Raising Cain (1992)

In this wicked thriller from 1992, director Brian De Palma shamelessly borrows from Alfred Hitchcock (as usual) and several other filmmakers to create a shock-a-thon that plays like a film buff's highlight reel from a dozen different thrillers. Taken on those terms it's a lot of fun to watch (though not for the faint-hearted), and multiple maniac roles for John Lithgow make it an irresistible shocker that isn't afraid to wallow in its own excess. Lithgow not only plays the evil Dr. Carter Nix, who is performing strange experiments on children, but he also plays the doctor's twin sons, Josh and Cain, who kidnap kids and bring them to their father's laboratory. Lolita Davidovich is a mother whose child has been abducted, but she won't give up without a fight. If this sounds repulsive, rest assured that De Palma focuses on the battle between the mother and the nefarious twins (this isn't a film about gratuitous child abuse), and film students will delight in the allusions to Hitchcock, Michael Powell's Peeping Tom, and Orson Welles's Touch of Evil, among others. It never makes much sense or adds up to anything truly satisfying, but thanks to Lithgow's wild performances Raising Cain is the kind of over-the-top thriller that grabs you for 95 minutes and holds you in its entertaining grip. --Jeff Shannon Amazon.com

A brilliant and overlooked thriller.

I saw this movie back when it came out.
Kind of like a cross between The Crying Game and Psycho.
Brilliant acting, a fast paced and interesting script.
Good directing.
The ending was...........um, creepy.
I think the leading guy used to be on Third Rock From the Sun.
LOL
I get a big kick out of seeing the kind of work he used to do.
Why did he ever go into tv?
He's way too talented for regular old tv.
All in all I think Raising Cain was one of the better psycho thrillers, but most people seem not to have seen it.
Pity, I highly recommend this overlooked gem.
June 25, 2008

Raising Lithgow

The acting in this movie is hilarious. Lolita Davidovich, the mother of one of the kidnapped girls, can never stop smiling! Her boyfriend (Steven Bauer), who played alongside Pacino in Scarface, is only slightly more hilarious as the sensitive 'italian' lover, prone to occasional fits of crying and ever-near to offer loving re-assurance. Then there's Lithgow who has the challenging role of being 'multi-personalitied', so we get to see him as a 7-year-old child, a woman, a 'nice guy', a psychopath, and finally as his own father, the Swedish child psychiatrist. His acting is admittedly a notch up from that of his co-actors. A notch. Over-the-top, yes!

It's nowhere near in the same league as "Psycho", which could safely be called a five-star movie. With that as a measurement then (and there are obvious parallels between that movie and this one), it can also be said that this is no five star movie. I can't even beleive it came out in 1992, only one year before DePalma did "Carlito's Way" (his masterpiece in my opinion). This one plays like a low-budget 80's movie.

For over-all watching, I'd give it 2.5, as there are a few suspenseful sequences in spite of how cardboard everything seems. For it's ending which leaves some room for speculation (thankfully) following the final obligatory jolt, i guess i'd put it on the upside of 2.5 for a generous 3 stars. February 7, 2008

Shattered...

Dr. Carter Nix (John Lithgow) seems like a normal sort of guy. However, his bland exterior conceals a small army of individual personalities, all splintered off from his original self. Nix suffered unspeakable childhood trauma, leaving him an unpredictable jumble. RAISING CAIN gives Brian De Palma a chance to explore one of his favorite subjects- homicidal mental illness. Just check out his SISTERS or DRESSED TO KILL for some truly insane membranes! RC is also a showcase for Lithgow to play an entire flock of odd characters. I had to watch it a couple of times to catch some of his nuances and gestures. Hell, the first time I saw this movie I was confused and disappointed! I'd heard about it for years, and the movie in my head was totally different! Now, I consider RC to be my second favorite De Palma movie, right after CARRIE... August 29, 2007

Deceptive, Deranged, Demented, DePalma!!

