Dead Ringer [VHS] [1964]: Bette Davis, Karl Malden, Peter Lawford, Philip Carey, Jean Hagen, George Macready, Estelle Winwood, George Chandler, Mario Alcalde, Cyril Delevanti, Monika Henreid, Bert Remsen, Ernest Haller, Paul Henreid, Folmar Blangsted, William H. Wright, Albert Beich, Oscar Millard, Rian James: Amazon.co.uk: Video

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Product Description

Synopsis

After the burial of her brother-in-law Frank, Edith Phillips kills her rich twin sister and assumes her identity. All goes well until it is revealed that Frank died of arsenic poisoning, and she is accused of the one murder she did not commit.

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4.5 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)

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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent doppleganger thriller with the Queen of the genre, 17 Jan 2001

By A Customer

Clever and well acted horror with Bette Davis playing the roles of Dead Ringer sisters. Imitated since many times, it has a Hitchockian sense of inevitability as Davis' conniving is unravelled in short order by the maid, her twin sister's lover and the policeman. Lots of delicious irony,and the acting is first rate- an excellent morality tale. Davis fans (without spoiling it) will love the hairbrush scene. The acting of Marlden is first rate and there are deliciously camp cameo roles from the supporting cast.

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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "But I am Margaret De Lorca!", 5 Aug 2005

By	M. J Leonard "MikeonAlpha" (Silver Lake, Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Dead Ringer [DVD] [1964] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC] (DVD)

By the time 1964 came around Bette Davis was having career resurgence. Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? was a huge hit for her and Joan Crawford; therefore, it was only logical that both actresses would be offered a variety of quasi horror and gothic-like roles. While Dead Ringer isn't really a horror film, it certainly has enough spooky and unnerving elements to involve the viewer and create an atmosphere of foreboding.

Is Dead Ringer a piece of B grade junk designed as a vehicle for a fading star's last gasp at glory? Or is it a cleverly wrought psychological thriller, made redeemable by the presence of a true star and great actress? Well, the answer is probably a bit both - theres no doubt that movie has elements of a second rate melodromatic thriller, but the film is also surprisingly tense and in the end provides a perfect showcase for the glamorous Ms. Davis to do what she does best.

Dead ringer is ultimately a campy gothic thriller about estranged twin sisters Margaret and Edith (Davis, playing both roles). The film begins with a funeral for Margaret's husband who has just died of heart failure. When the wealthy Margaret invites Edith back to her mansion in Westwood it is soon revealed that the insensitive, social-climbing Margaret actually stole Edith's insanely rich beau away from her and has since been living the high-life while Edith struggles to keep her run-down nightclub afloat.

With her rent three months in arrears and frantic for money, Edith hatches a desperate plan to murder her own sister by making it look like suicide. Thinking that she can just walk in and take over her life, Edith scrambles to carry off the masquerade, pretending she knows Margaret's safe combination by heart, or that she can differentiate between the mansion's hundred rooms, all the time trying to figure out what sort of person Margaret really was.

There are lots of surprises as Edith gradually discovers that Margaret possessed a lot of dark secrets that she was desperate to hide. Murder, betrayal, and infidelity all follow with Edith ultimately learning a hard lesson: when you adopt someone's assets, you must also accept their liabilities, for better or for worse. Viewers are in for such side attractions as Davis slapping checkbooks across rooms, contemplating burning her own hand with a red-hot fire poker, and even shoving herself backwards into a chair.

The supporting cast is strong with Carl Malden competently playing an affable, nice-guy cop who is in love with Edith, and just can't believe that she'd ever commit suicide. Jean Hagen absolutely chews up the scenery as a blithely indecent social butterfly and Estelle Winwood is terrific as a dour, doily-wearing Bible-thumper.

But in the end, Dead Ringer totally belongs to the commanding Bette Davis. This is one of her campiest and most ham-fisted roles ever, and where she's at her chain-smoking, eye popping, and out of control best.

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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great suspense movie from the 60s., 23 Mar 2008

By	FAMOUS NAME (UNITED KINGDOM) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Dead Ringer [DVD] [1964] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC] (DVD)

One of two films Davis made where she played duel roles as twins - the other being less memorable.

Bette Davis stars alongside Karl Malden here, and despite the film's darker and more 'thriller' aspect, does have some very sentimental and moving moments between Malden and Davis.

This movie is enthralling from the outset and despite its length, does not appear over long. The story is 'classic' super-scenario fiction style, but is one of those situations, that could it happen in real life, people would probably behave in very much the same way; knowing - yet not really doing anything about it or telling anyone because of their doubts or suspicions seeming slightly crazy, and is probably why someone could get away with the plot!

This is great to the end, has some great camera trickery and illusions, and does not involve what could have been a drawn out and much-boring court scene that would have ruined the whole thing.

Five Stars!

N. B. Though this is listed as a Region '1' DVD format, for some reason, this does play on a Region '2' Player!