Duplex (2003)

It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

Duplex (2003): Dir: Danny De Vito / Cast: Ben Stiller, Drew Barrymore, Eileen Essel, Justin Theroux, Harvey Fierstein: Humor in a Danny De Vito film deals with behavior defects until one factor hits fatality as happened in Matilda and Death to Smoochy. Title suggests collaboration as married couple Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore move into an apartment where the upstairs tenant makes life miserable. Stiller tries to finish a novel but old Mrs. Connelly has him running errands, fixing pipes, and killing a mouse, which eventually leads to the loss of his job. Barrymore also suffer a job loss when wrong information ends up on a disc. They decide to kill her in various ways including the flu, tampering with her duplex, and eventually a hit-man. Very simple, repetitious and unpleasant throughout. De Vito has moments of fine comic timing but the humour is an acquired taste. Stiller and Barrymore are a fine duo but here they surrender to mean spirited writing where viewers will likely sympathize as oppose to laugh. Eileen Essel as Mrs. Connelly is a one note hag who presents a sweet old lady but the reality is something different. Justin Theroux appears as Stiller's friend in publishing. De Vito's films often contain dark humour but in this case the comedy is completely lost due to its ugliness. It regards co-existing with others even if the screenplay is nonexistent. Score: 4 / 10

This is a slapstick comedy starring Ben Stiller as Alex Rose and Drew Barrymoore as Nancy Kendricks. They play a young couple who had just moved into a duplex in Brooklyn - a home of their dreams. However, the elderly Mrs. Connelly (Eileen Essell) lives upstairs and won't move out, despite Alex and Nancy desperately trying to convince her to leave. Soon, Mrs. Connelly makes life miserable for them.The script of the movie seems funny, but the movie is filmed in a way that you really end up feeling sorry for Alex and Nancy and having hostility towards Mrs. Connelly. Though supposed to be a nice little old lady, she was portrayed in a way that generated no audience sympathy (at least for me). She was an annoying and conniving little witch, and despicable, too, were all those characters who stood on her side. Also, the ending sucked, adding salt to the wound.The acting was OK, but didn't make up for the otherwise forgettable movie.Grade D-

April 2010 was the month where I decided to look back at movies I have already watched, and maybe rent them so I can catch the full experience.....again. Surprisingly I came across Duplex and I quickly thought about the fun I had during this movie so I rented it. Ben Stiller is portraying Alex Rose and Drew Barrymore is portraying Nancy Kendricks, both whom are married and live with an old lady from hell that make their lives not livable. Ben Stiller has the best role in this film because his role, Alex Rose, is nothing but funny and at times you can die laughing. He is the most funniest person in this film and people who are saying that the old lady is funnier than him, well my answer to them is WRONG! Drew Barrymore is in her first "funny" role ever and in this film she mostly succeeds with her so called comical genius. She and Ben stiller are probably one of the funniest pair in film mainly because they share the same enemy: Mrs. Connelly, played by Eileen Essell. At the beginning of the film as you are introduced to Mrs. Connelly, you'll think what can this old sweet fart do? Can she even hurt a fly? Well, as the movie progresses you will probably think of ways to kill that sweet little devil for reasons which will drive your mind crazy. The reason why she can't make me laugh is that she is too old and serious. Eileen Essell would've had a bad time dealing with herself on the set of Duplex. At times you feel sympathy for the two couples who are constantly being annoyed by the old lady and funnily, you develop that sympathy for the old lady. The film's plot is silly and old people should not take offense just because their kind is being exterminated. Danny Devito has done a good job of making this dark and funny film which he only could create. I was actually surprised that he has directed the film because wouldn't he be too short to direct it.Alex Rose and Nancy Kendricks 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, 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...If you think this film will be sweet look at what they do to the old lady as the couple hire hit men to assassinate the old lady, buy a gun and plan to shoot her themselves, they even fantasize about killing by kicking her down the stairs, throwing her into a river, bulging her eyes out, etc. The film will appeal to audiences young and alike and everyone will have a good time watching an old lady annoying a couple. P.s. The ending was "WTF!" P.P.s To read more reviews, Star Trek, me myself and Irene, etc, click my name. 6.5/10 - Laugh out loud funny.

Though it's only six years old I don't recall this being released in England or it it was I certainly didn't hear of it. It was screened in the just-before-midnight slot on television last night so I figured I'd watch the first couple of reels and then switch channels. In the event I watched it right through. The plot was not exactly new-minted and I can take or leave the two leads but while it was far from unforgettable it was interesting enough to entertain for one viewing. It's quite possible that the Production team had seen Tatie Danielle and commissioned an English-speaking semi rip-off but there's nothing too much wrong with that, a good four-fifths of the Multiplex audience seldom if ever watch anything with subtitles so it is, in effect, a whole new audience. Most of the gags work, the performances are up to snuff and ultimately it's fairly painless.