Review of The Double (2014) by Leon B — 07 Aug 2014

Very weird indeed. Director Richard Ayoade experiments by being abstract and unique with 'The Double'. The whole film is littered with darkness due to the setting either being a dreary, windowless office or at night-time. Almost prison like. I was also unnerved by the fact that there was no indication of when and where the story was taking place. Clearly done on purpose, maybe to accentuate the feeling of invisibility, the notion of being trapped or the bleak lifestyle of our lead. Filled with unorthodox directing techniques and is arguably very artistic but the peculiar tone and emotionally complicated storyline did not hold my attention throughout. Much like the main character, the movie positioned me in a bland, monotonous situation which was most likely going nowhere exciting. Props to Jesse Eisenberg who plays an intriguing dual-role and admittedly the scenes of the 'doubles' conflicting with each other are interesting in demonstrating the contrast of personalities.

I am not at liberty to conclude that this is bad outright but I just didn't get it for the most part. This one has to be put down to individual taste.