Transcendental Film - Movies you haven't seen-yet

By Andy Kuny
Collegian Reporter
November 1, 2006

Director David Cronenberg has made a name for himself filming visions of the grotesque and alien, his most memorable films keying into the themes of sexual dominance, psychological man-ipulation and distortion of the flesh (Exhibit A: Jeff Goldblum’s detachable ear in 1986’s The Fly). Luckily for Cronenberg, his often overlooked output has been in the spotlight as of late, as 2005’s A History of Violence garnered two Oscar nods. And while he’s made many films ranging from great to awful, Cronenberg’s most powerful work is 1988’s criminally overlooked drama Dead Ringers.

Defying a number of the conventions of mainstream movie making, Dead Ringers tells the story of identical twin gynecologists Elliot and Beverly Mantle, both of whom are played by Jeremy Irons. Brash Elliot and sensitive Beverly make for one of the most memorable onscreen teams this side of Bonnie and Clyde. The two men live together, work together and, when apart, often pretend to be one another in the company of colleagues, patients and the women in their lives.

Things pick up when the twins both embark on an affair with a famous patient (Genevieve Bujold), setting off a chain of events which leads to the film’s bizarre climax. I won’t give anything away, but the proceedings are as wild as anything you can imagine, serving up sex, drugs, betrayal and “instruments for operating on mutant women” (fair warning to potential female views: this movie may not sit well, given its main characters’ profession).

What makes Dead Ringers so special is Irons’ perfect performance as two wholly different and complex characters. Twins, particularly identical ones, always make for great movie material, but Irons really nails it here. The crucial differences between the two characters really develop through Irons as he allows the viewer to catch every nuance of their unusual personalities.

The outstanding lead performance is matched by Cronenberg’s skill behind the camera, creating some of the best visual compositions of his career. Anyone familiar with A History of Violence has had the pleasure of seeing just what Cronenberg is capable of as a technical filmmaker, and Dead Ringers positively outshines all of his other work visually. The direction is augmented by great costuming and set design with each element of the visuals balanced and clean, making it all the easier to slip into Elliot and Beverly’s story.

Unfortunately for most movie lovers, Dead Ringers is currently out of print on DVD and VHS. Fortunately for La Salle students, the expansive Audio/Visual section of the Connelly Library has a great copy of the Criterion Collection edition of Dead Ringers on DVD.

If you have the time (and the stomach), take advantage of this opportunity to see a movie that truly stands out from the rest. In Cronenberg’s world, there are no boundaries between dreams and reality, between mind and body—it’s a place you won’t soon forget.

kunya1@lasalle.edu