Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- paranoid
- eerie
- lurid
- late night horror viewing
- double feature with psycho
What critics said
Critics broadly praised De Palma's stylish Hitchcock homage, performances, split-screen technique, and Bernard Herrmann-inspired score, while some found the script weak or the tonal intentions uncertain.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
De Palma uses split-screen compositions to align Grace's investigation with events unfolding elsewhere and intensify voyeuristic tension.
Danielle and Dominique's intertwined identities make the murder mystery inseparable from mental disintegration.
The film openly draws on Hitchcock's suspense grammar while asserting De Palma's own split-screen, exploitation-inflected style.
Reporter Grace observes the neighboring apartment and turns a witnessed killing into a private investigation after police dismiss her.
Films like Sisters, and why
Psycho
psychological horror, voyeurism, split-screen suspense, and explicit Hitchcock influence
Repulsion
psychological breakdown, apartment-bound dread, and disturbing female subjectivity
Dressed to Kill
stylized neo-noir suspense, unreliable perception, and elaborate visual formalism
The Tenant
psychological mystery, voyeuristic investigation, and Hitchcockian suspense mechanics
Movie Details
- Director
- Brian De Palma
- Release Date
- 1973-03-26
- Runtime
- 93 min
- Rating
- 6.7 / 10 (461)
Cast
- Margot Kidder
- Jennifer Salt
- Charles Durning
- William Finley
- Lisle Wilson
- Barnard Hughes
- Mary Davenport
- Dolph Sweet
- Olympia Dukakis
- Catherine Gaffigan
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- HBO Max Amazon Channel, HBO Max
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Sisters about?
- A reporter's eyewitness account of murder pulls her into a lurid maze of fractured identity, voyeurism, and Hitchcockian terror.
- What is Sisters like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Sisters as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Sisters violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Sisters as graphic.
- What did critics think of Sisters?
- Critics broadly praised De Palma's stylish Hitchcock homage, performances, split-screen technique, and Bernard Herrmann-inspired score, while some found the script weak or the tonal intentions uncertain.
- Which films are like Sisters?
- Films with a similar feel include Psycho, Repulsion, Dressed to Kill, and The Tenant.
- How long is Sisters?
- Sisters runs 93 minutes.
- Where can I watch Sisters?
- In United States, Sisters streams on HBO Max Amazon Channel, HBO Max.
