Sundance 2022 — Film #7
A genre-swerving ride reminiscent of Yorgos Lanthimos, Dual mirrors many of his techniques, but unfortunately, fails to mirror any of the hair-rising chill Lanthimos has mastered to perfection. Its premise is as simple as it is complicated: Sarah, a young woman who is diagnosed with terminal illness, commissions a cloned version of herself who will keep her family company once she has passed away—at least that’s the plan. When she suddenly recovers and isn’t in danger of dying any time soon, however, her double has already created her own life, refusing to be decommissioned. In this dystopian world, the two must then duel to the death.
With Dual, writer-director Riley Stearns creates a movie that deviates from one…