In the movie "Duplex", the actors come across a typical "apartment" question: what if an old woman with a terrible character poisons life in the house of your dreams? The main characters tried to solve the problem by non-standard methods. But they did not even suspect that the winner would be the very grandmother, who from the very beginning seemed to be an ordinary “God's dandelion”.
The creators of the picture and a short plot
"Duplex" is a film directed by the famous comedian Danny De Vito. Shorty Danny has more than a hundred movie roles. The viewer knows the artist from the films “Flying Over the Cuckoo's Nest”, “The Pearl of the Nile” and “Batman Returns”.
However, in 1985, De Vito made his debut as a director, filming several episodes for the science fiction series Amazing Stories. Then there was a whole series of comedies shot by the actor - “Throw Mother Off the Train”, “Rose War”, etc. In 2003, another work by De Vito called “Duplex” was released. Actors D. Barrymore and B. Stiller, who played the main roles in the project, also acted as its producers.
The plot of the comedy is more than original. A young married couple enters the house, which is designed for two families and is equipped with separate entrances. Otherwise, such residential facilities are called "duplex". Only here with a neighbor Alex and Nancy were unlucky. According to the plot, a completely unbearable old woman lives on the second floor of their house. Whatever the young people did: they tried to survive it in improvised ways, they hired a killer, but to no avail. Only in the final it turns out that the granny is not as simple as it seems at first glance.
Duplex: actors. Ben Stiller as Alex Rose
Ben Stiller is the star of American comedies. This fate was very predictable for Ben, because his parents also devoted their whole lives to this difficult craft of comedic actors.
Stiller's debut on the big screen was very successful. He immediately got to the set to Steven Spielberg himself, having received a role in the drama "Empire of the Sun." However, Stiller was less fortunate next, he only got into second-rate films. Then Ben decided to take matters into his own hands and directed the comedy Reality Bites with Ethan Hawke and Winona Ryder. The newly-minted director also did not forget to take the role. Also, Stiller played a major role in the series of adventure films "Night at the Museum."
In the movie "Duplex", the actors Stiller and Barrymore played the newlyweds who decided to "twist the nest" in one of the lovely houses of Brooklyn. They were not even aware that they would fall for the bait of swindlers, the main instigator of which would be old lady Mrs. Connelly.
D. Barrymore as Nancy
Drew Barrymore has been acting in films since infancy: at 11 months old, the girl was brought by her parents to the set of the commercial. For the Barrymore family, this was quite normal, because Drew belongs to an entire acting dynasty: her grandfather was a silent movie star, and her uncle played on Broadway.
In 1982, at the age of 7, Drew starred in Steven Spielberg's fantastic alien drama. After such a debut, the girl woke up famous. After a while, Drew began to demonstrate her rebellious disposition and chose very non-standard projects: the erotic thriller “Poison Ivy”, the horror film “Wax Museum 2” and other similar projects.
The next surge in popularity came in the late 90s, when the action movie “Batman Forever” with the participation of Barrymore, as well as “Charlie's Angels” appeared on the screens, where Drew appeared in the company of Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu.
Now Drew is filming more in calm melodramas. The actress was married three times. Recently, there are rumors that Barrymore intends to divorce her third husband, despite the fact that they have two daughters.
A. Essel as Mrs. Connelly
British actress Eileen Essel was invited to the black comedy "Duplex" for the role of a dodgy granny - Mrs. Connelly.
Mrs. Connelly in the story is on the second floor of the house where Alex and Nancy live. At first, the young couple think that the old woman is very nice. But over time, they realize that they simply could not find the worst neighborhood for themselves. Driven to the extreme, Alex and Nancy decide to hire a hitman to eliminate his neighbor. What was their surprise when Mrs. Connelly was able to neutralize the assassin with a sea harpoon.
In the finale, it turns out that Mrs. Connelly did all this on purpose: her nephew worked as a realtor and moved naive fellows into the house, and the granny's task was to survive them as quickly as possible and force them to sell the house for cheap. Then a new pair was populated on the first floor, and it all started again.
Other role performers
"Duplex" is a film in which the American playwright Harvey Firestein also starred. He got the role of realtor and nephew of Mrs. Connelly. Harvey has many awards for participating in theatrical and Broadway productions. In the movie, he appeared in the films "Mrs. Doutfire" and "Independence Day."
The role of the unlucky killer was played by James Remar. Remar participated in many feature films, but they were not very popular. But the artist is well known for the series Sex and the City, Dexter and Beyond.