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Sisters (1972)

Rate: 5
Viewed: 6/17

Sisters
6/17: Everything was going well in Sisters until the last fifteen minutes that caused it to collapse.

What the hell happened? A lot of it reminds me of David Cronenberg's early films and, most especially, Dead Ringers. Partly Rear Window and partly Psycho, Brian De Palma's picture is well-shot, and the mystery is intriguing to follow just like his later work entitled Body Double.

Unfortunately, the acting isn't great. Only Jennifer Salt and Charles Durning turn in excellent performances. But it's too bad about the latter because he'll be inexplicably dropped until the final minute to set up the strange ending. It's a poor move on the director's part.

Margot Kidder is an oddball; she appears drunk, almost slurring her words. William Finley is used for the maximum effect but becomes redundant in the last fifteen minutes, losing any power he has going. The split screen technique is almost never successful in films, but it's appropriately done here.

Lack of logic is the fatal flaw. I'm surprised the reporter is able to describe everything that happened across the building without seeing much. How can it possible given the slanted line of vision? Plus, who's able to clean up the bloody murder scene in five minutes flat? And that's on top of the pristinely snow-white carpet? Yeah, right.

All in all, if Sisters had a proper ending, it might have worked out even though my intelligence was insulted a lot.