Welcome back to Top Five Tuesday! In celebration of the hotly anticipated Us coming to the Oriental Theatre (special screening this Thursday, and opening in full on Friday), I knew I wanted to celebrate this via Top Five Tuesday somehow. Peele’s cinematic debut Get Out absolutely blew me away – perfectly balancing humor, thrills, and social commentary into a beautiful horror medley. Plus, the memes:
Our humble entry into the Get Out meme canon.
I considered tackling the top five black horror films/black horror filmmakers, but considering that Horror Noire is coming to our theater for two very special screenings next week, I will defer to the experts and strongly encourage you to join me at one (or both!) of those screenings. Instead, I will delve into the content of Us itself, tackling...
THE TOP FIVE MOVIE DOPPELGÄNGERS!
1. Vertigo
(dir. Alfred Hitchcock | USA | 1958)
Let’s get it started with the ne plus ultra of doppelgänger cinema, Hitchcock’s queasily confessional Vertigo. Being spurned by Grace Kelly (purely in a professional sense) would probably prove traumatic to the very best of us, but the lengths to which life went on to reflect Hitch’s art has made subsequent rewatches of this unimpeachable classic tough to stomach.
2. The Double Life of Veronique
(dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski | France/Poland/Norway | 1991)
Kieślowski’s entry into the doppelgänger oeuvre, like all of his work, defies easy categorization - they withstand multiple viewings, taking on new hues, shapes, and dimensions as you grow up alongside them. His catalog is evergreen, perhaps none moreso than Veronique. It is possible that Kieślowski’s work is not for you; but if it is, you will find resonant viewing experiences that will leave your soul vibrating like a tuning fork. As a chaser to that massive shot of pretension I just served you, enjoy these images of Krzyszstof as Frozen’s Kristoff.
Recast Frozen 2, you cowards
3. Enemy
(dir. Denis Villeneuve | Canada/Spain | 2013)
While Denis Villeneuve has gone onto much acclaim and fanboy admiration for his work in the sci-fi realm with the one-two punch of Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, but his very best film for my money? The tale of two Gyllenhaals that is Enemy. A non-descript college professor watches a movie only to discover a background actor who looks exactly like himself, sending both men on a deceit-ridden collision course. It also houses what for my money, is one of the best endings of the 21st century.
You might even say that Enemy is part of a Denis Grand Slam:
4. Possession
(dir. Andrzej Żuławski | France/West Germany | 1981)
If possible, I would include Żuławski’s masterpiece on every top five (trust me, I tried to find a way to fit it in the column about Missed Free Throw bits from movies), but it has finally found fertile ground in which to take purchase on our list of classic doppelgängers. Possession kind of defies categorization, but if I had to take a stab at its intersecting fandoms, it would look like this:
5. Femme Fatale
(dir. Brian De Palma | France | 2002)
There are perhaps more worthy selections of our final slot, but what can I say? Femme Fatale may be trash (a quick browse of its imdb keyword this all but confirms this), but it is exquisite trash. De Palma has trafficked in the realm of the double throughout his storied filmography, be it Obsessed or Body Double. But I choose Femme Fatale for one a simple reason: I ride for Rebecca Romijn now and forever (see tweet below).
BONUS QUESTION: Do you think she’s ever stopped someone from ordering salad at a restaurant, only for them to reply “Romijn, let us!” On that horrible note, we’ll see you next week!
Posted by: Tom Fuchs