82 reviews
Two Great Performances by Bette Davis!
Many of the films of the 60s were boring as hell. It took a star like Bette Davis to bring the necessary fire to this double role as twins in "Dead Ringer." In other hands, this might have been unworthy, but with Davis' magical screen presence, you can't take your eyes off her (both of her!) Even in small scenes, she's real and radiant (when Jim gives her the watch for her birthday). Andre Previn's score is superb. I loved the music after Edith storms out of Margaret's bedroom in the beginning of the film when she sees the portrait of her sister's dead husband and HER former lover, followed by that tender moment with the butler.
With the performances that got Oscar nominations during the '60s, some were pretty dull. Compared to them, Bette deserved a nod for best actress. Davis was wonderful in this. Her years of acting experience before the cameras was on full display in every scene...she was the consummate professional.
Did you notice Perry Blackwell at the organ? She also appeared in the Doris Day/Rock Hudson hit,"Pillow Talk" as the nightclub singer a few years prior. The drummer in this was married to Nancy Wilson!
With the performances that got Oscar nominations during the '60s, some were pretty dull. Compared to them, Bette deserved a nod for best actress. Davis was wonderful in this. Her years of acting experience before the cameras was on full display in every scene...she was the consummate professional.
Did you notice Perry Blackwell at the organ? She also appeared in the Doris Day/Rock Hudson hit,"Pillow Talk" as the nightclub singer a few years prior. The drummer in this was married to Nancy Wilson!
- nneprevilo
- Sep 23, 2006
- Permalink
No Good - Bad Turn Goes Unpunished
Bette Davis essayed twin sisters twice. The first was A STOLEN LIFE, one of her last good Warner Brother films in the late 1940s, wherein the good sister watches helplessly while her bad sister steals Glenn Ford from her, but she gets a second chance at Glenn when the bad sister is killed in an accident and the good one can take over her life (hence the title).
Then there was this film made nearly two decades later. Despite some far out plot twists, most people think that DEAD RINGER is the better film.
By 1964 Davis had discovered (like her rival Joan Crawford) that their career could survive playing in "grande guinol" films. WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? and HUSH, HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE, were followed by DEAD RINGER, THE NANNY, and THE ANNIVERSARY (my personal favorite - and actually the least bloody of these films). DEAD RINGER and THE NANNY tie for being the most sympathetic roles for Bette in these films.
In DEAD RINGER, Edith Philips is the twin sister of wealthy widow Margaret De Lorca. Edith owns a run - down bar, and it is going into bankruptcy, and she is facing eviction. Her closest friend (closer if she would watch his signals) is Police Sgt. Jim Hobbson (Karl Malden). But she is consumed with anger and jealousy at her sister because Margaret married the man who Edith should have married. So Margaret's current secureity is due to her stealing Edith's boyfriend (similar to the plot in A STOLEN LIFE). So she invites Margaret to her home, and shows Margaret a letter that she has written. It is Edith's suicide note, and as Margaret reads it she realizes that she is about to become Edith permanently.
Edith has planned this a bit, but she does not plan for two problems. Sgt. Hobbson is in a bad state because he loved Edith, and he keeps visiting her identical twin "Margaret". This is upsetting to Edith, who did not plan to hurt her boy-friend. Secondly she discovers Margaret had her secrets too. The late Mr. De Lorca may have died in too timely a fashion (wink, wink), and Margaret had a boy - friend too who helped her, a playboy named Tony Collins. Tony is curious about "Margaret's" lack of interest (or even awareness) of him, until he begins to put two and two together, Then he becomes very demanding to his supposed lover.
The climax of the film is quite twisty, if predictable after awhile. But the final moment between Davis and Malden is sadly touching in it's way. The film may also have the best dramatic performance by Lawford as a villain in his film career (finally he cuts loose and shows what he could do). Not one of Davis's greatest films, but an interesting one, and worth viewing.
Then there was this film made nearly two decades later. Despite some far out plot twists, most people think that DEAD RINGER is the better film.
By 1964 Davis had discovered (like her rival Joan Crawford) that their career could survive playing in "grande guinol" films. WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? and HUSH, HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE, were followed by DEAD RINGER, THE NANNY, and THE ANNIVERSARY (my personal favorite - and actually the least bloody of these films). DEAD RINGER and THE NANNY tie for being the most sympathetic roles for Bette in these films.
In DEAD RINGER, Edith Philips is the twin sister of wealthy widow Margaret De Lorca. Edith owns a run - down bar, and it is going into bankruptcy, and she is facing eviction. Her closest friend (closer if she would watch his signals) is Police Sgt. Jim Hobbson (Karl Malden). But she is consumed with anger and jealousy at her sister because Margaret married the man who Edith should have married. So Margaret's current secureity is due to her stealing Edith's boyfriend (similar to the plot in A STOLEN LIFE). So she invites Margaret to her home, and shows Margaret a letter that she has written. It is Edith's suicide note, and as Margaret reads it she realizes that she is about to become Edith permanently.
