetic in mind, one that gets right to the point (and perhaps mirroring these "driven" characters).

Tuesday, June 18, 2013 - 2:25 AM CDT

The sequence that reminded me of RAISING CAIN was the dreams within the dreams and the use of Rachel McAdams twin sister in a very Hitchcokian manner. Once I get PASSION on Blu-ray where I can have repeated viewings I'll probaly like it more. It took repeated viewings of MISSION TO MARS and BONFIRE on DVD to really appreaciate these movies. There's strong subversive humour in PASSION when it comes to female office politics that's really well written by DePalma.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013 - 4:27 PM CDT

This idea that Mr. De Palma filmed in 35m and "had it converted to digital" is just wrong and misleading, to the extent it suggests that conversion to digital was his preference. 

Nearly all projection in today's movie theaters is done digitally, and the number of theaters capable of projecting from actual film is dwindling every month.   Distributors by and large are no longer distributing 35mm prints.  Library titles are being converted to digital, and 35mm prints are no longer maintained.  For Passion (or any title) to get theatrical exhibition anywhere other than the few 35mm-capable houses that remain, it pretty much HAS to get converted to digital.  At least De Palma insisted on SHOOTING in 35mm so that, somewhere, there's a 35mm negative from which 35mm prints can be struck in the utopian future when everyone realizes that digital conversion was a mistake  and we're better off going back to film.