Product Details

• Actors: Violet Hilton, Daisy Hilton, Mario Laval, Allen Jenkins, Patricia Wright
• Directors: Harry L. Fraser
• Writers: Albert DePina, Nat Tanchuck, Ross Frisco
• Producers: George Moskov
• Format: Black & White, Dolby, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Alpha Video
• DVD Release Date: May 25, 2004
• Run Time: 81 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0001ZMXJ0
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #219,506 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Chained for Life" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Studio: Gotham (dba Alpha) Release Date: 05/25/2004

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Long list of problems, May 6, 2007

By 

Timothy P. Molthan - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Chained for Life (DVD)

This DVD release is mastered from a VHS dub copy of a 16mm dupe print, so no wonder the sound is horribly distorted (as many have pointed out), and the detail of the picture is washed out. You can see the squiggly videotape artifacts from the minute the opening credits start. In brighter scenes, you can barely see any detail of some of the characters' faces (this is evidence that the original source was a dupe of a positive print rather than a positive print made from a negative) and this probably explains the poor sound as well. Then, the dub to videotape further degraded the quality. If Alpha Video couldn't come up with better source material, they should've passed on this title. Considering this film's obscurity, I wasn't expecting miracles, but this is one of the worst DVD releases I've come across. Avoid.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars I love bad movies, but this one was WAY too bad to see twice, January 29, 2000

By 

Betsy (Cincinnati, OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chained for Life [VHS] (VHS Tape)

I love cult movies and this one is, by far, the worst movie I have ever seen in my life. The plot seemed interesting enough: one Siamese twin commits a murder, but what will happen to them? They can't put the innocent one in jail, but can't let the guilty one go free. However, there is really no conclusion and it was so slow that i almost couldn't finish watching it.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars On A Historical Note, This Film Runed the Hilton Sisters., November 30, 2007

By 

D. Perl "Dragon" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Chained for Life (DVD)

The quality of the film "Chained for Life" is certainly among the worst that I have ever viewed. The picture is washed out and choppy. One may wonder why the time has not been taken to restore this bit of sideshow/vaudeville history. According to the excellent biography "The Lives and Loves of Daisy and Violet Hilton," this is the film that finally ruined them. The Hilton Sisters had high hopes that this project would make them superstars. They paid almost all of their own money to produce this story about one twin committing homicide and the legal problems the situation would cause. "Must the innocent be punished with the guilty, or should the guilty go free?" This idea lost focus even before the first day of its filming. After rewrites and reediting to please the censors of the day, "Chained for Life" became a blur of ideas with no real conclusion and unknown bad actors. It is an uneven film, with no real plot, and out of place musical performances by Daisy and Violet.

The film was locked in litigation, upon it completion, for a year (due to unpaid production bills). "Chained for Life" ended up with a very limited release in hick towns where small audiences hated the film. The Hilton Sisters traveled from cheap theaters to drive-ins across the country trying to promote their film. In the end, Daisy and Violet took a tremendous financial loss. This was the beginning of the final end for the Hilton Sisters. They would never recover from the financial loss caused by this venture and would end up living their remaining years in poverty.

The DVD "Chained for Life" is cheap label discount release(Alpha). It is a washed out, bad print of the high hopes that ended up being the final ruin of Daisy and Violet Hilton. It is a bad film, and a sad ending to the once famous vaudeville headliners whose lives ended in tragedy. Those who have read "The Lives and Loves of Daisy and Violet Hilton: A True Story of Conjoined Twins by Dean Jensen," may find the DVD interesting for historical reasons. Those who know nothing of the Hilton Sister will only see "Chained for Life" as a cinematic failure.