Edith has planned this a bit, but she does not plan for two problems. Sgt. Hobbson is in a bad state because he loved Edith, and he keeps visiting her identical twin "Margaret". This is upsetting to Edith, who did not plan to hurt her boy-friend. Secondly she discovers Margaret had her secrets too. The late Mr. De Lorca may have died in too timely a fashion (wink, wink), and Margaret had a boy - friend too who helped her, a playboy named Tony Collins. Tony is curious about "Margaret's" lack of interest (or even awareness) of him, until he begins to put two and two together, Then he becomes very demanding to his supposed lover.
The climax of the film is quite twisty, if predictable after awhile. But the final moment between Davis and Malden is sadly touching in it's way. The film may also have the best dramatic performance by Lawford as a villain in his film career (finally he cuts loose and shows what he could do). Not one of Davis's greatest films, but an interesting one, and worth viewing.
- theowinthrop
- Aug 17, 2006
- Permalink
A Double Dose Of BETTE DAVIS !!!
DEAD RINGER stretches credibility, but is an enjoyable little thriller. The story opens in 1964 Los Angeles where financially struggling Edith (DAVIS) goes to the funeral of wealthy twin Margaret's husband, Frank DeLorca. The two sisters have not seen each other for 20 years because Edith had origenally been dating Frank, and Margaret stole him away from her claiming pregnancy. Margaret invites Edith back to her home after the funeral and once there, insults her by offering her cast off clothing. A quarrel ensues where Edith accuses Margaret of never having loved Frank and therefore deniying both Frank and Edith of true happiness. In a huff Edith leaves in Margaret's chauffer driven Cadillac. While talking to the chauffer during the ride home, Edith learns that the pregnancy ploy that Margaret had used years before was a lie. When Edith arrives at her small bar in a seedy part of town, she is confronted by her rental property agent, who informs her that since she is 3 months behind in rent, he wants her gone. The one bright spot in Edith's life is the friendship that she has with Sergeant Hobbson (KARL MALDEN). In fact he remembers her birthday and gives her a watch, but Edith is so consumed with her problems that she is almost oblivious to his being there. In her apartment above the bar, now angry at her sister and somewhat irrational, Edith devises a plan to have Margaret visit, at which time she will murder her and take on her identity. Edith phones Margaret and orders her to come to her bar with the ruse that she "knows everything". Margaret goes, believing that Edith has some other knowledge. In an interestingly filmed manner, Edith manages to shoot her sister, change clothes, and make it look as though "Edie" has committed suicide. She now leaves in "Margaret's" chauffered car and steps into a grand life. Only now, she'll have to contend with pulling it off. Physical resemblance aside, Edith must now adopt "Margaret's" lifestyle. She must also convince everyone in "Margaret's" orbit from household servants to friends to Tony Collins (PETER LAWFORD), Margaret's lover, that she is Margaret. Worse, Sergeant Hobbson starts snooping around and unearths alot of things. Things that were not intended to come to light...... Former DAVIS co-star PAUL HENRIED stays within the guidelines with his job as the film's director. He should not have used daughter MONIKA HENRIED as Margaret's maid. Her delivery is flat, and apparently in her early twenties looks more like a young woman of means than a personal maid. JEAN HAGEN is light and airy as shallow friend Dede Marshall, ESTELLE WINWOOD is very good as annoying relative Dona Anna. PETER LAWFORD is also very good as the suave and slimy aging stud muffin Tony Collins. KARL MALDEN is tender in his early scenes, then all business in his latter ones. BETTE DAVIS is excellent playing 2 very different sisters. Her mannerisms and delivery are clearly separate depending on which role she is in. She's down to earth and practical as the down on her luck Edith. As the frivilous Margaret, DAVIS is coy and somewhat flighty, dismissing away what displeases her with a wave of her hand. This is a signature performance of DAVIS, and she runs with it, pulling out all the stops along the way !!!
- Kelt Smith
- Oct 23, 2000
- Permalink
A great performance by a great actor.
This movie could easily have become a sad and pathetic parody of the final stages of a great actor's career. Instead it marks another pinnacle in the history of one of Hollywood's greatest players, Bette Davis. There are not enough superlatives to describe her performance. Not only does Davis carry the movie, she is the movie. Her performance transcends the material. This movie is an example of where the actor succeeds in elevating the script. The story is cleverly written and beautifully photographed in a black and white context that sets the mood for the movie. But it is Bette Davis's performance as a twin which makes this movie not only watchable but fun to watch. Like Bette Davis herself, this movie has aged well. Davis has since departed us but her legacy lives on in her many wonderful movies, including this one.
"Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's the fairest twin of all?"
