Death Becomes Her is a 1992 American satirical black comedy fantasy film directed and produced by Robert Zemeckis. Written by David Koepp and Martin Donovan, it stars Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn as rivals who fight for the affections of the same man (Bruce Willis) and drink a magic potion that promises eternal youth.
Filming began in December 1991 and concluded in April 1992, and was shot entirely in Los Angeles. Released on July 31, 1992, to mixed reviews from critics, Death Becomes Her was a commercial success, grossing $149 million worldwide on a $55 million budget. The film was a pioneer in the use of computer-generated effects; it went on to win the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.[3]
The pair knock out Ernest and bring him to Lisle, who offers to give him the potion free of charge in exchange for his surgical skills. Ernest is very tempted, but after some thought he fundamentally disagrees with the idea of immortality, especially considering the consequences Madeline and Helen are already suffering. He pockets the potion and flees, but becomes trapped on the roof. Helen and Madeline implore Ernest to drink the potion to survive an impending fall. Ernest, realizing that they only need him for their own selfish reasons, refuses and drops it to the ground, but after falling he lands in Lisle's pool and escapes. Lisle banishes Madeline and Helen from her group, leaving the pair to rely on each other for companionship and maintenance.
Principal photography for Death Becomes Her began on December 9, 1991, and wrapped up on April 7, 1992.[1] The film was shot entirely in Los Angeles and featured several locations frequently used in film and television, including the Greystone Mansion (Ernest's funeral home) and the Ebell of Los Angeles (Helen's book party).[10] The exterior of Madeline and Ernest's mansion is located at 1125 Oak Grove Avenue in San Marino, but the interior was a set built on a soundstage.[1] The ending scene where Helen and Madeline tumble down a set of stairs outside a chapel was filmed at Mount St. Mary's University in Brentwood.[11][12]
Multiple scenes that were filmed were omitted from the film's final cut.[13][1] Director Robert Zemeckis decided on cutting the scenes to accelerate the film's pacing and to eliminate extraneous jokes. Most dramatically, the original ending was entirely redone after test audiences reacted negatively to it.[14] That ending featured Ernest, after he has fled Lisle's party, meeting a bartender (Tracey Ullman) who helps him fake his death to evade Madeline and Helen. The two women encounter Ernest and the bartender 27 years later, living happily as a retired couple while Madeline and Helen give no sign that they are enjoying their eternal existence.[13] Zemeckis thought the ending was too happy and opted for the darker ending featured in the final cut.[13] Ullman was one of five actors with speaking roles in the film to be eliminated.[13] Other scenes that were eliminated included one in which Madeline talks to her agent (Jonathan Silverman) and one in which Ernest removes a frozen Madeline from the kitchen freezer he has stored her in.[13] Some of the scenes can be viewed in the original theatrical trailer.[15]
its so hard to explain death becomes her to people who have never seen it before. a glitzy all star comedy that implements the best horror imagery (the floating nuns are downright sinister) of the 60s/70s whilst being deeply funny.
Parents need to know that Death Becomes Her is a 1992 macabre comedy about a deadly threesome: two vain female frenemies and the man whose life they jointly ruined. Excessive drinking is shown. So is a potion that brings back youth but also bestows immortality, which, it turns out, isn't as fun as it sounds. Language includes "s--t," "t-ts," and "bitch." A woman has an affair with a younger man, who is cheating on her. Bare buttocks are seen for a few seconds. Impotence is discussed. Violence is played for comedy. A man and woman plot to kill someone. A man chokes a woman, then lets her fall down a long flight of stairs. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
In DEATH BECOMES HER, Madeline (Meryl Streep) is an aging movie star approaching the All About Eve stage of her career. Fewer leading roles are coming her way and, like many women in their 50s and beyond, she is beginning to feel "invisible" in Los Angeles' youth-obsessed culture. Mousey and retiring wannabe writer friend Helen (Goldie Hawn) loses her fiancé plastic surgeon Ernest (Bruce Willis) to the rapacious and glamorous Madeline. Then Helen spends years stewing and plotting revenge. She roars back into Madeline and Ernest's life 12 years later as a best-selling author who looks like a movie star herself -- trim, youthful, and gorgeous -- to find that Ernest and Madeline's marriage hasn't gone well. Madeline has a younger lover, and the whole situation has driven Ernest to find solace in large amounts of alcohol. When Helen reappears, she quickly persuades Ernest to help her knock Madeline off. Meanwhile, the spectacular Lisle (Isabella Rossellini), provider of a youth and immortality serum to the elite, persuades Madeline to join her secret cult. Madeline chugs a vial and immediately, through the wonders of CGI, loses her wrinkles and regains her waistline. It's not until Ernest manages to kill her that she learns about the serum's accompanying undead problem. Ernest chokes her and then lets her fall down the stairs to what seems to be her death. But she gets up, her broken neck twisted 180 degrees round, and discovers that she is incapable of dying. Helen meets a similar fate, ending up with a giant shotgun hole in the middle of her abdomen. She's had the potion, too, it seems, and although the two can't die, they do start to deteriorate. Ernest regularly spray paints them to keep the decay and mottling from showing. Eventually Ernest, the moral center of the film, escapes from the shrews, and they are left with each other for what appears to be a bickering, comically nasty eternity.
