Product Details

• Actors: Meryl Streep, Bruce Willis, Goldie Hawn, Isabella Rossellini, Ian Ogilvy
• Directors: Robert Zemeckis
• Writers: David Koepp, Martin Donovan
• Producers: Robert Zemeckis, Joan Bradshaw, Steve Starkey
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
• Subtitles: English, Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Universal Studios
• DVD Release Date: February 27, 2007
• Run Time: 104 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (148 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 0783225482
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,752 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
  • #55 in Movies & TV > DVD > Horror
  • #73 in Movies & TV > DVD > Fantasy
• For more information about "Death Becomes Her" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

If Robert Zemeckis's mega-hit Forrest Gump was too sweet for your taste, you may enjoy the undiluted bitterness of his previous movie, a cynical black comedy that was ahead of its time. Death Becomes Her, an outlandish parable about America's obsession with youth and vanity, exposes the corrosive side of Zemeckis's comic sensibility, the sort of scathing satirical edge he gleefully flourished in his overlooked 1980 Used Cars, which has developed a cult following. Meryl Streep has a ball as the deliciously vicious Madeline Ashton, a flamboyantly mannered actress who makes Bette Davis's formidable Margo Channing in All About Eve look like a wallflower. Goldie Hawn is also in razor-sharp comedic form as Madeline's long-time "best friend," Helen. Sensing a bargain she just can't resist, Madeline steals Helen's meek, plastic-surgeon husband Ernest (Bruce Willis) for her own convenience, and the two women become sworn enemies. But the real complications arise when the two are introduced to a secret anti-aging formula by a mysterious and exotic woman (Isabella Rossellini, delightfully ridiculous) that not only smoothes away wrinkles but actually guarantees immortality. As their undying bodies are twisted and mutilated by violent attacks on each other, both women grow increasingly dependent on Ernest for cosmetic repair. The pioneering digital effects inflicted on Streep and Hawn are as grotesque as they are imaginative and hilarious. Like James Cameron (The Abyss, Titanic), Zemeckis loves a technical challenge, and the new visual tools developed for this movie made his later work (in Forrest Gump and Contact) possible. --Jim Emerson

Product Description

DEATH BECOMES HER - DVD Movie

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Devilish, Wicked Black Comedy, July 16, 2000

By 

Luis Hernandez (New York, New York, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Death Becomes Her (DVD)

Directed by the amazing Robert Zemeckis, "Death Becomes Her" features a clever script, an awesome cast, and mind-blowing special effects that most Hollywood films lack nowadays. The film centers on the eternal quest for beauty and youth by an aging Hollywood starlet, Madeline Ashton, (played by the brillant Meryl Streep). Her high school rival, Helen, (Goldie Hawn), brings her latest beau to meet Ashton after a campy performance in a musical based on "Sweet Bird of Youth" (get the theme already?).

When Madeline runs off with Helen's fiance (Bruce Willis) Helen falls into a demented state and becomes obese and determined to get even with Madeline. After discovering a secret potion sold by a Hollywood witch (Isabella Rosellini) both Helen, and later Madeline regain their youth, vitality, and beauty. However, all this comes with strings involving immortality.

The wonderful script pokes fun at many stereotypes, rumors, and realities Hollywood is well-known for. From plastic surgery to the fact that no one has never met a neighbor in Los Angeles, the script is intelligent scriptwriting at its' best. The special effects by Industrial Light and Magic which has Helen walking with a hole through her midsection, and Madeline walking with a twisted neck are incredible to watch. One thing I adored about this film was the wicked, dark, and diabolical score by Alan Silvestri that incorporates harps and vengeful theme throughout the film.

The film's ending featuring a legion of Hollywood's undead (including Marilyn Monroe, Elvis, and James Dean)is hysterical and even the names of the two main characters, Madeline ("Mad" as in crazy) and Helen ("Hell" as in hellish) is genius. Personally along with "She-Devil," "Heathers," and "Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills," this film ranks as one of the best black comedies to come out in recent years. A must-see for everyone!

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great movie - but dvd could have more features, December 17, 2002

By 

Sebastian Vale "I can read good" (New Orleans, LA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death Becomes Her (DVD)

I absolutely love this movie. It is great in so many respects and is much more than just fantastic special effects. It is laugh out loud funny. I never get tired of watching it, and every time I see it I catch something I didn't see before. Sometimes I really wonder if certain actresses who never seem to age really have taken some magic potion.

