Death Becomes Her (DVD)

...Performances ◄

Death Becomes Her, may well be the campest movie ever made. It oozes extravagance and glamour and without either of these the film is nothing. The three main characters – Madeline, Helen and Ernest – are the most interesting characters together. Madeline is age mad. She must look young. She must feel young. With her toy boys she’s desperate not to look out of place. Helen has never been what you’d ...
...along bitterness and evil. What Death Becomes Her shows us is that beauty and glamour is what makes people bitter. Is what makes people revengeful. It’s what makes people desperate to remain that way. Ernest is the only one out of the three that isn’t glamorous and sexy. He’s dull. He’s aging. He’s unattractive. Yet he’s the only one out of the three without bitterness in him. Yes he’s got anger but he doesn’t ... more

I’m sure you’ve all worried about getting older. Even when you’re young you’re worried about looking old and wasted and no one loving you. I can imagine that it’s worse for a movie star. Wouldn’t you say so? Having all the magazines say dreadful things about you; spiteful things. Things about your looks and how you’ve aged. So, imagine how Madeline Ashton (played by Meryl Streep) felt when she hit 50 and was starting to look older by the day. Wrinkles. Saggy boobs. Loosing her firmness from her bum cheeks. So, what do you do when you get old? Do you grow old gracefully? Surely not! But what other alternative is there? Well, actually, you’d be surprised…

◄ The Plot ◄

Madeline Ashton (Meryl Streep) and Helen Sharp (Goldie Hawn) are best friends. Well, in actual fact their enemies. They hate each other, but they put on a front and act as if they like each other. When Helen falls for a Dr Ernest Menville (an unrecognisable Bruce Willis) she introduces him to Madeline. Every man Helen has dated Madeline has stolen off her. Would Dr Ernest Menville head the same way? Well he did, and before you knew it Madeline and Ernest were getting married. Helen couldn’t stand it and went into a bout of depression. She put on 5 stone and went to a mental institution. With the help of her therapist she plotted revenge and fast forward seven years and it’s the party of Helen’s book launch. Having not seen each other for fourteen years neither women know what the other looks like. So, when they finally meet, Madeline is in for a surprise. Helen lost all the weight she gained (and more) and now looks the most glamorous she’s ever looked in her whole life… and Madeline looks the worst. What’s Helen’s secret? And why has she come back all these years later? Desperate to find a way to look younger, Madeline visits Lisle Von Rhoman (Isabella Rossollini) who claims she has a solution for her problem. That solution being a potion that gives you eternal life. That stops the aging process in its tracks to keep you “forever young”. Death, after taking the potion, is impossible. After taking the potion Madeline is her old self again, and delighted. But, it seems eternal life isn’t going to be so easy…

◄ Characters/ Performances ◄

Death Becomes Her, may well be the campest movie ever made. It oozes extravagance and glamour and without either of these the film is nothing. The three main characters – Madeline, Helen and Ernest – are the most interesting characters together. Madeline is age mad. She must look young. She must feel young. With her toy boys she’s desperate not to look out of place. Helen has never been what you’d call “attractive”. And suddenly she is just that. She’s sexy and beautiful and glamorous and this has brought along bitterness and evil. What Death Becomes Her shows us is that beauty and glamour is what makes people bitter. Is what makes people revengeful. It’s what makes people desperate to remain that way. Ernest is the only one out of the three that isn’t glamorous and sexy. He’s dull. He’s aging. He’s unattractive. Yet he’s the only one out of the three without bitterness in him. Yes he’s got anger but he doesn’t feel cheated by anyone. This is because he doesn’t feel the need to look young. He doesn’t feel the need to be young. He doesn’t feel the need to act young. He is someone who ages gracefully; unlike Madeline and Helen.

All three actors are wonderful in the film. Meryl Streep (2 time Oscar Winner and 11 times nominated) is fantastic. She’s different, which makes it even better. Meryl has that brilliance that lets her make any role her own. You can’t compare her to her brilliance in Silkwood because this role is completely different. That is a good thing though. You manage to think of Madeline more realistically in the film. She isn’t Meryl, she’s Madeline. Meryl’s character in this, though, does sort of resemble the character she plays in She Devil. Just like that role she’s bitter, beautiful and self-centred. Beauty and age also played a big part in that film as well, so maybe that is why I think of the two on the same wavelength. Meryl totally steals the show in this film (like almost all the other film she’s been in). She’s funny, amusing and wonderful to watch. The best out of the three most certainly.

Goldie Hawn is equally as good, though. It’s Goldie’s most interesting film in her career. She plays a different part to her other roles. This time she’s not the happy go lucky kind of girl. This time she’s evil. She’s spiteful. She’s interesting. I commented in one of my other reviews that Goldie’s best movie was Housesitter. After watching this once again I’ve realised that by far this is her best film. In this she’s dark, she’s interesting. You’re interested in her characters like all of the others. But, what Goldie’s character has over the others is that she’s more mysterious. The audience know less about her than they do about any other of the characters. She’s more intriguing to the audience she creates much more intrigue than the others do, by far. Helen Sharp and Madeline Ashton are the two greatest characters in film history. The best duo by far. What make them even greater are Goldie and Meryl. The on-screen chemistry is interesting and full of excitement between them and they make the film work. Totally.