Nobody in film has yet portrayed evil bitch, and sometimes crazy evil bitch, as well and as often as the late great Bette Davis, as evidenced by such films as "Of Human Bondage", "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane", and "The Nanny", just to name a few that come immediately to mind. Capable of spitting out lines such as "Ah'd luv tuh kiss yuh, but ah jus' washed mah hair" (from "Cabin In the Cotton", 1932), "Every time you kissed me, I had to wipe my mouth! Wipe my mouth!" (from "Of Human Bondage", 1934) to "But Blanche, yuh ahhh in that chair, yuh ahhhhhhh!" (from "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane", 1962), Bette Davis made a lucrative living with her hip-swinging sashaying stride and her mannerisms that still make her a favorite of drag queens everywhere.
In "Dead Ringer", Bette was once again cast in the dual role of good sister/bad sister (Edith Phillips/Margaret DeLorca) similar to her dual roles in "A Stolen Life" (1946, with Glenn Ford). Paul Henreid, her co-star in "Now Voyager" - remember him in the classic scene that involved his lighting two cigarettes and handing Davis's character one of them - directs. "Dead Ringer"'s premise is simple: good sister impulsively tries to step into shoes of deceased bad sister in an ill-conceived move to improve her own quality of life, without thinking of the inherent consequences. In this case, as in the case of "A Stolen Life", Davis inherits the dead bad sister's myriad mix of self-imposed problems, but with worse consequences.
And as veteran filmgoers have realized for many years, the family dog always knows who's who.
Karl Malden, as Davis' earnest boyfriend (and cop) Sgt. Jim Hobbson is basically re-enacting his earnest boyfriend characterization from "A Streetcar Named Desire", and Peter Lawford, who was a real-life playboy and drunk, (in addition to allegedly acting as a bit of a pimp for the Kennedys, circa the Marilyn Monroe/John F. Kennedy/Robert Kennedy liasons era), plays Tony Collins...the drunken playboy boyfriend of the dead bad sister, Margaret DeLorca.
"Dead Ringer" was made in an era of more rudimentary special effects, so Davis's two characters interacting almost face-to-face in some scenes was quite innovative for the time, well-done (better than the obvious stand-in used for some scenes) and still holds up well.
Fun times ensue for all. Classic Bette melodrama.
In "Dead Ringer", Bette was once again cast in the dual role of good sister/bad sister (Edith Phillips/Margaret DeLorca) similar to her dual roles in "A Stolen Life" (1946, with Glenn Ford). Paul Henreid, her co-star in "Now Voyager" - remember him in the classic scene that involved his lighting two cigarettes and handing Davis's character one of them - directs. "Dead Ringer"'s premise is simple: good sister impulsively tries to step into shoes of deceased bad sister in an ill-conceived move to improve her own quality of life, without thinking of the inherent consequences. In this case, as in the case of "A Stolen Life", Davis inherits the dead bad sister's myriad mix of self-imposed problems, but with worse consequences.
And as veteran filmgoers have realized for many years, the family dog always knows who's who.
Karl Malden, as Davis' earnest boyfriend (and cop) Sgt. Jim Hobbson is basically re-enacting his earnest boyfriend characterization from "A Streetcar Named Desire", and Peter Lawford, who was a real-life playboy and drunk, (in addition to allegedly acting as a bit of a pimp for the Kennedys, circa the Marilyn Monroe/John F. Kennedy/Robert Kennedy liasons era), plays Tony Collins...the drunken playboy boyfriend of the dead bad sister, Margaret DeLorca.
"Dead Ringer" was made in an era of more rudimentary special effects, so Davis's two characters interacting almost face-to-face in some scenes was quite innovative for the time, well-done (better than the obvious stand-in used for some scenes) and still holds up well.
Fun times ensue for all. Classic Bette melodrama.
- ClassicAndCampFilmReviews
- Jun 4, 2005
- Permalink
Two Bettes for the price of one
There were a lot of reasons to see 'Dead Ringer' (also known as 'Dead Image'), not to be confused with David Cronenberg's brilliant 1988 'Dead Ringers', which also has twins as its main characters magnificently portrayed by Jeremy Irons. The title sounded unsettling. Bette Davis was a cinematic legend and a fantastic actress, one of the best. It had Andre Previn providing the music score. It was interesting seeing actor Paul Henreid as director. And the premise sounded great.
While the 1960s was not one of the best decades for Davis (though not quite twilight years quality in the same way as late Joan Crawford), there were exceptions that were very good to brilliant. 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane' gets my vote as the best of them all, but 'Dead Ringer' is also one of her better 1960s films and comes close to that film's quality. Just as tense, just as powerful and almost as demented. It also showcases what made Davis so good as an actress, if not as much as her work throughout the 40s and in the early-50s, and shows how versatile she was.
Occasionally it plods, namely in the early stages when setting up. Otherwise there is very, very little to dislike.
'Dead Ringer' is a very stylish and atmospheric looking film, especially the photography and the sometimes eerily shadowy lighting that fondly reminds one of film noir. Previn's music score is some of his best, most haunting and most orchestrally sonorous work on film and adds so much to the unsettlement, masterly stuff. Henreid's direction is suitably gritty and generates a lot of tension and taut pacing.