This is a psychological thriller that couldn't have came at a better time than it did, but unfornately it almost got ignored at the theaters. What a travesty! All that was coming out in those days were mindless, generic thrillers like "Sleeping With Julia Roberts", "The Hand That Rocks Rebecca De Mornay", and/or "Single White Stupid Movie". I still remember telling a friend right after seeing "The Bonfire of the Vanities" that (even though I love all of the different genres of film that DePalma has made I think his thrillers are where he excels best), it was time for DePalma to return to the horror genre. And, it's as if he heard me, because this little treasure opened just a little over a year later.
Here it was to save the day! DePalma's most demented, deceptive, deranged piece of work in years. A psychological thriller that weaves back and forth, moving in and out, and in between dreams, thoughts, fantasies, flights of fancy, characters that don't exist outside of the mind, a love story, a kidnapping story, a "mad doctor" scenerario, murders, multiple personalities, framing the innocent for murder, a character that is either a "personality" or back from the dead, and reality.
Loaded with doses of extremely dark humor, this is a relatively simple story, just told in a difficult way (the basic rule of any great director), with not only references to Hitchcock (I especially loved the nod to "Frenzy"), but DePalma even riffed himself just to spite critics who had always bashed him for riffing Hitchcock and others. There is one scene in particular that is straight out of "Dressed To Kill", as well as a few other references to that film. This is a very dark journey inside the mind of a very distured individual who was made that way by experimentation as a child. Yes, John Lithgow plays Carter, Cain, Josh, and Margo Nix, as well as "their" father Dr. Nix, who is supposed to be dead; so is he too just another personality of Carter's? And he plays all five roles so brilliantly, that you believe everyone of them. The way writer, director DePalma fleshes out and brings all the characters together is something to be praised for decades!
Lolita Davidovich is great as Jenny Nix, Carter's confused, frustrated wife who has a few flights of fancy herself, again allowing the film to take us inside the minds of the characters in this film in such a stylish way that will stay in your mind for a long period after viewing. Steven Bauer is really good as Jenny's former lover, Jack, who lost his wife to cancer while Jenny was his wife's nurse, when they both fell in love with each other. But, Jenny married Carter, and now in her confused state of mind over her husband's behavior, up pops her ex to ignite a new passion in her; and Cain literally splits in two, three, four different ways. Look for Gregg Henry in a great performance as one of the detectives, Mel Harris as Jenny's friend, Gabrielle Cartaris as a doomed babysitter, and Frances Sternhagen in what could probably be the best role she's ever done, Dr. Waldheim, a psychiatrist who's surviving cancer, wearing a wig that she declares "I look like a transvestite in this!". A wig that is befitting for a real "Drag Queen" (the only other time Lithgow did this was in "The World According To Garp", a GREAT film, which this is openly paying homage to). Thus, leading the viewer to, what reviewer Adam Craig has stated: The BEST ending in DePalma's film cannon, if not the best over any other film in this genre! After viewing this, and I watch "Body Double", I now almost wished that DePalma would have scrapped the ending credits scene, and just faded to black after the final scene at the resevoir; but, I now have come to reappreciate that ending. This is definetly a film that could compare to Rob Reiner's "Misery" or Kubrick's "The Shining" as far as having a character that delivers lines so deviously sinister, yet hilarious in the same breath. This is definetly a thinking person's horrorshow! It dares to go where few films before it have dared to go...inside the Human mind and the horrors that lay dormant there, just waiting to awaken and come to life and be a character all their own. And, the coolest riddle of all to those that have seen it and loved it (which I know a LOT of people that LOVE this film, plus there are a lot of great 4 or 5 star reviews on here from some very insightful reviewers): If Margo is the protector of the children, then is her presence to be be feared or comforting in a crucial scene?
Anyways, if you like films that play out like a cat and mouse game, then this is for you. It is not a very difficult film to follow, but like chess, it has continuos twists and turns, so just let yourself go for the ride and you'll love every minute of it! Something that's Deceptive, Deranged, Demented, Delirious, Devious, Delicious DePalma at his Disturbing best! Thank you. February 20, 2007

A Great Psychological Thriller. A must for de Palma fans

This has a seemingly convoluted plot. Carter (et al., played exceptionally well by John Lithgow) begins to grow strange when he learns that his wife is having an affair with her ex. He becomes more obsessed with their young daughter and a rash of kidnapping/ killings occur. His wife (Lolita Davidovich) must figure out if he is behind the crimes or if his "dead" father, who committed experiments on children to develop multiple personality disorders, is to blame. Whew...

What makes this film interesting, other than the above-stated reasons, is that they give away one of the twists at the very first scene. The audience is already aware that Carter has multiple personalities. What makes it more intriguing is that de Palma tricks the audience with constant flashbacks, dream sequences, and appearances made by "dead" people that are not really dead.

The film starts a tad slow during the first 15 minutes and seems Lifetime Channel worthy. But as the film progresses, it gets trippier and more Hitchcockian (paranoid, obsessive, and voyeuristic with a knock out ending). Oddly enough, this is rated "R", but for very little reason. There is no nudity, minimal sex, minimal violence, and no gore at all. Most of the violence is implied and the tension comes from the suspense built by de Palma, the disturbing subject matter, and dark atmosphere.

There are a few standout scenes that will creep the viewer out. My favorite was the hospital scene. It literally had me sinking into my couch as this thing slowly turns towards me. It scared the bejesus out of me and had me rewinding to catch a glimpse again. Other noteworthy scenes include the interrogation scene where Lithgow weaves in and out of his different personalities and the ending that is incredibly reminiscent of "Dressed to Kill".

Favorite Quote: "Hickory dickory dock. Cain has picked his lock. He did a bad deed and Josh comes to bleed. Hickory dickory dock."

DVD Extras: The barebones from Universal. Only Brief Production Notes and Original Trailer.

Bottom Line: A great psychological thriller. Gorehounds should pass though. A must for de Palma and Hitchcock fans.

Rating: 7/10

Molly Celaschi November 9, 2006

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