The Double Review
The Double is Richard Ayoade’s newest offering to the big screen and is based on the novella of the same name by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Mind-bending doesn’t even begin to cover it.
Lost, shy and uncomfortable; Simon James (Jesse Eisenberg) is a socially awkward man. Timid and forgettable, he doesn’t really appear on anyone’s radar. James Simon (also Eisenberg) however, may be Simon’s physical double but his exact opposite personality wise. He is everything Simon wishes he could be; confident, out-going, good with the ladies and, above all, noticed. Testament to the fact that Simon is so inconspicuous in his world, no one even notices the striking similarity in Simon and James’ looks.
From being taken under James’ wing to coax him out of his shell to being totally usurped by him in all aspects of his life, Simon is driven to the edge.
This darkened version of reality that the whole story lives in is enough on its own to confuse and confound but with the added twists and turns of the Simon James/James Simon story you leave the screen feeling jumbled and drained. Definitely not in a bad way though. After being totally absorbed in Simon’s world for those 93 minutes is a bit like being on a rollercoaster that doesn’t really hit the super exciting highs and lows you want it to but you feel like your heart has been for a crazy ride all the same.
Go and see this film.
Laura Johnson