Review of The Double (2014) by Harry W — 26 May 2014

Mostly pleased with Richard Ayoade's role as director of the quirky comedy drama Submarine, The Double sounded like another chance to check out what he is all about as a film director.

Admittedly, Submarine was a film which simultaneously puzzled and fascinated me. The Double proved to be the exact same because it was superior to Submarine in my opinion while also inferior in a number of areas.

The areas where it is inferior are also some of its superior elements. Let's start with the handling of the plot. The story in The Double is an overloaded and ambitious story of surrealism and identity, but the actual question of what it is about still leaves me puzzled. The Double is harder to grasp than Submarine because it is a lot less down to earth and more difficult to mentally handle. Richard Ayoade proved in Submarine that he has a natural ability to create a film with such energy that it feels like it is of a strange universe, and he repeats that feat in The Double by stepping it up so that audiences are essentially put into a mental fight to the death with reality. But with a film like The Double, it is like fighting David Lynch. You cannot win, you simple have to sit back and let the inverse absorb you. But it is such a twisted and complicated universe that there is no way that anyone would ever be able to understand every aspect of it. The Double is a weird universe, almost Terry Gilliam-esq. It has the dystopian and mysterious feel of the future but the dilapidated appearance and dated technological characteristics of a story stuck in the past. The Double is both stuck in the future and the past at the same time, a double. This implies that everything in The Double means two things, that there is two answers to every question and that the world is split into two. The Double almost splits the idea of time and society down the middle and creates two, making it a film which is both awe inspiring and so twisted that it is distant. Depending on how much distortion from reality a viewer can handle, they may love of loathe The Double. I lie somewhere in the middle, admiring its ambition and it's dystopian universe while finding that its plot was a bit of an overkill with too much for me to honestly handle. I was able to handle and love nearly every element of the story in David Lynch's surreal masterpiece, but Richard Ayoade's was a little much for me. As the end of the story progressed closer the plot dynamics piled up on me more and more, and I honestly began to feel even a little claustrophobic as a response. I was thrown off by that but amazed at how the movie made me feel that way, so The Double gave me mixed feeling overall while it did please me mostly. I guess what in saying is that the story in The Double is a lot to take in, and a lot of people will not be up for the challenge. I wasn't able to handle it all.

But The Double is pleasing in essentially every other way.

The universe of The Double is terrific due to its darkness and slight touch of black comedy in its plot dynamics, and it is mapped out terrifically. Due to darkly atmospheric scenery and props, the entire film feels like it is in a universe sealed off from the rest of the world and burdened by the concept of time. It is all capture with innovative cinematography which follows a noir-ish style and reinforces the claustrophobia in the atmosphere and the utter darkness of it. The Double is an excellent visual experience which stands out for its innovative darkness, and when put against the backdrop of a classically styled and hauntingly surreal musical score, it ensures that The Double establishes its own iconic film style which is unforgettable. The Double is a key example of Richard Ayoade's visual ambition as a filmmaker, and it is his most innovative project to date.

And maintaining a lot of zany and twisted language which moves at a fast pace, The Double stays true to its source material and casts the absolute perfect actors in the parts.

Jesse Eisenberg's ambitious lead performance is one of his greatest to date. He flawlessly portrays two characters, one being a neurotic and one confident, and the two are easily separable on the basis of small physical actions and forms of voice articulation. It is amazing how believable he is in the two roles, and through his performances and a combination of Simon James' stoicism and awkwardness with James Simon's unflinching quick wit, he establishes multiple interesting figures who interact with the world in opposing ways. The incredible thing is the way that he interacts with himself as one character to another without problem. I know from experience the challenge of playing multiple characters at once and having to create a chemistry between them, but Jesse Eisenberg takes it on as no challenge whatsoever because he acts like he is both characters amazingly. Jesse Eisenberg creates two personas for The Double and gives double the strength of his usual performance which results in an excellent and invigorating effort which displays the kind of ambition that he has, and the endeavour of his talents as an actor.

Mia Wasikowska also has a lot of friendly appeal to her. She is a very beautiful woman and she has a charismatic charm to her which makes it easy to see just how her character Hannah becomes the product of Simon James' affections. She has a really beautiful smile which lights up the screen when she is one it. Her chemistry with Jesse Eisenberg is complex and admirable, and her line delivery has a lot of dedicated dramatic passion to it. Mia Wasikowska has a lot of entertaining charisma in The Double, and she makes a terrific casting decision for the lead.

Wallace Shawn also delivers a fine supporting performance, as does Sally Hawkins and Phyllis Somerville.

So although The Double can be rather overwhelming in its ambition, the performances of the cast, the visual style of the film and the twisted universe created by Richard Ayoade make it hard to look away.