Dead Again

Although he received tremendous praise for his memorable film production of Shakespeare's HENRY V, DEAD AGAIN was the film that really introduced actor/director Kenneth Branagh to mainstream American film, and for a time he and then-wife Emma Thompson were the most celebrated acting couple since Olivier and Leigh. The marriage did not last, but fortunately this film did--and I say fortunately, for although it is somewhat forgotten today, DEAD AGAIN is an overlooked jewel of a film: classy, noir-ish, stylish, and very memorable indeed.

The story is fanciful. In the late 1940s noted composer Roman Strauss was convicted of murdering his noted pianist wife Margaret, and was sentenced to death. Some forty years later, a young woman suffering from amnesia falls into the hands of a no-nonsense Los Angeles private eye--and under hypnosis she recalls not her immediate past, but the lives of Roman and Margaret. Is this reincarnation? Is she Margaret Strauss? Is the private eye to whom she is attracted but of whom she is also strangely fearful the reincarnation of Roman Strauss, Margaret's killer? Is history repeating itself? Scott Frank's clever script makes for a fast-paced, twisting, and fascinating plot-driven film--and it is flawlessly played by Branagh and Thompson, who assume dual roles as the 1940s Roman and Margaret Strauss and the 1980s Mike Church and Grace. The supporting cast is also excellent, with memorable performances by Andy Garcia and Derek Jacobi--and a truly exceptional cameo by Robin Williams, who here for the first time demonstrated that his talents went far beyond comedy. The shifts between past and present, nightmare and reality are exceedingly well done, and although the plot becomes more and more fantastic the entire film is so perfectly executed that one buys into it every step of the way.

If DEAD AGAIN has a flaw, it is that some of the twists and turns are predictable--but in the film's favor I must admit that it sweeps you along so quickly that you seldom have time to analyze that failing while you actually watch the film. It is also to a certain extent a "one trick pony" film; the film is at its most powerful upon a first viewing, when one is oblivious to what is coming. But even so, it is tremendously effective and it holds up as well today as when it first appeared on the big screen. The current DVD includes little in the way of extras beyond commentary tracks by producer Lindsay Doran, writer Scott Frank, and director-star Kenneth Branagh--and these are as hit-and-miss as commentary tracks usually are, but they hit more often than miss. The picture and sound quality is overall very good. Recommended!

Gary F. Taylor, aka GFT, Amazon Reviewer

An incredibly well done stylish thriller. Performances, direction, script, etc., were all fantastic. Contains one of the best jump scares ever and it is entirely created by the score and Emma Thompson's reaction to something Kenneth Branagh says. Such a great film.

This movie is about dual parallel stories occurring in Los Angeles in the late forties and again four decades later in the early nineties. The segments that make up 1948-1949 portion are in black and white flashbacks, and focus on the tragic love affair of music composer and conductor Roman (Kenneth Branagh) and pianist Margaret Strauss (Emma Thompson). The opening montage is made of compiled newspaper headlines and clippings that scream about the murder of Margaret (MURDER . . . TRIAL . . . GUILTY . . .). We quickly learn that Roman was convicted and executed for the scissor-murder of his wife. Roman goes to the electric chair proclaiming his innocence. Margaret had been suspicious that ominous housekeeper Inga (Hanna Schygulla) and her strange and stuttering son Frankie (Gregor Hesse) may have stolen jewelry items from Roman. But Inga had saved Roman from Hitler, so she kept her position. In turn, Roman was unhappy that his wife seemed to have taken an inordinate amount of interest with newspaper writer Gray Baker (Andy Garcia).

The early 1990s part involves private investigator Mike Church (Branagh again), who has been asked by Father Timothy (Richard Easton), a priest, to unearth the identity of a woman (Thompson again) who has lost both her voice and her memory. She experiences terrible nightmares. Church had intended to drop off Thompson at the local madhouse, but after seeing conditions there he decided to put her up for a night or two. He gives her a faux-name, "Grace." Helpful newspaper man Piccolo Pete (Wayne Knight) puts her photograph in the local rag. Peculiar hypnotist (and antique dealer on the side!), Franklyn Madison (Derek Jacobi) responds quickly. Now Franklyn believes that a trauma from the woman's past is causing mute amnesia. When Franklyn, with permission from Mike Church, places Grace under hypnotism, she begins to have visions from the 1940s, i.e., Roman and Margaret's life (before Grace was born). Grace soon regains her voice, but not her memory. As she begins to grow closer to Mike, she notices the similarities between their lives and the previous ones of Roman and Margaret. As she looks even deeper into her past, she begins to fear Mike, feeling that – like Roman earlier – he will eventually kill her (as he is apparently Roman re-incarnated). But did Roman really kill Margaret? At a critical point Church tells Grace, "I would never hurt you, MARGARET" (Freudian slip), Grace screams right away.

