Dead Ringers review: Rachel Weisz takes on the role of twin gynaecologists
Thrilling six-part series on Amazon Prime is almost flawless
David Cronenberg’s 1988 psychological thriller about twin gynaecologists descending into mania featured surgical instruments “so misshapen and disturbing, it was difficult to watch without squirming”, said Barbara Ellen in The Observer. Now the film has been made into a six-part series for Amazon Prime, with the lead roles gender reversed, and it’s also pretty extreme: “I haven’t seen this much gushing blood since the lift scene in The Shining.”
Rachel Weisz stars as Elliot and Beverly Mantle, who were played by Jeremy Irons in the film. Although the sisters have radically different personalities, they are trapped in the “sickly sweet toxicity of their twindom”, and will swap identities when it suits them. There are too many subplots, but Weisz “slips on the dual skins” with such “campy relish” that it’s hard not to enjoy the drama.
Weisz manages to make the series at once “more interesting and less creepy” than the Cronenberg film, said Camilla Long in The Sunday Times; but she is “upstaged” by Jennifer Ehle, playing a “heartless heiress” who is thinking of investing $16m into the twins’ “birthing centre”. Ehle is still best known for Pride and Prejudice, but her performance reminded me of how good an actress she is: “intense, menacing, precise”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The series is almost flawless, said Elizabeth Gregory in the Evening Standard. The dialogue is brilliant, and the drama “keeps its momentum to the end”, building to a shocking finale that is “perfectly at one with the rest of this fantastic piece of work”.
Watch on Amazon Prime Video
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
'New arrivals are more than paying for themselves'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
6 stylish homes in Portland, Oregon
Feature Featuring a wall of windows in Collins View and a historic ballroom in Portland Heights
By The Week US Published
-
What's next for US interest rates?
The Explainer Stubborn inflation forestalls anticipated rate cuts
By Becca Stanek, The Week US Published
-
6 stylish homes in Portland, Oregon
Feature Featuring a wall of windows in Collins View and a historic ballroom in Portland Heights
By The Week US Published
-
Tom Crewe's 6 favorite works that challenge societal norms
Feature The novelist recommends works by Margaret Oliphant, Patrick White, and more
By The Week US Published
-
On the trail of India’s wild lions at Sasan Gir National Park
The Week Recommends The sanctuary is a 'roaring' conservation success
By The Week UK Published
-
Recipe: almond marmalade cake
The Week Recommends This syrupy cake can be toasted for brunch
By The Week UK Published
-
Properties of the week: houses with enchanting gardens
The Week Recommends Featuring pretty homes in Hampshire, Devon and West Sussex
By The Week UK Published
-
Venice Biennale 2024: from the good to the bad to the downright 'bizarre'
The Week Recommends Central exhibition features the work of some 330 artists
By The Week UK Published
-
Sunset Song: gripping theatre that's 'close to magic'
The Week Recommends Morna Young's 'first-class adaptation' of Lewis Grassic Gibbon's classic novel
By The Week UK Published
-
Challengers: 'the most purely pleasurable film of the year so far'
The Week Recommends Zendaya plays a former tennis player turned coach in this 'almost ridiculously' sexy drama
By The Week UK Published