Sisters
Directed by Brian De Palma
Written by Brian De Palma and Louisa Rose; story by De Palma
1972/US
IMDb page
First viewing/Amazon Prime rental
One of 1,000 Greatest Horror Films on theyshootzombies.com
Crazy Woman: Did you know that the germs can come through the wires? I never call and I *never* answer. It’s a good way to get sick. Very, very sick… That’s how I got so sick! SOMEONE CALLED ME ON THE TELEPHONE!
Brian De Palma cleverly one-ups several classic Hitchcock thrillers in the blood and gore department to the sounds of Bernard Herrmann’s screechy score..
The setting is New York City. Danielle Breton (Margot Kidder) is a young model participating in a TV game show called “Peeping Tom”. The contestants have to guess what Philip, a young man from the audience, will do when she starts to remove her clothing. After the shoot is over, Danielle approaches Philip and says she doesn’t want to be alone. Her ex-husband has been stalking her. The approach turns into a night at Danielle’s apartment. She tells Phillip that tomorrow is her and her twin sister Dominique’s birthday.
Philip goes out in the morning to surprise Danielle with a birthday cake. He is in for a surprise of his own when he returns.
Newspaper reporter Grace Collier lives in an opposing flat. She sees Philip’s bloody demise from her window and calls the cops. When they get there, they find no trace of evidence. The police aren’t crazy about Grace in the first place because her main beat seems to be following cases of brutality.
But Grace is determined and hires a private detective (Charles Durning). This leads the two on a trail that takes them to Quebec and unknown further terrors.
De Palma employs references to Psycho (1960), Rear Window (1954) and Rope (1948) in this film but it is far gorier than anything the Master ever attempted. There is a fair amount of body horror to be had as well. A truly scary movie that kept my attention all the way through. Recommended to fans of psychological or body horror.
