Friday, December 9, 2016

"The Fury" Ups the Ante on Teenage Alienation

Kirk Douglas watches his son get abducted.
Brian DePalma has made better movies than The Fury (1978), but none that can match it for pure entertainment and craftsmanship. It shows a director, at the peak of his powers, layering science fiction and teen alienation over a conventional suspense plot. As if to make the film even more robust, DePalma integrates some unexpected humor and a shock ending that stunned audiences.

For most of its running time, The Fury follows two parallel stories. In the first, Peter (Kirk Douglas), a retired government agent, searches desperately for his kidnapped teenaged son. An early scene between father and son reveals that Robin (Andrew Stevens) is “special,” though his unique talents remain a mystery throughout much of the film.

Amy Irving as Gillian.
The second plot revolves around Gillian (Amy Irving), a teenage girl who inadvertently discovers she may possess extrasensory powers. Eager to learn about herself, Gillian enrolls at the Paragon Institute, which studies ESP and telepathy. She soon learns that she has a psychic connection with a former Paragon resident—a boy named Robin.

Thematically, the connection between Gillian and Robin is that they’re both isolated from a “normal” society. When Robin’s father discusses returning to the U.S. to attend school, Robin replies: “I won’t fit in; I’d feel like some kind of freak.” Likewise, Gillian knows she is different. Except for one friend, her classmates treat her cruelly or ambivalently (not unlike the title character in DePalma’s earlier Carrie). It’s no wonder that Gillian becomes anxious to meet Robin—to finally talk with someone like herself.

Tragedy strikes during the escape.
Stylistically, DePalma engages in some of his trademark directorial flourishes. There are plenty of foreboding overhead angles and a shot where the camera revolves around Gillian on the stairs as she has a vision. But The Fury also features my favorite sequence in any DePalma film: a stunning, five-minute, slow-motion scene in which Gillian escapes from the Paragon Institute. Manipulating the soundtrack to maximum effect, DePalma avoids dialogue and filters out all natural sounds except for screeching tires and gunshots. He then uses John Williams’superb music score to alter the scene’s mood from light to dark in a matter of seconds.

Although the climax to The Fury goes over-the-top and turns excessively gory, the film’s virtues easily outweigh its faults. Amy Irving turns in a winning, vulnerable performance, while Carrie Snodgress provides great support as a nurse who befriends her. DePalma keeps the plot moving smartly, while visually reminding us this is a film about people reaching out to one another. Watch for his many shots of hands: Gillian grabbing the doctor’s hand on the stairs; Gillian’s and Robin’s finger tapping in unison; and Peter holding onto his son’s hand near the end.

Carrie Snodgress and Kirk Douglas.
Kirk Douglas appeared in movies for three more decades after The Fury. I'd rate this among the best of his late-career performances. He and Snodgress share some winning scenes and he forges an effective paternal relationship with Irving. The Fury is really an ensemble piece and Douglas, the film biggest star, accepts that knowingly.

Trivia fans should note that two of Gillian’s classmates are played by Daryl Hannah and Laura Innes (Carrie on the television series ER). The off-duty cop with the new Cadillac is Dennis Franz, long before NYPD Blue. For the record, my second favorite DePalma film is the equally underrated Body Double, an entertaining, slightly sleazy homage to Hitchcock’s Rear Window.


This post is part of the Kirk Douglas 100th Birthday Blogathon hosted by Shadows and Satin. Click here to check out the complete blogathon schedule.

16 comments:

  1. Kirk Douglas never simply phoned it in. We can divide his career into eras, but never by the quality of performance which was always consistent.

    ReplyDelete
  2. An All-Time Fave, mainly because much of it was filmed on location here in Chicago, my old home town.

    One of the Douglas/Snodgress meet-ups is in the atrium of the then-newly constructed Water Tower Place on Michigan Avenue - and I saw The Fury for the first time in the movieplex in that very building!
    Imagine the disconnect of watching a movie star hookup that was shot not a hundred feet from where you're sitting watching it!

    Even better was the location filming on Van Buren Street in the Loop, were Douglas carjacked Dennis Franz.
    Not long after this, the city planners decided to gentrify the whole South Loop with a vengeance; the flophouses and porno stores were leveled, as well as the old LaSalle Street Station, all replaced by gleaming mercantile skyscrapers.

    Also, the amusement sequence was shot at Old Chicago, a huge combination shopping mall/amusement park, which went out of business not too long thereafter (long story, not really relevant to the rest of this).

    Thus, The Fury qualifies as a genuine historical document (sort of).

    The movie is its own thrill ride, with shots on the Loop El, and stars like Charles Durning, Alice (Large Marge) Nunn, William Finley, Fiona Lewis, and above all John Cassevetes, who truly explodes across the screen ...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mike, loved reading your comment! De Palma often made great use of his films' settings and THE FURY is a fine example.

      Delete
    2. Thanks for sharing about the Chi-town locations!

      Delete
  3. I like what you said about Kirk Douglas accepting this movie as an ensemble project. That says a lot about him right there.

    As for the film itself, it sounds terrific! I'm curious to see the wild, over-the-top finish.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I agree that The Fury is not among the best for De Palma or Douglas, but there's still something oddly hypnotic about it. Douglas, with his tough love and tougher physique, steals the show even from an "explosive" John Cassavetes. Also the film is currently on Netflix!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nice pun about Cassavetes, who plays nasty very well in this movie. Thanks for letting folks know it's on Netflix, too.

      Delete
  5. I'm not a big fan of the later Kirk Douglas performances. In my view (I know this sounds very very strange) his face just got bigger and bigger until it threatened to gobble up the screen. I can't help it, that's how I remember him. HA! And I couldn't stand Andrew Stevens in ANYTHING! So despite your excellent post, I probably won't be viewing this movie any time soon.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks for the well written analysis of one of my favorite DePalma films: I agree it's not necessarily his best, but it really is a thrilling, fun ride. And I'm glad you gave a shout out to Body Double as well!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, BODY DOUBLE gets criticized too often as a Hitchcock rip-off, but it's actually a stylish, loving tribute.

      Delete
  7. Rick, an excellent take on this film. DePalma is one of my favorite directors though I always considered this one of his lesser films. Admittedly, I have not seen it since it was first released and it probably deserves a second look.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I'm a De Palma nerd and watch his films repeatedly. This is definitely a standout and features the director's trademark visual style. I think Amy Irving is amazing in this, playing a completely sympathetic character while still terrifying when she's ESPing. I like doubling this film with CROSSING DELANCEY for a brilliant Amy Irving double feature, which I don't think is weird at all. Anyway, superb write-up for a superb and underrated movie.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I wholeheartedly agree about Amy Irving. I don't think I truly appreciated many of her performances when I first saw them. But she's very good in this, DELANCEY, THE COMPETITION, and YENTL.

      Delete
  9. John Farris has never received enough credit for his novels so I'll throw him a bone before I comment on De Palma's adaption. If you like to read, the book is better than the movie. Bone thrown - allow me a moment to chew on what I feel is a lesser De Palma performance. Compared to the cinematic style of Dressed to Kill and Blow Out this compilation of sound and "Fury" signifies nothing but a great performance by an underrated young actress named Amy Irving. movie. With the exce

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I haven't read the book and thus judged the film on its own merits. Yes, Ms. Irving deserves the most praise, but I still like the film as a whole. It's a surprisingly intricate film about relationships: father-son, father-daughter (Kirk becoming a paternal father figure to Amy's character), and faux father figure (Cassavetes).

      Delete
  10. I really found "The Fury" to be entertaining. And, sometimes, that's enough from a movie. Great post!

    ReplyDelete