Review of Death Becomes Her (1992) by Filipeneto — 15 Sep 2021

This is one of the best black comedies I know, even though it suffers from the transversal problems of black humor: it's caustic, it's irreverent, it's sarcastic and has an acidity that isn't for all tastes. And most interesting: it brings together an extraordinary cast full of guys we know well and whose talent needs no introduction.

In the film, two childhood friends come to hate each other to death: they competed with each other for years, mainly in terms of their own beauty and love, stealing each other's husbands whenever possible. After a defeat, one of her friends goes into a deep depression, gains immense weight and ends up in a mental institution, where she develops a murderous obsession against her old enemy. When she steps out into the outside world, however, she looks beautiful, stunning, powerful... and determined to get revenge. All thanks to a mysterious elixir, jealously guarded by a strange woman.

The film is truly unmissable for fans of black humor, and will surely please others thanks to its comic tone and a roguish story, full of twists and turns, in which the characters conspire against each other, determined to kill themselves, and they survive, albeit with hilarious marks on their bodies. It's one of those movies that you lose when you try to explain it, so the best thing is to see it. I saw it many years ago, and now I have been able to see it again and enjoy it again.

The cast, as I said, is full of famous names, starting with the lead duo Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn. The two actresses are great and even better when they're together. It was truly a surprise to see Streep in work so far from what she's used to, but there's no doubt that the hard work of the two actresses is a strong reason to see this film. Bruce Willis is also very good and works well, stripping away his usual charisma and taking on the role of the idiot and deeply comic husband/lover. To make things even more bizarre, we have the iconic Isabella Rosselini, slim and magnificent in the role of an exotic and exuberant malefic figure, as strange and surreal as a sphinx cat.

Technically, the film is an unrecognized gem thanks to the talent of Robert Zemeckis. It was one of the most innovative films of its decade, where several new solutions were tested in terms of CGI, visual and special effects, and where photorealistic human skin software was used for the first time. Everything that would be used later, and with more mastery, in movies that we love and that make this movie even more surreal. The cinematography fulfills its role well and the sets and costumes are truly iconic, with the beautiful mansions of the characters and the dresses worn by the two protagonists (or the almost absence of clothes by Rosselini). The soundtrack doesn't deserve much attention, but it fulfills its role.