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The Dead Girl

Too bad she's a feminist
By TOM MEEK  |  March 21, 2007
2.5 2.5 Stars

VIDEO: Watch the trailer for The Dead Girl.

Wrapping together several shorts linked by a common theme and calling it a feature seems to be the trend du jour in indie filmmaking — take Babel, or Quentin Tarantino in Four Rooms, Sin City, and the upcoming Grindhouse. Here the attempt is admirable, often chilling, as the title entity crops up in five variations, starting with its discovery in a field. A young forensics student (Rose Byrne) believes the body to be her missing sister, a sociopath (Nick Searcy) is suspected of the heinous act, and, of course, almost to the point of overkill, the young woman herself appears in the flesh, a fast-living prostitute (Brittany Murphy) on her way to see her daughter for a birthday celebration. Murphy and most of the ensemble turn in fine work; too bad director Karen Moncrieff exploits the succession of broken lives as a feminist diatribe.
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  Topics: Reviews , Quentin Tarantino, Brittany Murphy, Rose Byrne
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