Film Review: A Different Man (2024)
Summary
Rating: ★★★★
Genre: Thriller/Drama
UK Release Date: 4th October 2024
Directed by: Aaron Schimberg
Film Duration: 1 hour 52 minutes
Starring: Sebastian Stan, Adam Pearson, Renate Reinsve, Liana Runcie
Content Warnings: Sexual Content, Graphic Nudity, Language & Violence
Keywords: Thought-provoking, Gritty, Change, Regret, Societal Pressures of Normality
Image from IMDB
Review
If you had the opportunity to be what society deems normal, would you? Unfortunately, no matter how at peace you claim to be with yourself and your differences, the majority of people would answer yes.
A Different Man (2024) uses its 1 hour and 52 minute runtime to answer exactly this question; more specifically the opportunity to cure a facial deformity that protagonist Edward (Sebastian Stan) believes is the bane of his existence.
Edward, an aspiring actor who has a condition called ‘neurofibromatosis’ which can cause non-cancerous tumours to grow on nerve tissue, decides to take part in an experimental medical trial that drastically changes his appearance. However when he runs into the girl-that-got-away as his new self, he realises that the change was not needed to have the life he wanted. At the start of the film we see pre-transformation Edward meet his new neighbour, Ingrid (Renate Reinsve), a young conventionally attractive playwright who he strikes up a wholesome, if not slightly awkward, friendship with. When Edward undergoes his transformation, one that the practical effects department should be immensely proud of, he makes the decision to tell the head doctor from the medical trail that ‘Edward’ has died. A statement that Ingrid overhears.
A prolonged cut to black indicates a non-specific time jump, in which a very much alive but new-faced Edward has become a successful real estate agent. But when he sees Ingrid walking through town he cannot help but follow, stumbling into the open auditions for her new play and landing the role. Ingrid does not recognise Edward as the man she once knew, the one she has in fact written this play about, and pursues him romantically. All is going well until Oswald (Adam Pearson), a British eccentric who also has neurofibromatosis comes into rehearsal, prompted by the audition sign they forgot to take down. There is one shot in particular that alludes to how the rest of the plot will play out; Oswald walks out of frame, leaving Edward standing, watching, as Oswald goes Ingrid walks into frame to watch him leave, covering Edward.
Image from IMDB
Oswald gets closer with the crew of the play, offering insights into his experience of the condition. As Edward’s jealousy grows so does Oswald’s proximity to Ingrid. Before the play’s opening night Ingrid makes the creative decision to have Oswald play the main role, instead of Edward in a mask, unbeknownst to others, of his old face. This, paired with the overarching realisation that change was never necessary for Edward to have the life he wanted; the career, the girl, he becomes hysterical and attacks.
Without spoiling the ending, the third act of the film could definitely be described as a descent into madness. The pacing becomes out of rhythm with the previous 80 minutes but with the purpose of setting up the final line it can be excused; A close-up shot of Edward’s greying face while Oswald delivers the final blow: “Oh Edward, you haven’t changed at all.”.
Standout Quote or Moment: The impressively graphic scene where Edward starts to pull his facial skin off as the medical trail starts to work and he transforms.
Watch if: You are a fan of A24 films or want a slow, serious, philosophical watch.
Similar Films: Chained for Life (2018), The Substance (2024)
Last Impression: A gritty thriller, drama about the societal pressures of normality, overarching themes of regret and the ethics around poetic licence.
Written by Hazel Earthy