The Fury (1978)

A former CIA agent uses the talents of a young psychic to help retrieve his telekinetic son from terrorists, who want to use his mental powers for evil.

Director:

Brian De Palma (as Brian DePalma)

Writers:

John Farris (screenplay), John Farris (novel)

Stars:

Kirk Douglas, John Cassavetes, Carrie Snodgress

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kirk Douglas	...	Peter
John Cassavetes	...	Childress
Carrie Snodgress	...	Hester
Charles Durning	...	Dr. Jim McKeever
Amy Irving	...	Gillian
Fiona Lewis	...	Susan Charles
Andrew Stevens	...	Robin
Carol Eve Rossen	...	Dr. Ellen Lindstrom (as Carol Rossen)
Rutanya Alda	...	Kristen
Joyce Easton	...	Mrs. Bellaver
William Finley	...	Raymond
Jane Lambert	...	Vivian Nuckells
Sam Laws	...	Blackfish
J. Patrick McNamara	...	Robertson
Alice Nunn	...	Mrs. Callahan

Storyline

A secret US agency behind the unscrupulous Childress gathers children with parapsychologic abilities and trains them to become killers in war situations. To rescue his son, who was officially declared dead after an arranged accident, the ex-CIA agent Peter investigates against Childress.

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Plot Keywords:

psychic | insanity | father searches for missing son | telepathy | government agency | 

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Taglines:

An experience in terror and suspense.

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 March 1978 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Fury

Filming Locations:

Water Tower Place Shopping Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,500,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$24,000,000, 31 December 1978

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox, Frank Yablans Presentations

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Both Carrie Snodgress and Daryl Hannah appear in this film and both had/have relationships with rocker Neil Young. Carrie had a son Zeke from a four year relationship with Young and Hannah and Young married in 2018.

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Goofs

Peter shoots out of the open car window to help Gillian, this causes the crash that Hester ends up involved in. After Gillian's shock it Pan's to Peter, his face shoved against the now closed window, it flattens part of his face then lifts and wrinkles the rest. When he gets out to run to Gillian to shot the guy grabbing her, the car door swings out and you see the window is once again open...

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Quotes

[first lines]
Robin Sandza: [laughing]
Peter Sandza: I won.
Robin Sandza: What do you mean, you won? You did not!

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Connections

Referenced in The Making of 'Dressed to Kill' (2001)

User Reviews

For your eyes only.

Fortunately, De Palma's hyperbolic, visually compelling, science fiction occult espionage thriller moves so fast that the ludicrous dialog, indifferent performances, and Swiss cheese plot don't spoil the fun. The Fury starts from an interesting premise, but De Palma is clearly more interested in the spectacular set pieces than logic or characterization. The potentially most interesting character Robin is off screen for too long and instead we get low comedy relief with Mother Knuckles and the off duty cops in the Caddilac. Also, Gillian's mother and the students at the Paragon Institute seem to disappear. And where Sissy Spacek was touching as Carrie, Amy Irving and Andrew Stevens as psychic teens who unleash the fury are whiny and callow, and you don't really care about their fates. Though Douglas, Snodgress, Cassavetes and De Palma regular William Finley ( Raymond Dunwoodie) are always interesting, the rest of the cast is pretty bad. And a scene between Irving and Douglas on a bus is embarrassingly bad. Still, The Fury with its telepathic visions, its pulse pounding score by John Willams and Richard H. Kline's elegant deep focus cinematography is superior to junk like The Eyes of Laura Mars. De Palma pulls out all the stops and creates some spectacularly over-the-top scenes. Faults and all, The Fury is more entertaining, and less pretentious and derivative than most of De Palma's more recent efforts to say nothing of Dressed to Kill, Body Double, Obsession, Wise Guys, Carlito's Way, Raising Cain, and The Bonfire of the Vanities.