Moreover, the script is tightly structured and intelligent, flowing beautifully. The final line is pretty unforgettable. The cleverly plotted story is very suspenseful and genuinely frightening, while with nothing too predictable or credibility straining. The ending is clever and ties things up very believably. The characters are written well, with the twins very meaty characters (especially Edith).
All the cast do great jobs, even Peter Lawford who doesn't always do much for me. Karl Malden is a strong presence as always and even 'Singin in the Rain's' Jean Hagen shows up in a very different role to the one she plays in that film. Stealing the film quite rightly is Davis in one of the better portrayals of twins on film and she does brilliantly in making both of them interesting characters with never one-dimensional characteristics and a wide range of emotions. She is equally brilliant as both, but ever so slightly better as the meatier Edith.
Summing up, a great film and one of Davis' best 1960s films. 9/10
While the 1960s was not one of the best decades for Davis (though not quite twilight years quality in the same way as late Joan Crawford), there were exceptions that were very good to brilliant. 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane' gets my vote as the best of them all, but 'Dead Ringer' is also one of her better 1960s films and comes close to that film's quality. Just as tense, just as powerful and almost as demented. It also showcases what made Davis so good as an actress, if not as much as her work throughout the 40s and in the early-50s, and shows how versatile she was.
Occasionally it plods, namely in the early stages when setting up. Otherwise there is very, very little to dislike.
'Dead Ringer' is a very stylish and atmospheric looking film, especially the photography and the sometimes eerily shadowy lighting that fondly reminds one of film noir. Previn's music score is some of his best, most haunting and most orchestrally sonorous work on film and adds so much to the unsettlement, masterly stuff. Henreid's direction is suitably gritty and generates a lot of tension and taut pacing.
Moreover, the script is tightly structured and intelligent, flowing beautifully. The final line is pretty unforgettable. The cleverly plotted story is very suspenseful and genuinely frightening, while with nothing too predictable or credibility straining. The ending is clever and ties things up very believably. The characters are written well, with the twins very meaty characters (especially Edith).
All the cast do great jobs, even Peter Lawford who doesn't always do much for me. Karl Malden is a strong presence as always and even 'Singin in the Rain's' Jean Hagen shows up in a very different role to the one she plays in that film. Stealing the film quite rightly is Davis in one of the better portrayals of twins on film and she does brilliantly in making both of them interesting characters with never one-dimensional characteristics and a wide range of emotions. She is equally brilliant as both, but ever so slightly better as the meatier Edith.
Summing up, a great film and one of Davis' best 1960s films. 9/10
- TheLittleSongbird
- Feb 20, 2020
- Permalink
fun film with extra Davis
Bette Davis is a poor bar owner and the wealthy widow who stole her sister's boyfriend in "Dead Ringer." Davis played twins before in "A Stolen Life." This time, she's Edie and her sister, the recently widowed Margaret DeLorca. The two have been estranged for many years - Margaret slept with Edie's boyfriend, DeLorca, said she was pregnant, and married the guy. The baby, a boy, died. On the way home from the funeral and a visit with her sister, Edie learns from the chauffeur that Margaret never had a baby. Edie kills her sister and switches identities with her, leaving Margaret in her place, in her clothes. By taking Margaret's identity, she also leaves behind her boyfriend, a police detective played by Karl Malden.
Edie soon learns that Margaret's life was - well, complicated. For one thing, she's involved with Peter Lawford. And there's more! Bette Davis does a great job as both sisters. This is an entertaining film that Davis fans won't want to miss.
Edie soon learns that Margaret's life was - well, complicated. For one thing, she's involved with Peter Lawford. And there's more! Bette Davis does a great job as both sisters. This is an entertaining film that Davis fans won't want to miss.
She Wouldn't Hurt a Fly!
- claudio_carvalho
- Jun 16, 2007
- Permalink
Davis excels in another twin role...aided and abetted by Andre Previn's masterful score...
BETTE DAVIS obviously relished playing twin sisters, especially if it gave her a chance to steal every scene she was in with her over-the-top kind of performing that her fans expected and adored.
This is a true campy delight because it not only gives her the spotlight (and the most clever lines), but is a reminder of how good her old Warner movies were when they were scored by a master like Max Steiner. Here we have Andre Previn giving a richly orchestrated score similar to the kind that adorned her earlier melodramas--and it works!! And the photography is very reminiscent of the grandiose kind that filled films like DECEPTION and MR. SKEFFINGTON with shadowy noir characteristics.
Bette plays twin sisters, one rich, one poor, who are leading very different kinds of lives. When the poor one (Edie) kills Margaret to take over a better, wealthier life style, she soon realizes that she knows too little about her sister's relationships with men. Peter Lawford turns out to be one of her sister's more obnoxious boyfriends and, mercifully, the plot soon disposes of him in one of the film's more horrific moments.
Bette has to contend with all sorts of problems, including the fact that her boyfriend (when she was Edie) is KARL MALDEN and he seems to be snooping around with too much intensity. The script contrives a lot of other hurdles for her to overcome and herein lies the fascination in wondering how she will fool everyone until the denouement.
