Twin Sisters
Picture: B-
Sound: B- Extras: D Film: B
Nominated for the Best Foreign Film Academy Award as the
Nederlands entry, Ben Sombogaart’s Twin Sisters (De Tweeling,
2003) is a sad, powerful film about how the title characters are split when
they are very, very young as their extended families exploit them after the
deaths of their parents. One is refused
school so she can essentially be a slave on a farm, while the other goes to the
Nederlands with a wealthy family that will quickly become Pro-Nazi. This will affect her opinion for the worse.
They were six when separated, young adults when World War
II hits and this is all in flashback as they meet for the last time as very old
women. The film does not flinch much
from fascism, anti-Semitism and an amazing hatred of women, particularly in
lower socioeconomic classes. Add
various cast systems in Europe, especially at the time and you can imagine this
film offers all kinds of fascinating moments of things that need to be said and
are not spoken enough. Offering some
surprises, which this critic will conceal, Twin Sisters is always
interesting and very well acted.
The anamorphically enhanced 1.85 X 1 image is looking
pretty good, as shot by cinematographer Piotr Kukla, N.S.C. without being
overly stylized. The key is that this
looks real and of its time for the most part, though not up there with the
likes of Remains Of The Day.
Still, it is a professional-looking production. The Dolby Digital 5.1 Dutch track is not bad
either, with a decent score by Fons Merkies that does not interfere with the
narrative. There are no extras, but it
is definitely worth a look.
- Nicholas Sheffo
