Get the MovieNight app
Add it to your home screen — faster & full screen
Get the MovieNight app
Add it to your home screen — faster & full screen
Universal Pictures
Not part of a collection.
Twins! One who loves... one who loves to Kill!
A sister and her disturbed twin are implicated in a murder and a police detective must figure out which one's the killer.
CinemaSerf
Jul 7, 2022 · via TMDB
This is one of those films that you really have to pay close attention to - otherwise you can miss the nuances and menace created by the super performance from Olivia de Havilland - who plays two twins - in this whodunit with lots of twists. When "Dr. Petralta" is found stabbed through his heart - witnesses swear to policeman Thomas Mitchell ("Lt. Stevenson") that they saw "Ruth" leave his apartment moments after the grizzly deed was supposed to have been committed. Upon further investigation, however, he discovers that "Ruth" has a cast iron alibi! She also has a twin sister "Terry", and so proving who did what to whom - they both, naturally, deny any involvement - is nigh on impossible. That is, until scientist "Dr. Elliott" (Lew Ayes) who specialises in the behaviour of twins starts to study the pair and slowly begins to discover their secrets. I struggle to think of a better role for the star, she is clever and evil, calculating and cunning in her portrayal and whilst there is little doubt that one of them "did it" - it takes it's time to prove which one did - and I found the trails of breadcrumbs left for the audience made for a compelling thriller as it becomes quite clear that one sister is more than willing to throw the other under the bus!
John Chard
Nov 2, 2013 · via TMDB
Lemon Drops and Dopplegangers. The Dark Mirror is directed by Robert Siodmak and adapted to screenplay by Nunnally Johnson from a story by Vladimir Pozner. It stars Olivia de Havilland, Lew Ayres, Thomas Mitchell, Richard Long and Charles Evans. Music is by Dimitri Tiomkin and cinematography by Milton Krasner. A man appears to have been murdered by one of the identical twin Collins sisters, but both of whom have an alibi. The police and the psychiatrist have their work cut out... Straight out of the corner of postwar Hollywood that began to take fascination with mental illness, The Dark Mirror triumphs more as a technical exercise than as anything resembling thought provoking analysis. The simplistic Freudian elements aside, film is impressively mounted and performed by Siodmak and de Havilland respectively. Story follows the trajectory of a cat-and-mouse game, with the makers nicely putting us the viewers into the same struggle the authorities have in sussing out which sister is the damaged killer. Siodmak's (The Spiral Staircase) attention to detail and grasp of mood setting really lifts the piece to greater heights. Aided by the considerable photographic skills of Krasner (The Set-Up), Siodmak creates a world of psychological disturbance, a place aligned with suspense and symbolism. Right from the doozy of an opening scene to the denouement, Siodmak manages to keep the contrivances to the rear of the play and let de Havilland and the visual textures be the prime focus. The effects work is very good, with de Havilland having to quite often play off against herself. Sure in today's age of High Definition et al, you don't have to stretch your viewing experience to see how the effects were done, but why would you? Just enjoy de Havillland's riveting performances in the dual roles (see also her excellence in The Snake Pit two years later), her skillful little subtleties as she deftly plays out the respective psychological traits of sibling rivalry gone astray. Is it a gimmick movie? Well no not really, it's honest about what it wants to achieve in terms of psychiatric observations and treatments. Yet lesser lights than Siodmak, Krasner and de Havilland would have struggled to make it work, especially as the romance angle in the screenplay nearly derails the requisite mood come the finale. Thankfully, in spite of some obvious negatives, it's still well worthy of viewing investment. 7/10
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
Olivia de Havilland
Terry Collins / Ruth Collins
Lew Ayres
Scott Elliott
Thomas Mitchell
Lieutenant Stevenson
Richard Long
Rusty
Charles Evans
Girard
Garry Owen
Franklin
Lela Bliss
Mrs. Didriksen
Lester Allen
George Benson
Bess Flowers
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
Ida Moore
Mrs. O'Brien (uncredited)
Jack Gargan
Waiter (uncredited)
William Halligan
Sergeant Temple (uncredited)
Charles McAvoy
O'Brien (uncredited)
Jack Cheatham
Policeman (uncredited)
Ralph Peters
Dumb Cop (uncredited)
Lane Chandler
Intern (uncredited)
Milton Krasner
Director of Photography
Irene Sharaff
Costume Design
Robert Siodmak
Director
Nunnally Johnson
Producer
Frank Skinner
Music
Dimitri Tiomkin
Original Music Composer
Vladimir Pozner
Original Story
Nunnally Johnson
Writer
Where's The Colonel
Frank
High and Low
Vertigo
Double Indemnity
M
The Third Man
The Night of the Hunter
The Hunt for Tony Blair
Touch of Evil
Out of the Past
The Maltese Falcon
Strangers on a Train
White Heat
Elevator to the Gallows
The Big Sleep
Gilda
Shadow of a Doubt
Key Largo
Cape Fear
Scarface
Dark Passage
The Lady from Shanghai
The Big Clock
Detour
The Naked City
The Stranger
Thieves' Highway
Black Gravel
One Shoe Makes it Murder
Crime Wave
The Long Arm
Alphaville
Dead Reckoning
Possessed
Open Secret
The Seventh Juror
Niagara
Brighton Rock
Dementia
Sorry, Wrong Number
Somewhere in the Night
The Long Memory
The Blue Dahlia
They Made Me a Fugitive
Nowhere to Go
The Big Steal
The Hand of Destiny
Tight Spot
Secret Beyond the Door
Cry Terror!