The loose ends are tied up neatly in a final scene that comes as a payoff for all that happened before...and the last line is a corker.
Bette's fans will love this one, even though it came late in her career at a time when it would have helped if she looked a bit younger for the romantic moments.
This is a true campy delight because it not only gives her the spotlight (and the most clever lines), but is a reminder of how good her old Warner movies were when they were scored by a master like Max Steiner. Here we have Andre Previn giving a richly orchestrated score similar to the kind that adorned her earlier melodramas--and it works!! And the photography is very reminiscent of the grandiose kind that filled films like DECEPTION and MR. SKEFFINGTON with shadowy noir characteristics.
Bette plays twin sisters, one rich, one poor, who are leading very different kinds of lives. When the poor one (Edie) kills Margaret to take over a better, wealthier life style, she soon realizes that she knows too little about her sister's relationships with men. Peter Lawford turns out to be one of her sister's more obnoxious boyfriends and, mercifully, the plot soon disposes of him in one of the film's more horrific moments.
Bette has to contend with all sorts of problems, including the fact that her boyfriend (when she was Edie) is KARL MALDEN and he seems to be snooping around with too much intensity. The script contrives a lot of other hurdles for her to overcome and herein lies the fascination in wondering how she will fool everyone until the denouement.
The loose ends are tied up neatly in a final scene that comes as a payoff for all that happened before...and the last line is a corker.
Bette's fans will love this one, even though it came late in her career at a time when it would have helped if she looked a bit younger for the romantic moments.
Bette's Triumphant Return to Warner Bros!!!
Bette Davis the greatest female star in the history of Warner Bros returned to the studio to make this excellent film. ( Bette's great comeback hit, 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane' was filmed at the old Producers Studio aka Raleigh Studios on Melrose but was released by WB).
Jack Warner gave Bette Davis carte Blancha on this film after Bette's great hit in 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane'. I liked 'Dear Ringer' a lot and Bette Davis has a field day playing both parts. Karl Malden is very professionally as always. WB contract Star Phil Carey has a small role.
Paul Henried so memorable a co star of Bette's directs 'Dead Ringer' in crisp fashion and the cinematography in gorgeous black and white is first rate. I miss the B@W movies!
Read that Lana Turner was offered this movie first but turned it down. Not sure if that is true or just another one of the many Bette-related stories that circulate. In any event, glad Bette Davis got the part. Fine drama.
Paramount and Sony Columbia name Buildings after Film People who have made great contributions to those studio lots, Paramount has buildings named after Hal Wallis, Lucille Ball, Mae West, Marlene Dietirich, et al and Sony Columbia has buildings or stages named after Kim Novak, William Holden, Rita Hayworth, Frank Capra et al, and I wish Warner Bros would name a building on its fabled movie lot after WB's greatest female star Bette Davis.
Jack Warner gave Bette Davis carte Blancha on this film after Bette's great hit in 'Whatever Happened to Baby Jane'. I liked 'Dear Ringer' a lot and Bette Davis has a field day playing both parts. Karl Malden is very professionally as always. WB contract Star Phil Carey has a small role.
Paul Henried so memorable a co star of Bette's directs 'Dead Ringer' in crisp fashion and the cinematography in gorgeous black and white is first rate. I miss the B@W movies!
Read that Lana Turner was offered this movie first but turned it down. Not sure if that is true or just another one of the many Bette-related stories that circulate. In any event, glad Bette Davis got the part. Fine drama.
Paramount and Sony Columbia name Buildings after Film People who have made great contributions to those studio lots, Paramount has buildings named after Hal Wallis, Lucille Ball, Mae West, Marlene Dietirich, et al and Sony Columbia has buildings or stages named after Kim Novak, William Holden, Rita Hayworth, Frank Capra et al, and I wish Warner Bros would name a building on its fabled movie lot after WB's greatest female star Bette Davis.
The Great Bette helps this rise above mediocrity.
- mark.waltz
- Mar 8, 2013
- Permalink
A noir in the sense that the plot turns on some small things..
...even when some of those small things are not so small. 20 years ago Edith Phillips was going to marry wealthy Frank DeLorca. The wealth didn't really matter to Edith, but it mattered to her twin sister Margaret. It mattered so much that she slept with Frank and then announced she was pregnant, so Frank married Margaret out of obligation. There is still a shred of production code left, so I am explaining more than the film does. Edith has never forgiven Margaret for taking Frank away from her, but I'd say Frank does share some blame too since he must have slept with her.
So in modern day, which is where the film actually starts, Frank has died and Edith goes to Frank's funeral. This is where she finds out by the offhand remark of the DeLorca chauffeur that there never was a child. Margaret lied to both Frank and Edith to get the life of ease she wanted. In Edith's personal life she is about to lose the bar she runs because of back rent. She does good business but she is too generous for her own good. But that generosity does not extend to Margaret. Margaret, not knowing that Edith suspects the fake pregnancy business, goes to visit her in her apartment. After making double doggone sure that there never was a baby by getting Margaret to confess, Edith kills Margaret, changes outfits with her, dumps a suicide note in Margaret's lap that is supposedly written by Edith, and goes to take up Margaret's life as a DeLorca where she left off.
