Death Becomes Her (M) PRESENTED IN 35MM FILM

Death Becomes Her (M, 1992) Presented in 35mm Film by The Revival House Perth

When vain, aging actress Madeline Ashford (Meryl Streep) discovers that her former best friend Helen Sharp (Goldie Hawn) has found love and happiness with Madeline's ex-husband Ernest (Bruce Willis), her jealousy consumes her. To regain Ernest's affection, Madeline seeks out a mysterious woman named Lisle Von Rhuman (Isabella Rossellini) who offers her an elixir of eternal youth and beauty. The potion works spectacularly—Madeline becomes stunningly beautiful and ageless—but the cost is far higher than she imagined. When Helen learns of Madeline's transformation, she too demands the elixir, leading both women into a twisted spiral of immortality that comes with grotesque consequences. As neither woman can age or die, their bodies begin deteriorating despite their perfect appearances, forcing them to hide horrific disfigurement beneath increasingly elaborate costumes and makeup.

Director Robert Zemeckis crafts a darkly comic exploration of vanity, aging, and the destructive nature of female competition. The 1992 film uses cutting-edge special effects to create increasingly grotesque imagery as both women's bodies decay beneath their preserved beauty—a visual metaphor for the hollowness of pursuing eternal youth at any cost. Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn deliver career-highlight performances, making their characters' desperation both comedic and tragic, while Bruce Willis brings genuine pathos to Ernest, caught between two women destroying themselves and each other. The film's satire of beauty culture and female rivalry remains sharp and relevant, while the spectacular visual effects ensure the film never loses its sense of dark humor. It's a film that celebrates aging as natural while mocking the industries that profit from our fear of it.

Original format and audio experience of this film faithfully reproduced by The Revival House. Presented in 35mm film unless noted otherwise.

When: Sunday, August 2nd at 4:15PM
Where: The Revival House at the Como Theatre
Rating: M (Low level violence, Adult themes)