chapstik

Ok folks, lemme have it! Any and all information wanted on film and transfer quality, as well as extras. No spoilers please

Justin Doring

This movie is not for everyone. I highly recommend renting it before purchasing. You'll probably either love it or hate it, as it's a very strange movie that will certainly not suit all tastes. I, however, thought it was excellent. Jeremy Irons is brilliant (when isn't he?) and the movie is just fascinating.

The transfer is as good as it's likely to get. Far from a reference disc, but it looks fine. The sound is Dolby Surround, but it's more like mono. You can understand everything, but Howard Shore's score in the opening credits sounds a bit distorted. I do not know if that is intentional or not. Basically, sound is adequate. The extras are excellent, some of the best in the Collection, I think. Cronenberg's commentary is great, as he explains a lot about artistic choices, especially the costume and set design, and about Iron's take on the twins. There is also a neat demonstration of how the "cloned" Jeremy Irons. Also, I find the "instruments" quite fascinating. For me, this disc is one of my favorites, but I know plenty of people who can't stand it. Rumor has it that Dead Ringers is going out of print soon, and it's quite difficult to find. Good luck!

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"Home is where the theater is!"

chapstik

Thanks a lot for the review Justin. I really like Jeremy Irons, which is why I was interested in this film. Plus it sounds like a twisted story And if it goes OOP, I guess thats just a bonus!

Thor

First off, I should warn you that I've bought this film three times, and every disc I have tried freezes at the layer change. (At first, I thought it might be a bad pressing, but three separate discs over a year makes this unlikely). I have a Sony DVP-S300, which has never had problems with any other disc. Nobody else seems aware of this problem, and Criterion won't comment on it, but fyi. Too bad, since it's probably my most wanted disc. Maybe at some point I'll buy a new DVD player for it.

Second off, it's an incredible movie, but Cronenberg movies are highly specific in their audience. Don't know if you've seen any others, but hey, here's an easy test - if the idea about seeing a movie about insane twin gynecologists disturbs you, you probably won't be a fan.

Third, this is the first I've heard about it going OOP. Anchor Bay (I think) had a movie-only version out for a while that is now out of print, so maybe that's what is being referred to.

chapstik

Thor, I think every Criterion title is rumored to be going OOP. As for the freeze-ups, I am going to hope it is your player. Of course, I also have a Sony (S500D), so let's hope it isn't a Sony incompatibility problem.

As far as I know, I have not seen any other Cronenberg films, but this one sounds interesting. And what the heck, its a Criterion. How bad could it be?

Justin Doring

I've played Dead Ringers in three DVD players: Toshiba SD-3109, Pioneer DV-525, and Panasonic A310 and have had no problems at the layer changes. It seems like just the Sony has problems. Good luck!

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"Home is where the theater is!"

Marcus Daly

I have a SONY S500D and have had no problems with Criterion's "Dead Ringers." The film is great and if you're an Irons fan this is the ultimate Irons film.

The DVD offers a very good transfer that could've been a lot crisper. Supplements are truly great though, offering a fine commentary, deleted scenes and efx reel.

n8fire

In my opinion this is one of the very best of Cronenberg and one of the most disturbing movie I have ever seen. Like it's been mentionned in other post, this is certainly not a movie for everyone. If you like strange movies (ala Lynch maybe), you should really enjoy this one. Jeremy Irons delivers an incredible performances as both gynecologist. As for the extras, the commentary provides very good insight on the movie and there is also a documentary showing how the twinning effect was achieved, while not the highligh of this dvd, it does provides some interesting insight as to how it was accomplished.

Very recommended! Btw never had a single problems playing this disc in my Onkyo Dv-s525