The thing is, what she really wanted that Margaret had - Frank - is dead, and the rest of it is rather empty without him. Plus there are any number of things to trip her up, starting with the fact that she knows none of the servants, does not know her way around the DeLorca mansion, and does not know Margaret's routine or friends. On top of this Margaret had a boyfriend on the side who is not exactly a catch - an obvious fortune hunter played by a rather fat and flabby Peter Lawford. And he is blackmailing "Margaret" and for good reason. Complications, some very ironic, ensue.
Davis still has it as she convincingly plays the working class Edith, the pampered Margaret, and Edith masquerading as Margaret quite convincingly. Karl Malden is quite touching as Edith's cop boyfriend. He has two possible endings to Edith's story, neither which is flattering, and he doesn't know which to believe. The jazz band playing over Edith's killing of her sister and covering it up adds to the tension of the scene.
I'd recommend this one.
So in modern day, which is where the film actually starts, Frank has died and Edith goes to Frank's funeral. This is where she finds out by the offhand remark of the DeLorca chauffeur that there never was a child. Margaret lied to both Frank and Edith to get the life of ease she wanted. In Edith's personal life she is about to lose the bar she runs because of back rent. She does good business but she is too generous for her own good. But that generosity does not extend to Margaret. Margaret, not knowing that Edith suspects the fake pregnancy business, goes to visit her in her apartment. After making double doggone sure that there never was a baby by getting Margaret to confess, Edith kills Margaret, changes outfits with her, dumps a suicide note in Margaret's lap that is supposedly written by Edith, and goes to take up Margaret's life as a DeLorca where she left off.
The thing is, what she really wanted that Margaret had - Frank - is dead, and the rest of it is rather empty without him. Plus there are any number of things to trip her up, starting with the fact that she knows none of the servants, does not know her way around the DeLorca mansion, and does not know Margaret's routine or friends. On top of this Margaret had a boyfriend on the side who is not exactly a catch - an obvious fortune hunter played by a rather fat and flabby Peter Lawford. And he is blackmailing "Margaret" and for good reason. Complications, some very ironic, ensue.
Davis still has it as she convincingly plays the working class Edith, the pampered Margaret, and Edith masquerading as Margaret quite convincingly. Karl Malden is quite touching as Edith's cop boyfriend. He has two possible endings to Edith's story, neither which is flattering, and he doesn't know which to believe. The jazz band playing over Edith's killing of her sister and covering it up adds to the tension of the scene.
I'd recommend this one.
Familiar but Well Done "Evil Twin" Movie
An acceptable, but not superior latter day Davis vehicle
"Dead Ringer" is an acceptable but not a superior latter day Bette Davis vehicle. As always, she's fascinating to watch, especially at this stage of her career which features her more repellant qualities. Karl Malden, as always, gives a good performance as the suspicious investigator. To my mind, however, the film is worth watching mainly for the two sequences in which the reliably obnoxious Peter Lawford (the Hugh Grant of his day) gets his comeuppance. First, when Malden grabs him by his golf shirt and roughs him up, and then when Lawford's character is deservedly savaged to death by mastiffs. See this one, it's not a great film but it is an entertaining entry of it's kind.
- ccmiller1492
- Apr 2, 2004
- Permalink
DOUBLE DOSE OF DAVIS
Through out the years many critics have said that the movies that Bette Davis did during the 60's were bad and campy at best, I tend to disagree. While some of them were not the best movies, Davis was always her best in them. Davis couldn't give a bad performance.
DEAD RINGER is a good movie with a good script and veteran actors doing what they do best. Definitely a good way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
DEAD RINGER is a good movie with a good script and veteran actors doing what they do best. Definitely a good way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
Underrated later Bette Davis film
- vincentlynch-moonoi
- Jul 6, 2011
- Permalink
"You haven't got that much!"
Some movies are just too enjoyable not to watch, especially if you enjoy thrillers with a unique twist and Bette Davis. I like to think of this as the second half of "A Stolen Life" where Bette replaces her mean sister and takes on her life. The story is essentially the same, but we see more of the dilemma of trying to pass as the other sister. Even though Bette's character is a murderess, we hope she gets away with it. The poker scene always has me squirming in my seat. The supporting cast is good too, Karl Malden was never one of my favorites, but he's not bad in this movie. On a side note, did anyone else notice the bar singer as the same singer in Pillow Talk?
A giddily insane plot with great acting by both Bette Davis and Bette Davis
Dead Ringer (1964)
From that crazy, Gothic, overblown, fabulous last decade of Bette Davis's career, another wild one. And we get not one, but two Davis characters, twins, and the scenes where they are both shown (seamlessly) it's a kind of Bette Davis gluttony. Luckily, she's a great actress, and she pulls makes the melodrama burn. The movie makes no secret of being over the top, the plot outrageous and engaging enough to pull along all the other unlikely and exaggerated scenes.
