Brian De Palma has a new film on the way, and he's bringing back his most trusted collaborator.
Speaking to La Repubblica, composer Pino Donaggio confirmed he'll score De Palma's next feature, "Sweet Vengeance." It would be their ninth film together, a partnership that dates back 50 years to "Carrie."
The key detail: De Palma recently asked him, "Are you ready for February?"
That's not a shooting date. Donaggio explained that, with De Palma, he always needs to see the finished cut before writing a note. Their process has always worked this way; Donaggio comes in once the picture is assembled in the editing room, they map out the moods and the big set pieces together, and he goes home to Venice to compose.
So if Donaggio is gearing up for February, De Palma presumably plans to have a cut ready by then. That would put "Sweet Vengeance" on track for a 2027 release, though, curiously, nothing about the shoot, cast or distribution has been confirmed. Last I checked, the originally planned summer shoot in Portugal had been delayed to October, which was last month.
By the way, Pedro Sotero ("Bacurau," "Aquarius") is the cinematographer on "Sweet Vengeance," which was first announced eight years ago and is said to be "inspired by two true stories of murders" and by true-crime content: "I'm interested in how they tell the story of the crime, so I'll do it the way [they] do on television."
A cast has yet to be announced. Will the film be in English? Portuguese? We still don't know. De Palma turned 86 this year. His last film, 2019's "Domino," was a critical and commercial failure. I tried to give it a rewatch recently, and although the climactic set piece was wonderful, the rest of the film certainly wasn't.
De Palma remains a master of suspense, even if his last few films haven't been very good. I mean, what else would you call the man who directed "Carrie," "Dressed to Kill," "Blow Out," "Scarface," "Carlito's Way," "Body Double," "The Untouchables," "Casualties of War," "Phantom of the Paradise" and "Mission: Impossible"?
Pino Donaggio confirmed he'll score De Palma's next feature, "Sweet Vengeance." It would be their ninth film together, a partnership that dates back 50 years to "Carrie."