Cozy Carlisle (Robin Williams), ex-psychiatrist turned supermarket worker, soon warns Mike that he should indeed kill Grace before she kills him because fate is what it is. There are similarities between past and present lives. Reincarnation also means that one may return in a different gender: Grace could be Roman while Mike may be Margaret (heavy stuff here)! After researching, Piccolo Pete tells Grace that her real name is Amanda Sharp, an artist who lost her memory after being mugged. (Note the Salvador Dali copy of his famous painting in her spacious apartment ("The Persistence of Memory"). After, when Mike agrees to be hypnotized, he uncovers a startling secret. When Mike later locates the aged and decrepit Gray in a wretched condition at a nursing facility, he is told that Inga the housekeeper knew everything that went on in the Strauss household. When asked about her and son Frankie, Gray says "They had opened some sort of shop . . . AN-tiques." Mike's utter surprise sets up the denouement. Under Patrick Doyle's rousing musical score, there is a grand operatic clash with slow-motion shots and with cuts between the (black and white) past and (color) present times. It is a bit pretentious, though (but dig those gigantic scissors!).

Yes, the story is complicated and relies on coincidence but it is a good tale, and very inventive. Each of the plot twists is given suitable build-up that avoids viewer confusion. One gets so swept away with the yarn and buys into the story that he/she ignores the coincidences (like Mike's meeting with Grace/Amanda in the first place). The character development is at a high level, while the sets and scenes are imaginatively well-done. Acting performances are first-rate. Derek Jacobi (of "I, Claudius" fame) is excellent as the hypnotist with a sinister agenda. An innovative touch occurs when he puts folks under not just to obtain information about the past, but also to pry from subconscious minds the whereabouts of certain antiques that may somehow fetch him big dollars. Robin Williams, as Cozy Carlisle, believing that the world has thoroughly porked him, leaves no room for anything but the blackest of humor in his top performance. Kenneth Branagh directed, and he and his then wife Emma Thompson shared the lead roles of both eras effectively, with the nod going to the latter. Matthew Leonetti's cinematography is effective at capturing moods. Whether or not you want believe in reincarnation does not matter (this writer does not) as the film's entertainment value is high. But you need to pay close attention to the story!

This movie is one of the unappreciated jewels of the 1990's, a film done so well that virtually every aspect, from script to direction to performances to music to editing, sweeps you away. Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson (who were then married)each played two roles, one in the past, one in the present, with different clothes, hairstyles and accents, as part of a couple destined to be together forever.

Branagh, coming off his rookie directing debut in HENRY V, did a simply beautiful job here, using the same creative team as HV (Patrick Doyle deserves especial kudos for his astounding musical score). Playing both a cynical private eye ("I'm not looking for Miss Right; I'm looking for Miss Right Now") and a jealous German composer from the 1940's, he turns in two complete portraits of unusual men, while directing as well.

The film didn't stay in theaters long (most likely due to studio politics), but has apparently found a new audience on video. I've loved it since the first time I saw it, in its first run (I admit to seeing it five times in the theater and buying it on video the day it came out) -- so I may be slightly prejudiced -- but from every angle -- thriller, love story, character study -- it's a winner. See it on DVD and hear Branagh's comments on various aspects of the film -- that adds another dimension right there.

In fact, see it any way you can. It's just marvelous.

I didn't catch this one until it hit a discount theatre in Miami Beach, but I'm glad I did. Whatever the status of Branagh and Thompson's relationship at the time, they project a fantastic chemistry as lovers karmically doomed to repeat the same mistakes over and over again, or so we are led to believe. Branagh has a fantastic directorial sense, honed in his years with Shakespearian theatre, and the intertwining of black-and white and colour footage to evoke different time periods works to great effect. Supporting players Derek Jacobi, Robin Williams, and Andy Garcia put in excellent performances, and the serviceable plot is made transcendant by this fine group of actors. Although some of the gore is a bit heavy, it doesn't overwhelm the story, something Branagh learned no doubt from the films of Alfred Hitchcock, and like the works of Hitchcock, even after the mystery is finally sorted out, the film continues to reward with repeat viewings. So, if the last copy of Blair Witch is out, and you're looking for a bit of suspense that isn't all blood and guts, give this one a try. You'll feel enlightened.