After a sharp, smartly and amusingly satirical first act, "Death Becomes Her" takes a dive and never recovers (and the hastily-refilmed ending certainly doesn't help; it's too transparently rushed). After two female rivals have each drunk a potion that will keep them young forever, they are killed and come back as the living dead...and continue to primp and fuss like pageant contestants. Bruce Willis plays a genial doctor who gets caught in the middle, and while Bruce is surprisingly adept at playing the milquetoast, it's a completely thankless part (he just stands there reacting, his mouth open in surprise). The picture does look good--too good. It's overproduced and yet doesn't flow with a smooth continuity (the way slick, expensive movies often do). Instead, the film is jumbled and frenetic, and doesn't seem to have a point. However, the first 45 minutes are a hoot, and in these early scenes Meryl Streep does some high comedy worth seeing. A mixed-bag. **1/2 from ****
Review of Death Becomes Her
