Dead AgainThey say what goes around, comes around. "Fate" is the driving force in Dead Again, a film which begins with a bold opening montage of newsprint headlines reading, "murder", and gives us the first of many glimpses into a past which over time comes into focus as the backdrop for a mystery that takes place in the present. Directed by Kenneth Branagh--best known for revolutionary adaptations of the works of William Shakespeare--Dead Again is a stylish thriller which, like all great thrillers and mysteries, excels at subverting our expectations, and leading us through a long corridor, and into a mirror maze of deception and double identity.
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There is only so much of the plot of Dead Again which can be discussed without effectively spoiling the fun of navigating the twists and turns of the story. Even making observation of some of the exceedingly clever minutiae and character tics and mannerisms in the grand scope of the story would result in the same end. Suffice to say, Dead Again is one of those movies that you genuinely have to watch (at least) twice to get the fullness of its painstaking attention to character detail. In this, Dead Again plays toward a bit of irony, considering that the story is about fate, karma, and reincarnation; these are the forces at work, like the "gods" of a classic Greek tragedy, the roots of theater...a detail I have no doubt the genius leading actor/director behind this film is no doubt aware of. Kenneth Branagh emerged on the cinematic scene with his riveting adaptation of Henry V, a thunderous film which immediately cemented his reputation in the movies. Like his prior film work, Dead Again wears its stylistic influences on its sleeve, most apparently in the works of the master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock. Dead Again even feels like the reincarnation of Hitchcock at times, both in plot and style. The stories of both Mike Church and "Grace" in the present and Roman and Margaret Strauss in the past (both pairs played magnificently by Branagh and Emma Thompson) seem distant and removed from one another at first, but over the course of the story, glide closer and closer into mutual focus. The idea of a person gradually possessed--or at least influenced--by the spirit of someone long dead is a theme unmistakably from Vertigo, which also deals with past lives and double identities in a similar fashion. There is even a person in both films who shares a mutual connection with all concerned, and is armed with a unique knowledge over our main characters which gives that individual a deadly edge. Roman Strauss was a skillful composer, a refugee from Germany who escaped during World War II, along with his maid, Inga (Hanna Schygulla) and her child, Frankie (Gregor Hesse). (As an interesting nod and clever casting, Hanna Schygulla may be best known for the titular role in The Marriage of Maria Braun, itself set in the aftermath of World War II.) In Los Angeles, year 1948, Roman met Margaret, and the two were soon married, although the proverbial pebble in Roman's shoe would emerge in the form of news hound Gray Baker (Andy García), whose friendship with Margaret evoked jealousy. The relationship and secrets between Mr. Baker and Margaret are reminiscent of Notorious in a way, accentuated by the post-war German presence in the form of Roman, Inga, and even Frankie. The story of Roman and Margaret is one of a passionate romance, but one which carries moments of tension and even fights, because Roman and Margaret are very different personality types--very "yin" and "yang". Their romance parallels that of Maxim de Winter and the second Mrs. de Winter from Rebecca, with some crucial personality traits swapped between husband and wife. I find it especially fascinating that Kenneth Branagh appears almost unerringly like his Shakespearean precursor, Laurence Olivier as the brooding widower, Roman. Even the modern day interactions with Mike and Grace recall Hitchcock's Spellbound, in the form of an amnesiac with subconscious traumatic triggers represented in Dali-esque fashion.
