Dead Again [Blu-ray]

Director: Kenneth Branagh Kenneth Branagh

Overview

Set in contemporary Los Angeles as well as the Los Angeles of the 1940s, Dead Again explores a romance between two star-crossed lovers -- and the doomed passion they shared in their last lifetime. Los Angeles detective Mike Church (Kenneth Branagh) comes to the aid of mute, amnesia-victim Grace (Emma Thompson) and falls in love with her. He sets out to discover her true identity and the source of her terrible nightmares. Mike is aided in his investigation by hypnotist/furniture dealer Franklyn Madison (Derek Jacobi) who discovers that in a past life Grace was Margaret Strauss (also played by Thompson), who may have been mudered by her husband Roman (Branagh).

Product Details

Release Date:	10/05/2021
UPC:	0191329204610
Original Release:	1991
Source:	Paramount
Language:	English
Time:	1:47:00
Sales rank:	4,548

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Kenneth Branagh	Mike Church/Roman Strauss
Emma Thompson	Grace/Margaret Strauss
Andy Garcia	Gray Baker
Robin Williams	Dr. Cozy Carlisle
Derek Jacobi	Franklyn Madson
Hanna Schygulla	Inga
Wayne Knight	Piccolo Pete
Campbell Scott	Doug
Lois Hall	Sister Constance
Richard Easton	Father Timothy
Christine Ebersole	Lydia Larson
Jo Anderson	Sister Madeleine/Starlet
Vasek C. Simek	Otto,Otto
Patrick Montes	Pickup Driver
Raymond Cruz	Clerk
Patrick Doyle	1st Cop/2nd Party Guest,Composer
Erik Kilpatrick	2nd Cop
Gordana Rashovich	Handcuffed Woman
Gregor Hesse	Frankie
John Gould Rubin	Cafe Owner
Steven Culp	1st Party Guest
Yvette Freeman	Nurse
Obba Babatundé	Syd
Miriam Margolyes	madame Tupper
Ralph Morse	Actor
Gail Levin	Actor

Technical Credits

Scott Frank

Kenneth Branagh	Director
Greg Barnett	Stunts
Steve Boyum	Stunts
Bari Burman	Special Effects,Special Effects
Lindsay Doran	Producer
Charles H. Maguire	Producer
Sydney Pollack	Executive Producer,Producer
Scott Frank	Screenwriter
Bobbi Banks	Sound Effects
Bob Baron	Sound Effects

Editorial Reviews

Director/actor Kenneth Branagh made a stylistic shift for this 1991 reincarnation mystery, playing a Los Angeles private eye (with a note-perfect accent, mind you) who comes across an amnesiac woman Emma Thompson, with the almost immediate result that he begins to have nightmarish flashbacks to another life, where he was a brilliant European orchestra conductor, Roman Strauss, and the mystery woman was his wife, Margaret. The subsequent tale both ravels the threads nicely, and unravels the truth exquisitely, with only a somewhat clumsy dénouement betraying Branagh's assured touch as director (here turned towards adapting a handful of elements from Hitchcock's bag of tricks). Dead Again is a curious mystery though, with complexities that rival those to be found in the films of Nicholas Roeg. Scott A. Frank's script weaves past and present threads together, carefully concealing the truth from the viewer without cheating in any way, avoiding a failing that's become all too common with mystery stories. Branagh's self-assurance leads to a radical place for a major Hollywood film -- Frank's script was left alone unless changes were absolutely needed. Dead Again is a clever piece of work -- engaging, suspenseful, and sometimes even edge-of-seat thrilling.

All Movie Guide - Steven E. McDonald