Sisters - Criterion Collection

Starring:Margot Kidder, Jennifer Salt, Charles Durning, William Finley, Lisle Wilson, Barnard Hughes, Mary Davenport, Dolph Sweet, Sealo, Burt Richards, Bob Melvin, Cathy Berry, Olympia Dukakis
Director: Brian De Palma
Studio: Criterion
Product Type: DVD

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Sisters is not Brian De Palma's first film, but in many ways it is the first Brian De Palma film, or at least the first to reveal (and revel in) his affinity with Hitchcock. A pre-Superman Margot Kidder struggles with a French-Canadian accent as an aspiring actress whose one-night stand leads to a homicidal morning-after. Jennifer Salt is a reporter with more moxie than tact or skill who sees the killing from her apartment window across the way. When the police fail to turn up any evidence of the crime, Salt investigates with a private eye (the hilariously relentless Charles Durning), uncovering the secret story of a pair of Siamese twins and a weaselly, stalker doctor. It's a mystery simmering in a stew of voyeurism, guilt, sex, and obsession. De Palma borrows from Rear Window, Psycho, and Vertigo (as well as Roman Polanski's Repulsion), and composer Bernard Herrmann quotes from his own Hitchcock scores (notably Psycho) for the unsettling music, but the result is more original than you might imagine. Laced with dark humor, inventive technique, and impressive technical precision (the split-screen sequences are breathtakingly effective), De Palma flexes his cinematic muscles with thrilling results, right down to the mordantly wry conclusion. De Palma graduated to big-budget thrillers, but this modest little production remains one of his sharpest, slyest, most engrossing films. Long available only in pallid video transfers, the Home Vision/Criterion letterboxed restoration is bright, clear, and beautiful. --Sean Axmaker

Description

Margot Kidder is Danielle, a beautiful model separated from her Siamese twin, Dominique. When a hotshot reporter (Jennifer Salt) suspects Dominique of a brutal murder, she becomes dangerously ensnared in the sisters' insidious sibling bond. A scary and stylish paean to female destructiveness, De Palma's first foray into horror voyeurism is a stunning amalgam of split-screen effects, bloody birthday cakes, and a chilling score by frequent Hitchcock collaborator Bernard Herrmann. Criterion is proud to present Sisters in a new Special Edition.

Customer Reviews:

Cancel the Birthday Party.......2007-04-19

She's so darn seductive, what guy could resist her. But resist Margot Kidder they better, because she's got an evil twin that reacts very badly toward sex. If you can get past all the gore and the unmistakable shadow of Hitchcock, this is one heck of a fascinating film, with an excellent script, a number of twists, and some well-realized irony. And pity poor reporter Jennifer Salt. She wants so badly to do the right thing, but she's got a nagging mother, a detective school helper, and a tactless attitude. Now she's on the trail of a hot story, one that might land her a big-time job, but she really doesn't know what she's dealing with. There are several memorable scenes-- the "surprise" birthday party, Salt's wacky nightmare (very Fellini-esque), and the final bedside irony, along with a nicely deceptive opening that sets the stage for what follows.

De Palma has had a maddening career as a movie-maker. All in all, Sisters is probably the best and worst thing to happen to him. It's his best movie, done with flash and assurance, but it also propels him down the wrong-way track of re-doing Hitchcock without the master's knowing restraint. The result is an erratic career and a general squandering of real talent. Too bad, because the very last scene suggests a delicious irony worthy of the master himself. And that, of course, is the problem. But it's no problem for this film, which stands as a minor gem in the horror-suspense category.

A must see movie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.......2006-11-07

I've seen this movie years ago, and just had to order the movie again.
I ordered the dvd on tuesday 11/2/06 and recieved it today>Monday 11/6/06 this afternoon. Some viewer's tend to spoil the movie!!! give other's little info on the movie. But let them buy the movie for self.

Again, I give this movie 5 stars for everything!!

It gets 4 stars just because it's De Palma..........2006-08-27

Some would say that Sisters is De Palma's first real homage to Hitchcock with a feature film. It's got all the ingredients. Evil twins. Split personalities. A Rear Window shoutout. Femme fatales. Everything you could possibly want in a De Palma homage to Hitchcock. His homages would only get better, but Sisters is definitely a fair starting point for what would become one of the greatest thriller directors of all-time.

Sisters begins in a totally Hitchock way. A normal event, in this case a game show called Peeping Toms after which the two contestants decide to have dinner. What seems like a simple one-night stand gradually turns into something else, until violence interjects in a bloody, gratuitous fashion. The murder that takes place in the apartment sets the course for the rest of the film, as the backstory behind everything is revealed. As with most De Palma films, Sisters is best left almost totally unrevealed as there are some pretty good twists at the end. Is it cheesy at parts? Sure. Is the acting iffy? Absolutely. But it's all in good fun, and De Palma takes everything to the max to make sure that the viewer is in for quite a ride.

Originality and that fine line.......2006-04-09

Everyone seems to want to talk about the Directors feel in the film close to Hitchcock. The films made and frankly no one here has room to be so crictical. Frankly, the film stands very well on it's own and in this review, we'll focus on that. However, as a guideline if you like Hitchcock and are not so caty as other Hitchcock fans, you'll love this picture.

My obsession with siamese twins began shortly after seeing the film. Although the extras are not over bundant as other Crit col. films, the restoration is an art to it's own. Sisters, cuts through the red tape or should I say the flesh. Was there a murder? What happened through that window? You'll have to see this to find out. Although not my favorite type of Horror/suspence.... it was a terrific watch and a definate change from the hollywood garbage that has been made the past years for horror. A+ A must see. I will not give away this films high points you have to see it.

There was no body because there was no murder.......2006-03-28

'Sisters' is a haunting and suspenseful early DePalma film. It is clearly an homage to Alfred Hitchcock, as others have stated, but there is also the unique stamp of a new and talented director on the scene. The dream/hypnosis scene is startling (Depalma has said that he was influenced by the dream scene in 'Rosemary's Baby). DePalma also seems to be interested in Freudian psychology (one of Hitchcock's preocupations) - there are a couple shots, in particular, that are clearly references to Freud.. This movie lingers in the mind long after it is over - very nice criterion edition too..

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