Vampire Zombies...from Space!
The Seventh Victim
The Green Glove
Dead Again
Where Danger Lives
Andha Naal
Hunt the Man Down
La muerte camina en la lluvia
Journey into Fear
Cry Wolf
Governance
Black Angel
Daybreak
Storm Fear
The Price of Fear
Decoy
I Was a Shoplifter
Cut Bank
Lightning Strikes Twice
A Dangerous Profession
I Was a Communist for the FBI
My Gun Is Quick
The Sleeping Tiger
Undercover Girl
Black Crown
The Great Gatsby
Demon Squad: Tooth and Claw
Real
Parole, Inc.
Cry Baby Lane
The Story of Molly X
The Hot Month of August
The Crimson Key
4 O'Clock
Auxiliary Man
Detektive Thumb and The Infinity House
The Room
Lá em cima do piano
City Center
The Bastard Son
Dryland
Inkspot
Crime Without Witness
Joker's Wild
The Year was 1928
Peeping Tom
Shadow of a Doubt
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
The Naked City
Sapphire
Foreign Correspondent
The Scarlet Claw
The Night Stalker
D.O.A.
The Thirty Nine Steps
Night Has a Thousand Eyes
23 Paces to Baker Street
My Name Is Julia Ross
Crossfire
The Night Strangler
The Glass Key
Z
The Invitation
Race with the Devil
The Lady Vanishes
Mermaid Down
The Mean Season
A Blueprint for Murder
Maniac
The Jester
Lady in the Lake
The Mirror Crack'd
Eye of the Devil
Black Angel
The Locals
Text
Pyewacket
What's the Matter with Helen?
Murder!
The Shed
The Apology
Oct 18, 1946
© 2025-2026 MovieNight. All rights reserved.
Versus
Sign in to play →
Dastoor
1991
Fluidity
2019
Sign in to vote
Battle your watched movies head-to-head
Community Top Movies
Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
The Dark Knight
2008 · 14 wins
Halloween
1978 · 13 wins
Final Destination
2000 · 12 wins
Halloween II
1981 · 11 wins
Trivia
Leaderboard →Playing as a guest — sign in to save your score and rank on the leaderboard.
Movie Trivia
Guess the movie from a clue — tagline, plot, cast and more. Pick from four posters.
What movie experience do you prefer?
What is your favorite movie genre?
Versus
Sign in to play →
Dastoor
1991
Fluidity
2019
Sign in to vote
Battle your watched movies head-to-head
Community Top Movies
Evil Dead II
1987 · 14 wins
The Dark Knight
2008 · 14 wins
Halloween
1978 · 13 wins
Final Destination
2000 · 12 wins
Halloween II
1981 · 11 wins
Trivia
Leaderboard →Playing as a guest — sign in to save your score and rank on the leaderboard.
Movie Trivia
Guess the movie from a clue — tagline, plot, cast and more. Pick from four posters.
What movie experience do you prefer?
What is your favorite movie genre?
We use essential cookies to run MovieNight, plus analytics (Google Analytics) and advertising (Google AdSense) cookies. By continuing to browse, you agree to this — or click No and we won't. See our Terms & Privacy Policy to learn more.