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Sisters - Criterion Collection

Sisters - Criterion Collection

List Price: $29.95
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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: This makes up for mission impossible
Review: Sisters is a psycological thriller that maintains your interest with its deliberate pacing, eerie imagery, and excellant camera work. Most notable is the unique split screen shot that shows the murder victim spell help with his blood from his vantage point as well as the lady's vantage point in the adjacent building. Other interesting camera work abounds. Margot Kidder is alluring, but average. Charles Durning is a goofball who adds comedic touches where they are needed (note the ending). The guy who plays the doctor/husband looks like Doc on Loveboat after a few drinks (scary). The Grace Collier character is interesting as well. Ultimately we follow her as she tries to solve the mystery (Hitchcock technique). The soundtrack is terrific even tough it could have come from the Psycho sessions (from Pyscho's Herrmann). This film has a certain charm in that it takes time to tell the story. Modern films often rely on slick editing but ultimately lacks substance. This film does have some substance as it probes the relationship between siamese twin sisters and their physical not psychological splitting.. The film is only predictable in that it was made almost 30 years ago and we are jaded. The dream/hypnotic sequences are perhaps the most interesting because they propel the story, disclose important information, and places the antgonist literally in the protagonist' skin. As always Criterion has put out a superb DVD with a good looking transfer. It is a little lean on the extras though. This film truly is disturbIng, even shockingly violent. But if you like Hitchcock, De Palma, or even Margot Kidder I recommend this movie. This makes up for mission impossible.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: what?
Review: this movie was by far one of the worst films ever made. so many people have given this film good reviews, but i dont think they saw the same film i did. this movie was boring, phony, predictable, implausible, and the cast was awful. margot kidder was incredibly annoying in this film. jennifer salts voice was absolutely unbearable. william finley is so unattractive i couldn't watch his scenes. and the ending was just laughable. i have never seen a film so poorly constructed(with the exception of wes craven's Last House On The Left). the only good thing about this film was the bernard herrmann score. this film doesn't deserve one star. i recommend this film like i would having a hole drilled in your head.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: A breach birth
Review: Although not De Palma's first work, it certainly rates as his worst. Perhaps he was clearing his throat before "Carrie."

The production quality makes its television contemporaries "Streets of San Francisco" and "Police Woman" look and sound utterly slick by comparison. Margot Kidder's attempt at a French Canadian accent is laughably bad. The plot twists are implausible. (How do you clean gallons of blood from a snow-white carpet and couch in 5 minutes?) The "shocking" ending is trite and predictable from the first ten minutes of this mess. And De Palma must have been the ONLY person in this country still describing people as "colored" in 1973, a full two years after "Shaft."

Fast forward to the bit parts played by Olympia Dukakis, Barnard Hughes, and Charles Durning and skip the rest.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: PSYCHO IN A REAR WINDOW
Review: Brian de Palma's SISTERS has been chosen by Criterion to enter its growing catalogue. Personally, I would have preferred that this honour had been reserved to OBSESSION or BLOW OUT, two masterpieces of the american director. But nevermind, I'm glad to have finally the opportunity to watch SISTERS in a perfect copy because the copies circulating until now, at least in the european theaters, were dreadful.

As bonus features, Criterion is offering a printed (!) interview of Brian de Palma, a three pages file on the case of siamese twins and numerous b & w and color photos. Interesting but not the kind of extras that would lead you to buy the DVD if you are not particularly fond of horror movies of the 70's or of Brian de Palma.

We all know that Brian de Palma is a great admirer of Alfred Hitchcock and that his work is despised by the american critics who consider BdP movies as bad pastiches of the best movies of the british master. But, in my opinion, Brian de Palma succeeded in giving to his own movies a personal flavour. I'm not ashamed to admit that I loved the sense of humour of BdP. For instance, the two cops and the private detective played by Charles Durning are hilarious and I swear to you that you won't find the equivalent of the last scene of SISTERS in any Hitchcock's movies.

SISTERS is nothing else than, tell me if I'm wrong, the first BdP variation on the theme of the double, a recurrent theme in Brian de Palma's filmography. So one can admire the style of SISTERS but substance is lacking terribly. David Cronenberg's DEAD RINGERS is, until now, the definitive study of the strange behaviours of the twins. In movies, I mean.

