The ‘Dead Ringers’ Series Adaptation That Combines Projects that came before

About the Author

Bari Wood is an American author of science fiction, crime and horror novels. He co-wrote Twins: Dead Ringers with Jack Geasland. Wood has written seven books in total and helped with David Cronenberg’s film Dead Ringers as well as the television series.

What is Dead ringers (2023) abOUT?

Elliott and Beverly Mantle (Rachel Weisz) are twins who are identical from head to toe. They became doctors because they wanted to help women through their pregnancies and develop new methods to help those who are infertile. They both wanted to open up a clinic of their own to help fund women’s reproductive research until it gets messy. 

Who is in Dead Ringers (2023)?

• Rachel Weisz 

• Rachel Weisz 

• Britne Oldford 

• Poppy Liu 

• Michael Chernus 

• Jennifer Ehle

• Emily Meade 

• Jeremy Shamos

What does the television series do better than the book?

The television series is a combination of David Cronenberg’s 1988 film starring Jeremy Irons and the book written by Wood and Geasland. First off, the television series chose to swap the gender of the twins as it would make more sense to have female gynecologists. There are three ways to assess the differences from the novel, to the film, to the television series. 

The novel spent 12 weeks on the New York Times Bestseller List and was an exploration of the bizarre lives and shocking deaths of twin doctors. They were bound together by more than brotherly love and damned together to a private hell of unspeakable obsessions, as per the synopsis on GoodReads. The book was written in the 70s and involved more sexual liberation, drug use and a deep analysis of twin psychology. 

The television series successfully swaps the gender of the twins to add another layer to the complexity of female reproductive rights. Who better perform testing procedures to see if women can fix infertility issues? The series does get heavy as the medical jargon carries the majority of the dialogue, but there are important conversations being had with women on behalf of all women. Every single aspect of womanhood is discussed and it’s much more than just sex. It highlights what it means to be a mother and what it means to be a woman struggling with infertility. 

How does this iteration Compare to David Cronenberg’s adaptation from 1988?

The beauty of this limited series is that it combines the best of the novel and the best of Cronenberg’s horror elements. The creator Alice Birch perfected this story written by Bari Wood because she kept all the important conversations that were shared between the twins. No matter how you identify, there are social issues that will always make you part of a certain conversation. Birch’s adaptation is dialogue-heavy, which almost drags down the series until some of the blood comes oozing out. 

In Cronenberg’s Dead Ringers, he cuts down on those conversations about sexual freedom and women’s reproductive rights, just to focus on a lovestruck relationship. It was more appealing in the 80s to have a psychological thriller focus more on love and sex than important conversations about bodies. However, Cronenberg is known for creating symbolism through his body horror to parallel those same issues. Sometimes words aren’t enough, and that’s why Cronenberg focuses on the physical horror of bodies than putting the mind through the wringer. 

Is Dead Ringers (2023) Worth the Watch?

After watching the series in the span of two days, there’s an appreciation for the dual performance by Rachel Weisz. While watching it, you will see two very different people, even though they are twins and played by the same person. Beverly is incredibly unique as the timid, authoritative and empathetic doctor, whereas Elliot is more assertive, messy, and adventurous. Weisz has incredible chemistry with herself and it’s definitely a sight to see. 

Not only is Weisz’s performance the main draw, but the downward spiral to that finale and the obstacles they face together are more than enough to hold you. It does run a little long with 10 episodes because there is so much information being exchanged between characters. It highlights everything there is to highlight about women and how they've struggled with motherhood. It may be an exhausting watch because of how much is said, but it is incredibly important because of what is being discussed. 

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