|
|
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Binding: DVD
EAN: 9781559408875
Format: Color, DVD-Video, Letterboxed, NTSC
ISBN: 1559408871
Label: Criterion
Manufacturer: Criterion
Number Of Items: 1
Picture Format: Letterbox
Publisher: Criterion
Region Code: 1
Release Date: October 14, 1998
Running Time: 115 minutes
Sales Rank: 34440
Studio: Criterion
Theatrical Release Date: September 23, 1988
Editorial Review:
Description:
In Dead Ringers, David Cronenberg tells the chilling story of identical twin gynecologists-suave Elliot and sensitive Beverly, bipolar sides of one personality-who share the same practice, the same apartment, the same women. When a new patient, glamorous actress Claire Niveau, challenges their eerie bond, they descend into a whirlpool of sexual confusion, drugs, and madness. Jeremy Irons' tour-de-force performance-as both twins-raises disturbing questions about the nature of personal identity.
Amazon.com essential video:
Like many other films by Canadian director David Cronenberg (especially Crash), Dead Ringers presents the cinematic and psychological equivalent of an automobile accident--you dare not look, but you can't turn away. The film marked a directorial breakthrough for Cronenberg, who was able to continue some of the themes explored in his earlier horror films while graduating to a higher, more critically 'respectable' level of artistic sophistication. The film is loosely based, amazingly enough, on a true story about twin gynecologists who routinely traded each others' identities, lives and even lovers. Utilizing innovative split-screen technology (years before computer manipulation made such trickery much easier), the film stars Jeremy Irons in flawless dual roles as the identical brothers Beverly and Elliot Mantle. Their ability to instantly switch identities leads them to a shared relationship with a well-known actress (Genevieve Bujold) and, ultimately, a physical and psychological tailspin that sends them both to the brink of madness and death. The scenario suggests that both men are halves of a whole, and that one cannot exist without the other. But when Beverly pursues a kinky, drug-addicted affair with the actress, his more self-controlled brother is helpless to prevent their mutual decline. In this way Dead Ringers becomes a fascinating and stylistically clinical study of duality, and Cronenberg doesn't shy away from the dark and unpleasant aspects of the story. (One look at the movie's display of bizarre gynecological instruments and you'll know why women find this film particularly--and unforgettably--disturbing.) --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Profound examination of lost sanity, the decline of brilliance unto madness.
Like many other known masters of horror like Tobe Hooper or George Romero, David Cronemberg is one of the most renowned and prominent directors working today in the industry. Only few talented filmakers sprang into public consciousness with such audacity and intelligence, from a series of low budget surprising shockers back in the mid 70's , untill today's acclaimed classic masterpieces of all times in modern horror, with the unmistakable mark of a true author, a gifted brilliant talent that explored ... Read More
Rating: - Smart horror for the thinking person to obsess upon
This is one of the most disturbing films I have seen and I recently watched it again after 10 years and found it is just as disturbing now as 10 years ago.
The story is very hard to describe because much of the action is actually mental deterioration of Beverly and Elliot Mantle, twin gynecologists. These men are brilliant and whereas one conducts the clinical research and writes the journal publications, the other markets their work and is the public face of their accomplishments. Beverly ... Read More
Rating: - Survival by death
Cronenberg is the most surprising and shocking film director I know but he always deals with situations that are out of the ordinary and he pushes them to their extreme end or even beyond. In this film he explores the relation between two real twins who have perfectly identical routes in life to the point of becoming schizophrenic and wanting to get rid of the second half of their individual personality, which is the personality of the other. They become obsessed with separating the Siamese twins they are ... Read More
Rating:  - The WORST movie I've ever seen.
This has got to be the WORST MOVIE that I've ever seen. Unless you REALLY go for semi-erotic thrillers, skip this unless you really want to see how NOT to make a movie. Had Jeremy Irons skipped this movie, he probably would have become one of the leading actors of the early 90s. I remember going to see this movie simply because it seemed like his career was on the upswing and some friends I ran into recommended we go see it instead of the cheesy comedy we were going to see. What a waste. Some people on internet ... Read More
Rating: - what a waste!
This movie begins with the interesting idea of psychological Siamese twins but quickly descends to a trashy story of sexual deviation and drug addiction. What a waste of talent all around! For a different kind of movie about Siamese twins, I recommend "Twin Falls, Idaho." Better still, why doesn't someone film the story of Chang and Eng Bunker, the original Siamese twins?
|
|