A DVD for the curious ones.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Clever Thriller from De Palma
Review: A master Director discovering the medium. A bit rough around the edges, De Palma would reach his full potential until the 80's. It has a style and is extremely effective as a Dark suspence thriller.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Return of A Cult-Favourite !
Review: Since the reissue of SISTERS on DVD/Video , I couldn't resist purchasing a copy on video since I haven't seen this movie on rental for forever, I was not dissapointed. Friends liked it as much as I and agreed it was an eerrie,bizarre thriller/horror classic. All the other review entries are spot-on. This is one of the best directed project's of Brian DePalma and hit-and-miss starring vehicle for then girlfriend Margot Kidder in the lead playing siamese-twins Dominquie & Danielle .Jenny Salt is Grace Collier an over-zealous ambitious reporter whom witnesses A murder from her apartment window. On all levels including direction,acting,cinematography,musical score and production does this weird fright of a tale about Siamese-twin's deliver, one so sweet and charming the other murderously mad. The finale is an eye opener. Aknowledgement's to support cast Dolph Sweet(deceased),Charles Durning and breifly Olympia Dukakis. Much thank's to Criterion for making this much-missed favorite available once again. Recommended Viewing!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: DePalma at his Best - Great 70's Horror
Review: SISTERS is easily one of DePalma's best films and it's always refreshing to re-watch it over the years...it reminds you that a talented independent filmmaker can set out to make something unique and completely unconventional. SISTERS and some of DePalma's other films are Very Hitchcockian-influenced, but if you're gonna steal, why not steal from the best? And DePalma added blood and some of his own stylish techniques to the brew so he became his own persona as a director. Of course, he eventually went on to do mainstream junk (sell out!), but in SISTERS he was a young renegade director with a vision. Margot Kidder is excellent as the twisted and troubled siamese twins who were separated at birth. Is it all in her mind or are the murders being committed by her alter sibling? This low-budget masterpiece features a Great score by Bernard Herrmann, split-screen scenes of genius, hallucinogenic nightmarish b&w segment, raw and meaty characters and a great cerebral ending (for those who hate the usual explosions). It's just excellent all the way through. The Criterion DVD is a very good presentation, but there is Quite a bit of grain in the image. I never remembered it looking this grainy before...neither on my several viewings in a theater or even on VHS. Still, overall, it's a very nice letterboxed presentation and has some interesting extras (the DePalma interview is so old that he refers to Phantom of the "Fillmore" as his next project!). BUT, sorry to say there is No Trailer on this DVD. Why? Oh well...the movie is worth the price on it's own. Now, if we could just get "Phantom of the Paradise" (come on Fox! ) and "Dressed to Kill" ot on DVD.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Sisters and Criterion Collection DVD
Review: First of all, "Sisters" is a great movie and one of the best of the Hitchcock influenced movies. Also, it is De Palma's best movie, mainly because he shows an incredible enthusiasm and energy for filmmaking, and the limited budget probably made him more aware of all the elements of the movie, as well as more liberated to express his film ideas more visually exciting than ever before or since. Also, the performances are very good especially Margot Kidder looking very alluring as well as psychotic. Not to mention the incredible musical score by one of the greates master composers Bernard Hermann, which definitely adds tremendously to the movie. The Criterion Collection DVDs are always great even if some of their DVDs don't have many extras, the picture and sound quality is always excellent. The "Sisters" DVD is great, it looks and sounds better than ever, although their are no behind the scenes featurettes or audio commentary, the overall presentation is again excellent, especially since this movie had disappeared from video. Also, I would be great if Criterion would put out more great movies on great DVDs as they are able to do and more often, I can't get enough of them and buy them as soon as they are made available.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Sisters, (lost classic)
Review: This is my favorite DePalma film, though my review is based on my old VHS copy and from the big screen, with the DVD not yet available. Margot Kidder is sympathetic and believable as half of a siamese twins set separated via meat cleaver. Though ideas were borrowed from every master filmaker, Sisters is fresh and terrifying. When seen on the big screen at the old Mineola (NY) Theater, we did an about face in the lobby, walked back in and enjoyed it a second time. May give some viewers bad dreams, which means it has done its job. I will grab the DVD the first day it's out!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Thanks Again Criterion-for Sisters' return!
Review: A must own for anyone who ever enjoeyd a De Palma film. This is as they say "A lost classic". I have had a tape of it for quite some time, but it has not been generally available for many, many moons. Thank god for Criterion(again)-who have breathed new life into this remarkable De Palma thriller. Has lots of De Palma trademark split screens-with characters viewing eachother. A great trbute to Hitchcock(one of many from De Palma)-this one's a lot like Psycho meets Rear Window meets a siamiese twin movie. Great, great film- here widescreen with lots of extras-how can any film buff possible resist!


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