Bruce Willis is, as I’ve already said, unrecognisable in this film. I didn’t even notice it was him who played Ernest until seeing it a couple of years back, funnily enough. With a head of hair, glasses and made to look frump you will be shocked that it is him who plays Dr Ernest Menville. Bruce also brings a lot to the film. He makes it that bit more enjoyable. There’s a reason here for Helen and Madeline’s hatred towards each other. That reason being Ernest himself. We get to see why they fell out (or at least one of the reasons) and the root to their problem. Like his co-stars Bruce totally makes his character his own, and he’s also spectacular to watch and it is certainly one of his greatest films. He shows us that he can do comedy. Because in Death Becomes Her he’s wonderfully funny.

◄ My Thoughts ◄

Death Becomes Her was way ahead of its time. The genius behind the darkness and campness of it all was Robert Zemeckis (who’s also directed the Back To The Future trilogy, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Forrest Gump, What Lies Beneath and Castaway to name but a few). Zemeckis, in my opinion, is one of the greatest directors of all time. In Death Becomes Her he’s a made a cult phenomenon. He’s made it his own. You can clearly tell by watching it that every single scene from start to finish was totally thought out. Everything in the film to him was important. You can tell just by watching that this is something he felt so strongly about. To me, without Zemeckis the film wouldn’t be as great. I doubt it would have the darkness or campness it has today. I think it would still be a good film, but each character and the plot would be let down by poor directing. I do believe that the plot, characters and actors themselves have made the film wonderful, but the true root to it’s brilliance for me, is most certainly Zemeckis. He is the one who’s made Death Becomes Her the brilliance it actually is.

Death Becomes Her delves into so many issues. How Hollywood react to getting old. How a woman’s scorn can send them to such great lengths and also how death can be dealt with. It’s something so serious yet what is done so greatly in Death Becomes Her is that you laugh about it. You sometimes feel “should be laughing at this?” not because it’s in bad taste, but simply because you feel it’s something that shouldn’t be funny. But, Death Becomes Her (through the actors and the director) make it funny. That’s why I find it so brilliant, because it isn’t something that should be funny; it just is. I quote the film numerous times in a month, because I love it so much and it’s got the best of quotes ever. It’s pure genius.

I don’t think that anyone would not enjoy this film. And I’ve never meant that as much a review as I do in this one. To not see Death Becomes Her is like to not visit London at least once in your life! It’s a must. A must that no one will regret. It’s one of my most treasure films in my collection and it’s got everything anyone could wish for in a film. Watch this and laugh your socks off.

◄ DVD Extras ◄
Behind the scenes Featurette
Original Theatrical Trailer
Production Notes
Filmographies

◄ Quotes ◄

If you haven’t yet seen the film you may not want to read these quotes, just in case they give something away about the ending of the film. But, if you’re lucky enough to have seen the film sit back and enjoy these wonderful quotes. Classic!

■■ Helen has a gaping hole in her abdomen
Madeline: You're a walking lie Helen, and I can see right through you.

■■ Helen: Mad!
Madeline: Hel!

■■ Madeline Ashton is begging to have plastic surgery
Madeline Ashton: Are you listening to me? Do you even care? You stand there with your 22-year-old skin and your tits like rocks and laugh, and...
Sobs

■■ Helen Sharp: You're a powerful sexual being, Ernest.
Ernest Menville: I am?
Helen Sharp: Yes, you are. If I never told you before, it was because I wasn't the sort of girl who could say the word "sexual" without blushing. Well I can now. Sexual... sensual... sexy... sex... sex... sex...

■■ Madeline Ashton: Bottoms up!
Madeline drinks the potion
Lisle Von Rhoman: But first, a warning!
Madeline Ashton: NOW a warning?

■■ Ernest Menville: Where did you put my wife?
Second Doctor: She's dead, sir. They took her to the morgue.
Ernest Menville: The morgue? She'll be FURIOUS!

■■ Ernest is heavy breathing
Madeleine: Could you just not breathe?

■■ Helen: Oh, gosh, I'm glad you came. I didn't know if you would. I spoke to my PR woman and she said Madeleine Ashton goes to the opening of an envelope. Oh, those people can be so cruel!
Madeleine: Mmmm.
Helen: I fired her.
Pleased
Helen: Well, I almost fired her.

■■ Helen: Madeleine! I need to speak to Madeleine at once!
Ernest: She's not here.
Helen: Oh, thank god.

■■ Helen: She was a home breaker. She was a man-eater. And she was a *bad* actress.

■■ Ernest: She's dead!
Madeleine: She is? These are the moments that make life worth living.

And of course the best line of all, and the inspiration for the title of this review:

■■ Helen and Madeleine shatter into pieces after falling down stairs
Helen: Do you remember where you parked the car?

© Matt Roberts 2004

 

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