Dead Ringers [Collector's Edition] [Blu-ray] [2 Discs]

Overview

Two twin brothers, both renowned gynecologists, descend into madness after becoming romantically involved with the same woman in this disturbing, horrific drama. Jeremy Irons delivers a bravura performance as both Beverly and Elliot Mantle, Toronto-based surgeons who operate an exclusive gynecological clinic and share a reputation as brilliant innovators. They also share lovers, as the more aggressive, confident Elliott seduces women and later secretly allows the shier, more intellectual Beverly to reap the benefits. This arrangement is disturbed when Beverly falls in love with their newest conquest, Claire Niveau (Genevieve Bujold), a famous actress with an unusual gynecological deformity. Beverly's relationship with the hard-living Claire leads to him to turn away from Elliot and begin a dangerous involvement with drugs and alcohol. Elliot senses his brother's rapid decline into addiction and paranoia and attempts to save him, only to start falling victim to the same urges. Director David Cronenberg adapted the loosely fact-based tale to his own creepy purposes, tapping into primal fears regarding the uncanniness of twins and male sexual panic. His notorious gore was used sparingly here, however, with the film's most disturbing moments coming through suggestion, as in the display of a group of terrifying surgical instruments created by Beverly in his madness. Cronenberg's expertise with special effects proves crucial, however, as he and his regular cinematographer Peter Suschitzsky seamlessly combine Irons' two performances in a manner unrivalled by any previous depiction of twins. This visual achievement is more than matched by Irons, who delivers what may be his career performance, delineating the twins' differences and similarities and embodying their collapse in frighteningly believable fashion. The subject matter and chilly tone may be too intense for some viewers, but the brilliant central performance and intellectually provocative approach will prove thoroughly absorbing for others.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/15/2016
UPC:	0826663171556
Original Release:	1988
Rating:	R
Source:	Shout Factory
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:55:00
Sales rank:	16,230

Special Features

Disc One: ; NEW audio commentary with William Beard, author of The Artist as Monster: the Cinema of David Cronenberg; Audio commentary with actor Jeremy Irons; ; Disc Two: ; NEW interviews with actors Stephen Lack and Heidi Von Palleske, director of photography Peter Suschitzky and special effects artist Gordon Smith; Vintage interviews; Behind-the-scenes featurette; Theatrical trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Jeremy Irons	Elliot Mantle
Heidi Von Palleske	Cary
Barbara Gordon	Danuta
Shirley Douglas	Laura
Stephen Lack	Anders Wolleck
Nick Nichols	Leo
Lynn Cormack	Actor,Arlene
Damir Andrei	Birchall
Miriam Newhouse	Mrs. Bookman
David Hughes	Superintendent,Actor
Richard W. Farrell	Dean of Medicine
Warren Davis	Anatomy Class Supervisor
Jonathan Haley	Beverly Mantle,Elliot, Age 9
Marsha Moreau	Raffaella
Denis Akiyama	Pharmacist
Dee McCafferty	Surgeon
Susan Markle	Operating Room Nurse
Murray Chuchley	Assisting Surgeon
Jane Luk	Lecture Hall Nurse
Tita Trevisan	Furniture Salesman
Jacqueline Hennessy	Coral,Mimsy
David Walden	Director
Liliane Stillwell	Wardrobe Person
Denise McLeod	Art Gallery Lady
Bob Bainborough	Mr. Glaser
Nicholas Rice	M.C.,MC
Joe Matheson	Sean
Hadley Kay	Delivery Boy
Cynthia Eastman	Sobbing Woman
Nora Colpman	Mrs. Randall
Madeleine Atkinson	Soap Opera Character
John Bayliss	Performance Double
Graham Evans	Picture Double
Time Winters	Actor
Geneviève Bujold	Claire Niveau
Rina Polley	Soap Opera Character
Howard Shore	Composer

Technical Credits

David Cronenberg

Norman Snider

David Cronenberg	Director,Screenwriter,Producer
Norman Snider	Screenwriter
Carol Baum	Executive Producer
Marc Boyman	Producer
Wayne Griffin	Sound Editor
David Evans	Sound Editor
Rick Cadger	Sound Editor
Bryan Day	Sound Mixer,Sound/Sound Designer
Gordon Smith	Special Effects
Silvio Tabet	Executive Producer,Executive Producer
Deirdre Bowen	Casting
Joe Roth	Producer
Terry Burke	Sound Editor
Richard Cadger	Sound Editor
David Giammarco	Sound Editor
Andy Nelson	Sound/Sound Designer
Don White	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

David Cronenberg focussed his obsession with the grotesque inward with Dead Ringers. Unlike his previous efforts, the director is more interested in the emotional defects of his characters as opposed to their physical manifestations of deviance. The clinical, disquieting tone is somewhat surprising from a director who is considered something of an auteur of vulgarity, not only because of the bizarre qualities of his films, but also because of his tendency to push the boundaries of special effects. Too often, his early work annoys because the effects are deliberately cultish and preposterous (a quality he tempered for his mainstream remake of The Fly). In Dead Ringers, however, he uses an altogether more subtle effect, making twins out of lead Jeremy Irons though computer-aided split screen; the technique has since become much more widespread. Irons' distinguished performance (or rather, performances) makes sure that the technique isn't just a gimmick. Irons won several critics' prizes for his work in the film; many feel the actor should have been nominated for an Oscar as well.

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