Dúplex

Eileen Essell was 80 when she made her Hollywood debut in Duplex. And she steals Duplex from Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore.

Essell's portrait of a bothersome old tenant is a tour-de-force. Somehow she's sympathetic despite being a royal pain in the ass.

Stiller and Barrymore do so well I almost started to consider Barrymore to be a legitimate Barrymore. You know, an actual actor instead of just a smirking twerp. Watch her face at the restaurant when Stoiller is ranting.

And Stiller, well, his comic talents are under-appreciated in a world where Adam Sandler baby-talk movies haul in billions of dollars.

OK, they have murderous intent. But who could blame them. I would have murdered the old bat within a week.

At any rate there are a lot of laughs in this movie. I don't understand what else people want out of a movie.

Not that it really takes much to be better than Death to Smoochy (which was really "Throw Momma From the Train" with Barney), but this movie is quite a bit better. It's more like "Throw Momma From the Train" in an apartment.

The movie has several HILARIOUS episodes dealing with Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore as they try to deal with and plot to kill their upstairs tenant. The movie had some GUT-BUSTING parts where I (and the rest of the theater) couldn't stop laughing. [One of those times where you laugh so hard and loud you miss the next 30-60 seconds of dialogue] The performances were great, especially the old lady and Ben Stiller. Drew Barrymore seemed to be miscast at first (or at least not a good match for Ben Stiller), but when things started picking up, she played evil pretty well (thank you, years of recklessness).

The end of the movie was a let down of sorts, as the ending was sort of abrupt. It dragged for the last third, but by the end had wrapped up for the most part with no loose ends. In my opinion, this movie was better than Smoochy, but doesn't hold a candle to THROW MOMMA. I'd still give it 8 out of 10. I'm definitely going to purchase it on DVD when it is released.

A couple in New York purchase a duplex at an incredibly low price. The only catch is that there is an old lady that lives upstairs and she has to remain living there. This movie was like "Madhouse" and "Home Alone" with an old lady playing Macauly Culkin.

Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore play the young couple Alex Rose and Nancy Kendricks. They are building their relationship and their careers when they buy a duplex and live in hell from then on.

The movie was funny, or it had a funny situation rather. It was amusing to see the lengths that Alex and Nancy were going through to get rid of the old lady upstairs. Truly, that woman would try the patience of Job. You don't even know the extent that you could utterly despise an old woman until you see this movie.

From the twisted mind of Danny DeVito comes this story in the style of "War of the Roses". Here, a nice NY couple finally find their dream home only to discover that they have a built in tenant. Not exactly what they were looking for but it really can't be that bad can it? The little old lady that lives upstairs turns out to be a nightmare and a half. In a variety of scenarios, most comical and some just plain, outright strange, the nice couple turn into psycho landlords and the nice old lady turns into the crazy bat upstairs. In the end, the twist comes as a true surprise. A hilarious, laugh out loud movie, this was really enjoyable and a must watch. DeVito has done it again and I can't wait to see what's coming next!!!

8/10

The writer Alex Rose (Ben Stiller) and his beloved wife Nancy Kendricks (Drew Barrymore), who works in an advertisement agency, want to buy a house and cannot afford an apartment in Manhattan, but they find a wonderful old duplex in Brooklyn for living. The house, which has three fireplaces, is a dream, the price is very reasonable and the only inconvenient is the existence of the old tenant Mrs. Connelly (Eileen Essel) on the second floor. Although aware that they can not move the old lady from her apartment, the young couple decides to buy the duplex. When they move to their new home, their lives become a hell, due to the nasty Mrs. Connelly. "Duplex" is a very funny black comedy, directed by Danny DeVito, who is a specialist in this genre. Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore show a great chemistry, but Eileen Essel "steals the show" in the role of a sweet & nasty old lady. There are two plot points in the end of the story that I liked a lot. "Duplex" is not a masterpiece, but make the viewer, who likes black humor, laughs a lot and is a good entertainment. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Duplex"