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Duplex

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Duplex (2003)

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Reviews Counted:105

Fresh:39

Rotten:66

Average Rating:5/10

Consensus: It was funnier when it was called Throw Momma From the Train.

Runtime: 1 hr 37 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Danny DeVito directs Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore in this devilish black comedy reminiscent of DeVito's THROW MOMMA FROM THE TRAIN and THE WAR OF THE ROSES. Alex Rose (Stiller) and Nancy... Danny DeVito directs Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore in this devilish black comedy reminiscent of DeVito's THROW MOMMA FROM THE TRAIN and THE WAR OF THE ROSES. Alex Rose (Stiller) and Nancy Kendricks (Barrymore) are a young, professional, New York couple in search of their dream home. When they finally find the perfect Brooklyn brownstone they are giddy with anticipation. The duplex is a dream come true, complete with multiple fireplaces, except for one thing: Mrs. Connelly (Eileen Essel), the cranky old lady who lives on the rent-controlled top floor. Assuming she is elderly and ill, they take the apartment but their hopes are quickly dashed when they realize that Mrs. Connelly is an energetic senior who enjoys watching her television at top volume day in and day out and rehearsing in a brass band. A writer, Alex, is attempting to finish his novel against a looming deadline. However, each day as he begins to write, he is interrupted by Mrs. Connelly's numerous demands and requests and what begins as a nuisance quickly escalates into an all-out war. When Nancy loses her job and the pair are trapped at home together with Mrs. Connelly, their rage turns to homicidal fantasy as they plot ways to get rid of their no-good neighbor. Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore are pitch perfect as a good-natured couple who, like most DeVito characters, are driven by rage to do very bad things. [More]

Starring: Drew Barrymore, Ben Stiller, Eileen Essell, Harvey Fierstein

Starring: Drew Barrymore, Ben Stiller, Eileen Essell, Harvey Fierstein, Justin Theroux, Robert Wisdom, James Remar

Director: Danny DeVito

Director: Danny DeVito
Screenwriter: Larry Doyle, John Hamburg
Producer: Stuart Cornfeld, Nancy Juvonen, Drew Barrymore, Ben Stiller
Studio: Miramax Films

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Reviews for Duplex

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1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

The material is capably handled by director DeVito and lifted by Stiller, a dab hand at physical comedy who also exhibits some onscreen chemistry with Barrymore.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
01/26/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Despite confident direction and performances, it rarely lifts itself above the ordinary.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
08/12/08
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
01/07/09
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

There's a nice dark comedy in this script that's flattened by DeVito's direction, which continually opts for manic goofiness and cruel vulgarity.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
02/12/04
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

Barrymore wanders through scenes as if she has trouble remembering what day it is.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
04/13/04
Stella Papamichael
Stella Papamichael
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Danny DeVito is one of the most underrated directors of our time.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment 1 Comment
12/06/05
Kevin Carr
Kevin Carr
Film Threat

This is not the tribute to The Ladykillers it wants to be, but the leads are likable -- and try hard.

Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor | comment Comment
09/26/03
Christian Science Monitor
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Rent-controlled or not, the price of admission just ain't worth it this time.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
09/26/03
E! Online
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch | comment Comment
09/27/03
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
09/28/03
Boston Phoenix
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Sometimes Mr. DeVito has gone too far, pushing black humor unnervingly close to the abyss of ultimate darkness. But the unpleasantness in Duplex is handled deftly enough to keep the audience's queasiness from turning into disgust.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
09/25/03
A.O. Scott
A.O. Scott
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Hard as it is to care about these homicidal homemakers, it is harder still to laugh at them.

Full Review Source: Movie Gazette | comment Comment
04/30/04
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Movie Gazette

Duplex is a disaster. Just about everything in it is wrong.

Full Review Source: San Diego Union-Tribune | comment Comment
09/26/03
Arthur Salm
Arthur Salm
San Diego Union-Tribune

Tasteless, humorless, bland, boring.

Full Review Source: Tooele Transcript-Bulletin (Utah) | comment Comment
09/26/03
Audrey Rock-Richardson
Audrey Rock-Richardson
Tooele Transcript-Bulletin (Utah)

Stiller is the only thing Duplex has going for it, but often he's enough.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
09/25/03
Bill Muller
Bill Muller
Arizona Republic

The interplay between Stiller, Barrymore, and the elderly Essel is what makes Duplex hum perfectly at times.

Full Review Source: Modamag.com | comment Comment
10/10/03
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
Modamag.com

Eileen Essel is the real find here, as she manages to play the sweetest but most overbearing old woman you can imagine.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
09/24/03
Brian Webster
Brian Webster
Apollo Guide

Funny despite rickety gags.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
09/26/03
Carla Meyer
Carla Meyer
San Francisco Chronicle

Wait to watch this at home so you can use the 'clapper' to turn the movie off when you get to the parts you've seen before... when it was Throw Momma From The Train.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
09/26/03
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

There's something missing.

Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press | comment Comment
09/26/03
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
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