The most obvious homage to the suspenseful oeuvre of Alfred Hitchcock is in the form of the implement of the murder of Margaret Strauss, scissors raised high into the air, and stabbed into the screaming woman, recalling the terrifying murder in Psycho. Hitchcock's story of Norman Bates--another tale of double identity--ends with shot of the young man maintained for a protracted length of time on is face; the scene at the beginning of Dead Again intentionally recalls this, as we see part of Roman's face as he has his hair cut before his execution, although Roman's eyes are concealed by shadow, denying us entrance into his soul. (In a bit of self-referential humor, the numbers on Roman's prison uniform refer to the date of the Battle of Agincourt, the climactic battle following the St. Crispin's Day speech from Henry V.) Although less specific to any one work by Hitchcock--with the exception of Rope, which was dominated by long, continuous shots throughout--Branagh's thriller boasts one especially complex and daring shot, when Mike and Grace have taken up the offer of a hypnotist and somewhat covetous antique dealer, Franklyn Madson (Derek Jacobi), to put Grace under hypnosis in order to recall the events which led to her amnesia and lack of speech. The camera circles around the table where Madson puts Grace under as if orbiting the candlelight in the center, a effect which is simultaneously subtle and unconsciously disorienting, much like hypnosis. Echoes of the past are the central theme of Dead Again, and places and people from the past turn up in the present--and through flashback, vice versa. The recollections of the past are presented in black and white, while the present is in color. Although sequences depicting the past were shot in color, the story goes that early test screenings favored the change to black and white to differentiate past from present. While films that are shot in black and white generally tend to favor costume design and art direction that employs a different palette for this purpose, the change in Dead Again gives these scenes a distinct look, even from other black and white films, much like the archival look of newsprint of the era, a serendipitous detail which is returned both in the scene where Mike and Grace come across pictures of Roman and Margaret in a LIFE magazine, as well as a reminder of the opening montage and sensational murder of Margaret Strauss chronicled in the newspapers by Gray Baker. Among many genres and styles which could be applied to Dead Again, the most fascinating description I've heard is that the film is sometimes called "neo-noir", which is often used to describe movies that employ stylistic elements both reminiscent of film noir, but utilizing modern resources. I think this is true of Dead Again, but it is especially interesting that the style of the "past" in this film is in the fashion of "classic" film noir, making the juxtaposition both jarring and fascinating, like a discordant rhythm which, when played together, makes for a unique harmony that is more than the sum of its parts--two halves of the same whole.
Recommended for: Fans of a stylish romantic thriller which is steeped in the cinematic roots of Alfred Hitchcock, but carries itself with a confidence and inventive virtuosity that is a signature of Kenneth Branagh's work.
The most obvious homage to the suspenseful oeuvre of Alfred Hitchcock is in the form of the implement of the murder of Margaret Strauss, scissors raised high into the air, and stabbed into the screaming woman, recalling the terrifying murder in Psycho. Hitchcock's story of Norman Bates--another tale of double identity--ends with shot of the young man maintained for a protracted length of time on is face; the scene at the beginning of Dead Again intentionally recalls this, as we see part of Roman's face as he has his hair cut before his execution, although Roman's eyes are concealed by shadow, denying us entrance into his soul. (In a bit of self-referential humor, the numbers on Roman's prison uniform refer to the date of the Battle of Agincourt, the climactic battle following the St. Crispin's Day speech from Henry V.) Although less specific to any one work by Hitchcock--with the exception of Rope, which was dominated by long, continuous shots throughout--Branagh's thriller boasts one especially complex and daring shot, when Mike and Grace have taken up the offer of a hypnotist and somewhat covetous antique dealer, Franklyn Madson (Derek Jacobi), to put Grace under hypnosis in order to recall the events which led to her amnesia and lack of speech. The camera circles around the table where Madson puts Grace under as if orbiting the candlelight in the center, a effect which is simultaneously subtle and unconsciously disorienting, much like hypnosis. Echoes of the past are the central theme of Dead Again, and places and people from the past turn up in the present--and through flashback, vice versa. The recollections of the past are presented in black and white, while the present is in color. Although sequences depicting the past were shot in color, the story goes that early test screenings favored the change to black and white to differentiate past from present. While films that are shot in black and white generally tend to favor costume design and art direction that employs a different palette for this purpose, the change in Dead Again gives these scenes a distinct look, even from other black and white films, much like the archival look of newsprint of the era, a serendipitous detail which is returned both in the scene where Mike and Grace come across pictures of Roman and Margaret in a LIFE magazine, as well as a reminder of the opening montage and sensational murder of Margaret Strauss chronicled in the newspapers by Gray Baker. Among many genres and styles which could be applied to Dead Again, the most fascinating description I've heard is that the film is sometimes called "neo-noir", which is often used to describe movies that employ stylistic elements both reminiscent of film noir, but utilizing modern resources. I think this is true of Dead Again, but it is especially interesting that the style of the "past" in this film is in the fashion of "classic" film noir, making the juxtaposition both jarring and fascinating, like a discordant rhythm which, when played together, makes for a unique harmony that is more than the sum of its parts--two halves of the same whole.
Recommended for: Fans of a stylish romantic thriller which is steeped in the cinematic roots of Alfred Hitchcock, but carries itself with a confidence and inventive virtuosity that is a signature of Kenneth Branagh's work.