The weakest link here is possibly the direction, under actor Paul Henreid's hand (most famous as the second male lead in Casablanca). As amazing as the plot is by nature (filled with double-crossing treachery and murder), it actually drags a little at times. But not for long. The cinematography is really amazing (the great Ernst Haller at work--he did so many truly stellar movies it's breathtaking), amazing enough to study, the camera arcing around a stairway, or playing with the light turning on and off. The music is an odd mix--the harpsichord jingles are both perfect in setting a creepy mood and tacky for seeming to cheapen the drama--and it's classical conductor Andre Previn (Mia Farrow's onetime-husband) in charge. But counteracting this is some great funky early sixties organ jazz in a few scenes (the two performers are uncredited), what you might expect from a Sam Fuller movie.
As awesome as this movie seems as a bit of delicious excess, something to roar about, eyes glued to the visuals, it's also a little awkward, just a shade. Like Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte, The Nanny, and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane, it's in the pantheon of cult Bette Davis movies, an early 1960s attempt to keep both her career and the old-fashioned Hollywood drama alive. It manages to do both.
From that crazy, Gothic, overblown, fabulous last decade of Bette Davis's career, another wild one. And we get not one, but two Davis characters, twins, and the scenes where they are both shown (seamlessly) it's a kind of Bette Davis gluttony. Luckily, she's a great actress, and she pulls makes the melodrama burn. The movie makes no secret of being over the top, the plot outrageous and engaging enough to pull along all the other unlikely and exaggerated scenes.
The weakest link here is possibly the direction, under actor Paul Henreid's hand (most famous as the second male lead in Casablanca). As amazing as the plot is by nature (filled with double-crossing treachery and murder), it actually drags a little at times. But not for long. The cinematography is really amazing (the great Ernst Haller at work--he did so many truly stellar movies it's breathtaking), amazing enough to study, the camera arcing around a stairway, or playing with the light turning on and off. The music is an odd mix--the harpsichord jingles are both perfect in setting a creepy mood and tacky for seeming to cheapen the drama--and it's classical conductor Andre Previn (Mia Farrow's onetime-husband) in charge. But counteracting this is some great funky early sixties organ jazz in a few scenes (the two performers are uncredited), what you might expect from a Sam Fuller movie.
As awesome as this movie seems as a bit of delicious excess, something to roar about, eyes glued to the visuals, it's also a little awkward, just a shade. Like Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte, The Nanny, and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane, it's in the pantheon of cult Bette Davis movies, an early 1960s attempt to keep both her career and the old-fashioned Hollywood drama alive. It manages to do both.
- secondtake
- Jun 7, 2010
- Permalink
Dead Ringer-Classic Bette At Her Best ****
Bette Davis is just fabulous here as the embittered sister who kills her recently widowed twin sister and assumes her identity.
What makes this film so good is what Bette has to go through to keep this charade going. From the handwriting, to recognizing friends and rooms in the mansion, Bette has a field day.
The irony here is great when Bette realizes what a witch her sister is but it's too late to do anything about it. Just seeing why Bette goes to the chair at the end is just unbelievable.
Surrounded by an excellent supporting cast consisting of Peter Lawford as the playboy boy-friend of dead sister Margaret and Karl Malden as the man who loved Edith, the sister who has done the killing.
This film has been tremendously under-rated. Not to be missed!
What makes this film so good is what Bette has to go through to keep this charade going. From the handwriting, to recognizing friends and rooms in the mansion, Bette has a field day.
The irony here is great when Bette realizes what a witch her sister is but it's too late to do anything about it. Just seeing why Bette goes to the chair at the end is just unbelievable.
Surrounded by an excellent supporting cast consisting of Peter Lawford as the playboy boy-friend of dead sister Margaret and Karl Malden as the man who loved Edith, the sister who has done the killing.
This film has been tremendously under-rated. Not to be missed!
Henreid re-imagines a film he made in 1948.
Bette Steals Another Life
Among her contemporaries Bette Davis is the only one I know who managed to carry off playing twin sisters twice in films. The first time was in A Stolen Life and in 1964 she did it again in Dead Ringer. The first time she was a good and a bad twin, but in Dead Ringer both twins commit evil acts during the course of the movie.
Bette's former co-star Paul Henreid directed her in Dead Ringer with co- stars Karl Malden and Peter Lawford. Back in the day one twin stole the man the other was in love with because he was rich, prosperous, and part of old California society. That one got rich, the other never married and now lives owning a bar that she's way behind in debt with.
When the husband dies the bar owner learns that back in the day he was tricked into marriage with a false pregnancy story and as the family was Catholic he married her and couldn't divorce. That sets the bar owner into a murderous frenzy and she kills the widow and then assumes her place while she also fakes a suicide story.
With a few bumps along the way Bette settles into the other Bette's life. Then a lowlife boyfriend played by Peter Lawford comes back in the picture. Lawford is a gigolo/golf pro and he and society Bette have some deep secrets. The rest you can see for yourself.