As far as the dvd goes, I have really been craving a "deleted scenes" feature for this movie. I have long heard about the alternate ending that was shot and dropped at the last minute - I remember someone telling me it involved Streep and Hawn's characters on a mountain in Switzerland trying to come up with new things to do or places to go and finding immortality to be quite boring. There are also entire scenes with Tracy Ullman that were fully cut from this movie when her character was completely deleted. And, there is the msytery of the Greta Garbo actress on the end credits. Someone is listed as having portrayed Garbo in the movie, but I have never been able to find her in the film. James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, Andy Warhol, Elvis, and Jim Morrison are clearly at Lisel's party...but I don't know where Garbo is supposed to be (yet, a scene with her was evidently shot, since an actress is credited as playing her). That scene must also have been cut.

I think this would be a terrific film to have some behind the scenese featurette for as well. In 1992, the effects used here were revolutionary...though Forrest Gump, made a few years later, gets most of the credit for being groundbreaking in this field. I remember being totally blown away with what was achieved in Death Becomes Her and would love to know exactly what went into making it. I think it would also be interesting to hear from Zemeckis himself exactly what motivated him to make this movie - I bet he would have some interesting stories to tell about his own experiences with "the walking dead of Beverly Hills".

I doubt they will be making a special edition dvd of this movie any time soon. There isn't any great public demand for it. But, I hope that when the milestone anniversaries of this film come around someone will reconsider this dvd oversight and include all the cut scenes and other standard featurettes that go into dvds these days.

The movie is too good to skimp on this stuff. And I truly would like to be able to see how Greta Garbo was featured in this film. I think that scene could have been really interesting.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very dark, and hilarious comedy, November 7, 2003

By 

Priscilla Stafford (Yokohama, Japan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death Becomes Her (DVD)

Meryl Streep plays Madeline Ashton, an actress who is obsessed with keeping herself looking young and beautiful. Helen Sharp (Goldie Hawn), is a plain looking author with a brilliant surgeon, Dr. Ernest Menville (Bruce Willis), for a fiance. Madeline and Helen have hated each other for years, but things become even worse when Madeline steals Ernest from Helen and they get married. Years later, Madeline is even more obsessed with keeping her youth, willing to do ANYTHING to keep from aging physically. On the other hand, Helen is obsessed to get revenge on Madeline for stealing her fiance. But it seems that there is one thing in common between the two rivals, in that both seem to know the same woman, Lisle Von Rhoman (Isabella Rossellini). Lisle, who has the power to give the two woman something the world has been searching for centuries... the secret of youth. But Madeline and Helen will learn that the 'secret of youth' has a high price, and that their 'lives' will never be the same again.

As the title of my review says, "Death Becomes Her" is a very dark yet hilariously funny movie. Directed by genius Robert Zemeckis (director of the Back to the Future trilogy, "Who Framed Roger Rabbit", "Contact", and "Forrest Gump"), he gives the movie such an underlying sense of psychological suspense that it's really hard what category to put this movie under.

Is it a comedy?: Yes, "Death Becomes Her" could be called a comedy. But it has a very twisted sort of humor, you'll have to be someone who enjoys all forms of comedy to really enjoy and understand the humor. There is both laugh-out-loud slapstick humor, then there's the dry type of humor which takes a few seconds to really getting you chuckling. But more than anything, the satire and irony of the story is so well imbedded into the plot that there's really no specific part you can pinpoint as the funniest part of the movie. When the movie finished, my parents and I stopped the movie, there was a brief pause, THEN we started howling with laughter! It's the truth, really! No, it wasn't because it was so awful or stupid (some parts were) but because it's not until AFTER the movie that the satire of the film really hits you.

Is it horror?: Yes, there are some parts which you could describe the movie as being under the horror genre. There's the whole 'haunted, creepy, gothic mansion' scene, and one of the themes of the movie is about 'death'.

Is it a drama?: Strangely enough, there is a sense of drama in the story. The story touches upon the topics of death and the dream of wanting to 'live forever and retain your youth'. This is very well expressed through the main actresses and actor of the movie. I mean, what will your choice been when given a chance to be able to live forever? The suspense towards the end when one of the characters must decide is well executed.

But more than anything, it's not just the story of the movie that really gets you, it's the fact that the actors do such an outstanding job with their characters. Meryl Streep is simply fantastic and she handles the dark side of her character very well. Goldie Hawn is also fantastic, can you imagine her as a fat, depressed, and ugly woman? Well, watch this movie to see her handle the role with ease. And Bruce Willis, you would never imagine seeing him in this kind of movie, but he is just GREAT! He plays the character plagued by two very 'obsessed' woman very well, and he's 'kind of' the 'hero' of the film.

As others have also mentioned, the effects of the movie are brilliantly put to the screen. I can't give away much of the story, but check out how they accomplish getting Meryl Streep's character to 'get up and about' after being pushed a flight of stairs and having her neck broken. Weird...

Anyway, though a brilliant film, I strongly suggest that people would borrow before getting this movie to add to their collection. Some people might not be able to appreciate or understand the movie enough to enjoy it's twisted look at 'life after death'.