Home Movies (film)

{{Short description|1979 film by Brian De Palma}}

{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}

{{Infobox film

| name = Home Movies

| image = HomeMoviesDePalma.jpg

| caption = Theatrical poster

| director = Brian De Palma

| producer = Gilbert Adler
Brian De Palma
Jack Temchin

| based_on =

| screenplay = Kim Ambler
Dana Edelman
Robert Harders
Stephen Le May
Charlie Loventhal
Gloria Norris

| story = Brian De Palma

| starring = Kirk Douglas
Nancy Allen
Keith Gordon

| music = Pino Donaggio

| cinematography = James L. Carter

| editing = Corky O'Hara

| studio =

| distributor = United Artists

| released = {{Film date|1979|08|28|UK}}

| runtime = 90 minutes

| country = United States

| language = English

| budget = $400,000

| gross = $89,134 (USA)

}}

Home Movies is a 1979 independent film directed by Brian De Palma and starring Kirk Douglas,{{cite news|last=Martin|first=Judith|title='Home Movies,' As Always|date=October 17, 1980|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1980/10/17/home-movies-as-always/9cdbf881-362d-4f4b-931c-83c6a32dde04/|accessdate=July 13, 2022}}{{cite web|last=De Palma|first=Brian|title=Brian De Palma Remembers Filming a Student Film With Kirk Douglas|date=11 February 2020|publisher=The Hollywood Reporter|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/brian-de-palma-remembers-filming-a-student-film-kirk-douglas-1278774|accessdate=4 December 2020}} Nancy Allen, Vincent Gardenia, Keith Gordon, Theresa Saldana, and Gerrit Graham.

De Palma had been teaching film at his alma mater Sarah Lawrence College, and conceived this project as a hands-on training exercise for his students. They were given the primary responsibilities of raising money, arranging the shooting schedule, and editing the film, all under De Palma's supervision. Many of these students, such as Gilbert Adler, Sam Irvin, and Charlie Loventhal, went on to long careers of their own, producing and directing films.

Kirk Douglas plays a film instructor loosely modeled on the director himself. Keith Gordon is one of his pupils who films everything that happens at home. Many of the events that happen to Gordon's character were modeled on events from De Palma's own adolescence, particularly rivalry with a more favored brother, a mother prone to dramatic outbursts, and a philandering father.