Brian De Palma two categories, his psychological thrillers ("Sisters", "Body Double", "Obsession", "Dressed to Kill", "Blow Out", "Raising Cain") and his mainly commercial films ("Scarface", "The Untouchables", "Carlito's Way", and "Mission: Impossible"). He has often produced "De Palma" films one after the other before going on to direct a different genre, but would always return to his familiar territory. Because of the subject matter and graphic violence of some of De Palma's films, such as "Dressed to Kill", "Scarface" and "Body Double", they are often at the center of controversy with the Motion Picture Association of America, film critics and the viewing public.
Brian De Palma 1974 novel "Carrie" was released directed by Brian De Palma. The psychic thriller "Carrie" is seen by some as De Palma's bid for a blockbuster. In fact, the project was small, underfunded by United Artists, and well under the cultural radar during the early months of production, as Stephen King's source novel had yet to climb the bestseller list. De Palma gravitated toward the project and changed crucial plot elements based upon his own predilections, not the saleability of the novel. The cast was young and relatively new, though Sissy Spacek and John Travolta had gained attention for previous work