I love Brian DePalma, but Raising Cain is not one of his best. It took fifty minutes before I started enjoying Raising Cain. John Lithgow is a great actor, but I could not take him seriously in any of his roles in Raising Cain. It felt comedic instead of terrifying. The layered oneiric occasionally prophetic shifting perspective narrative in the first fifty minutes felt belabored instead of clever and revealing. The prophetic portion in particular felt anti-climatic by the end of the film instead of giving the audience a sense of relief. With a different cast and better chemistry, Raising Cain could have been better. The minute that the movie stops focusing on Lithgow, Lolita Davidovich or Steven Bauer, Raising Cain snaps into focus with strong performances by Frances Sternhagen who can handle DePalma’s energetic and unwavering focus. DePalma also recycles (perhaps he is obsessed) some elements from Dressed to Kill, a far better film, to explore gender roles. I would not mind if DePalma decided to remake Raising Cain, but please keep the shot in the police precinct which cuts from the no smoking sign to a cloud of smoke ominously hovering over the lobby.