This movie was not generally well reviewed in 1992, but all those critics were wrong: This is an over-the-top comic classic. Streep, Hawn, Willis, and Rossellini deliver the goods as they ham it up through this one-of-a-kind side show of a movie. Listen for Alan Sylvestris' melodramatic score and admire David Koepp and Martin Donovan's searing and witty dialogue and plotting. Like the scripts for a few other classic comedies -- Moonstruck and The Sunshine Boys come to mind -- Death Becomes Her is perfect. The fun is accompanied by substance: The script, direction, and performances ruthlessly depict narcissistic protagonists in a narcissistic universe. Director Zemeckis infuses this romp with deliciously ghoulish glee.
The movie is a powerful and hilarious satire on a culture obsessed with youth, good looks, body image, and self-absorption. Plastic surgery, eternal youth magic potions, disloyalty, and murderous selfishness are all mercilessly on display. While the obsessions are taken to absurdist extremes, its subjects are as current as ever -- this feels more like a reality show than satire. The movie unquestionably promotes a view that people this concerned with their appearances are to be disdained, but it also jokingly suggests that most of the wealthy and famous in New York and Hollywood are like this: well-preserved, immortal, and enjoying private life after death somewhere comfortable. It's a fantasy notion that will give families lots to talk about.
A private industry reading of a new stage musical adaptation of Death Becomes Her will be held in NYC this week, produced by Universal Theatrical Group. Based on the 1992 film, the work features a book by TV writer-producer Marco Pennette and music and lyrics by Julia Mattison and Noel Carey. Tony winner Christopher Gattelli (Newsies) is directing and choreographing.
During the 1980s, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infectionemerged as a leading cause of death in the United States (1). In1992, HIV infection became the number one cause of death among menaged 25-44 years. This report updates national trends in deathscaused by HIV infection for 1991 and 1992.
Data are from the National Vital Statistics System and wereobtained from death certificates filed in all 50 states and theDistrict of Columbia. Cause of death was reported by attendingphysicians, medical examiners, and coroners; demographiccharacteristics were recorded by funeral directors. Data for 1992are provisional estimates based on a 10% sample of deathcertificates (2); 1991 is the latest year for which final mortalitydata are available (3 ).
In 1992, an estimated 33,590 U.S. residents died from HIVinfection; of these, 2% were aged less than 25 years; 73%, 25-44years; and 25%, greater than or equal to 45 years. During 1992, HIVinfection became the eighth leading cause of death overall (up fromninth in 1991), accounting for 1.5% of all deaths, and the secondleading cause of death among persons aged 25-44 years (up fromthird in 1991) (16.2% of deaths). In 1992, HIV infection became theleading cause of death for men aged 25-44 years (up from second in1991) and the fourth leading cause of death for women in this agegroup (up from fifth in 1991) (19.9% and 7.3% of deaths,respectively) (Table_1).
Stratified by race, HIV infection was the leading cause ofdeath for black men aged 25-44 years during 1991 and 1992 (21.4%and 25.3% of deaths, respectively) and the second leading cause ofdeath (preceded by unintentional injuries) for white men in thatage group (17.8% in 1991 and 18.5% in 1992). HIV infection was thesecond leading cause of death for black women aged 25-44 years (upfrom third in 1991) in 1992 (12.1% in 1991 and 16.5% in 1992) andthe sixth leading cause of death for white women aged 25-44 yearsin 1991 and 1992 (3.4% in 1991 and 3.8% in 1992). The death ratefrom HIV infection in 1992 for persons aged 25-44 years was threetimes as high for black men (136.0 per 100,000) as for white men(42.1 per 100,000) and 12 times as high for black women (38.0 per100,000) as for white women (3.3 per 100,000).
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