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Where to start..... First off, the sets are wonderful. They are lavish and look authentic of the time, except as if a madman on acid was given a gigantic budget and told to "go at it!" Peter O'Toole is wonderful as the aging Tiberius. Malcolm McDowell gives a great performance as the young Caligula who kills his way to the throne of the Roman Emperor and then soon leads a legacy of terror. The supporting actors do a fine job yet, most of the young ladies were actually Penthouse Pets and were there for eye candy and irrelevant sex scenes. Depending on which film you are watching, the uncut or the R-version, some scenes are extremely graphic. I would usually always recommend the uncut version as opposed to the chopped one, but in this instance, the full length film is purely indulgent. Scenes of sex and gore were added to satisfy the producers (Penthouse) and the expected audience, not to add anything to the story. However, I am and will always be a fan of excess, so get the full version! The story is strong and keeps you interested. McDowell is charming throughout, which is quite the feat considering he murders family members, rapes and molests men and women, and sleeps with his sister. For fans of excess and sleaze, i highly recommend. Viewers who are purely interested in the reign of the notorious ruler might want to skip this one.

Brain DePalma's thriller masterpiece is wonderfully paced, truly gripping and oozing with style. The film grabs you from the beginning as the camera glides around outside, peeping into unsuspecting victims houses, whom happen to be young beautiful half naked, or completely nude women having sex or having sex by themselves. This is one of the things you expect from the 70's and early 80's DePalms movies! Then the director yells "Cut!" and then walking and shouting stage hands move in. Come to find the beautiful and outlandish opening scene is just a movie Jack Terry (John Travolta) is editing. He is a b-budget horror movie sound tech, working for the same sleazy director for the past couple years.

Later, while Jack is recording effects for the same movie, he witnesses a car lose control and crash into a lake. He manages to save one of the victims from drowning, the beautiful Sally (Nancy Allen), but the other passenger, a married politician, drowns. Soon nagging cops, scandal and curiosity drag Jack into a world of mystery and murder.

The pacing is perfect, in a comparable way to Mr. Hitchcock. The cinematography is very good, swooping and zooming like usual with most of DePalma's earlier thrillers. There was great use of color in the film, adding to the story and making for an amazing climax.

John Lithgow, a DePalma regular, makes a great theatrical and just plain cool performance as well. He is a paid thug who was hired to complete a simple mission, but he has other plans and turns out to be way more than what they had bargained for.

9 out of 10!!!!! If you enjoy this, check out other great DePalma thrillers like Sisters, Dressed to Kill, or Body Double!!