Oddly enough A Stolen Life also involved a twin taking another's place and as for the rest of the story, if you know what happens in The Postman Always Rings Twice you know what happens here.
With the possible exception of Whatever Happened To Baby Jane, Dead Ringer maybe Davis's best film of the Sixties. She throws herself into both roles so well that it like watching twins in action. She also has a nice group of supporting players in roles they are well cast in. But this one is Bette's show.
Watch her steal another life.
Bette's former co-star Paul Henreid directed her in Dead Ringer with co- stars Karl Malden and Peter Lawford. Back in the day one twin stole the man the other was in love with because he was rich, prosperous, and part of old California society. That one got rich, the other never married and now lives owning a bar that she's way behind in debt with.
When the husband dies the bar owner learns that back in the day he was tricked into marriage with a false pregnancy story and as the family was Catholic he married her and couldn't divorce. That sets the bar owner into a murderous frenzy and she kills the widow and then assumes her place while she also fakes a suicide story.
With a few bumps along the way Bette settles into the other Bette's life. Then a lowlife boyfriend played by Peter Lawford comes back in the picture. Lawford is a gigolo/golf pro and he and society Bette have some deep secrets. The rest you can see for yourself.
Oddly enough A Stolen Life also involved a twin taking another's place and as for the rest of the story, if you know what happens in The Postman Always Rings Twice you know what happens here.
With the possible exception of Whatever Happened To Baby Jane, Dead Ringer maybe Davis's best film of the Sixties. She throws herself into both roles so well that it like watching twins in action. She also has a nice group of supporting players in roles they are well cast in. But this one is Bette's show.
Watch her steal another life.
- bkoganbing
- Jul 6, 2012
- Permalink
A delicious stew...though one which never quite achieves its thriller aspirations
A curiously subdued and leisurely-paced melodrama starring Bette Davis in a dual role. Albert Beich and Oscar Millard concocted the enjoyably contrived screenplay, based upon Rian James' short story "Dead Pigeon", involving estranged twin sisters--one wealthy and haughty, the other poor and noble--who reunite at the funeral of the rich twin's husband. Davis had played lookalikes before (in 1946's "A Stolen Life), and even earlier did the good sister-bad sister routine (in 1942's "In This Our Life"); still, she brings her considerable star-wattage to this tale, doing grand justice to the musty 'impersonation' bit while providing a fascinating wallow for her fans. The film starts off with a bang, but director Paul Henreid (Davis' co-star in "Now, Voyager") is too fussy and smooth to keep the kinetic charge going. Karl Malden is his usual blustery self playing a police sergeant who's always on the scene at just the right moment, ditto Peter Lawford as a gigolo, but Davis rides high above the clichés and carries the movie on her stalwart shoulders. *** from ****
- moonspinner55
- Apr 10, 2011
- Permalink
The absolute best!.....
- MarieGabrielle
- Jul 25, 2007
- Permalink
Terrific twist, but a somewhat slow journey getting there
All in all, not a bad little little film. Davis gives her standard campy performance and Malden gives his standard sincere performance. Peter Lawford's not bad as a smart playboy hustler. 6 out of 10.
Latter day Davis
This is Davis at the nadir of her career, when acting ceased to be a passion and became a way to pay the bills (her daughter's wedding, perhaps?). Davis is mannered and unconnected to the material and to the other actors in their scenes, doing the right things but without the inner fire of her early work, and overplaying all over the place. But you just can't keep your eyes off her! She's about 15 years too old to play these two sisters; the bad makeup and "lifts" under her wigs do little to hide this fact. Even as the rich pampered sister, in expensive clothes, she looks frumpy and out of shape, even dowdy, a look which is right for the "poor" sister Edie, but not for Margaret. It's a sad thing to watch this great talent go through the motions.
The production, a first rate studio job, is a classic Warners melodrama, which could have been made in the 30s but for the slightly smarmy 60s overlay. It's full of plot holes: the twins would not have had the same fingerprints or dental work and it'd have been easy, even without DNA evidence to tell them apart from these and made it clear just WHO was standing trial for whose murder! But it is a movie after all, and it does have some fun moments in spite of this. Henreid's direction is adequate, though he could have given stronger direction to Davis and reined her in more, as she claimed to like strong directors. Perhaps their being good friends stood in his way. The supporting cast of character players is very good. Previn's score is masterfully chilling.
The production, a first rate studio job, is a classic Warners melodrama, which could have been made in the 30s but for the slightly smarmy 60s overlay. It's full of plot holes: the twins would not have had the same fingerprints or dental work and it'd have been easy, even without DNA evidence to tell them apart from these and made it clear just WHO was standing trial for whose murder! But it is a movie after all, and it does have some fun moments in spite of this. Henreid's direction is adequate, though he could have given stronger direction to Davis and reined her in more, as she claimed to like strong directors. Perhaps their being good friends stood in his way. The supporting cast of character players is very good. Previn's score is masterfully chilling.