Adam Pearson in “A Different Man.”
“Ugliness is Only Skin Deep” comes only at the level of surface for Aaron Schimberg’s Kafkaesque fable, “A Different Man.” Existential black comedy as usual goes there, with intense exploration about identity and exploitation with a steady gaze that brings remarkable performances to its core.
It’s a modern retelling of the very old adage, “be careful what you wish for,” warning us about the dangers inherent in trying to make others than ourselves. The title itself is ominously ironical in leading into more themes in the film.
At the heart of the story is Edward Lemuel, portrayed by Sebastian Stan under heavy, yet impressive and believable, latex makeup. Edward is the mild-mannered, acting struggler encumbered with facial tumors that should, in theory, make him monstrous-looking.
In the sheer expanse of New York City, though, he is easily overlooked, swallowed up in a crowd likely to have seen far worse. Schimberg’s Gotham is a nostalgic reminder of an age where more garish, egocentric filmmaking was getting the ambitious successful, leaving the meek to their fate.
Ingrid (Renate Reinsve), his simply breathtaking and vacuous neighbor, has her work, as mapped by a playwright, mapped for the superficiality that Edward perceives he is immersed in.
Edward learns of an experimental drug treatment for his condition. For this desperate quest of approval and normalcy, he agrees to the surgery. Emerging out of this transformation process and adopting all the body horror elements, he finds himself remolded into a traditionally handsome male.
The world opens up for him – doors swing open, and romantic opportunities abound. However, things go quite out of hand when Edward, adopting a new identity of “Gus,” tries his luck as a player in Ingrid’s proposed play based on her life with Edward-turned-dead.
As such Gus’s pseudo-charm infuses him with the power to make Ingrid believe him to be completely engrossed in his character.
The second dramatic turn in the film comes when Oswald, played by Adam Pearson, is introduced as an actor with neurofibromatosis. Oswald is the epitome of relaxed grace and charm, qualities that Edward desperately needs to recover-or perhaps restore.
In “Under the Skin,” whereas Pearson was maimed, it was in order for his own alienation from society to be communicated; in “A Different Man,” he is given so much attention that their warmth and vivacity explode.
Oswald becomes a natural socialite and effortlessly insinuates himself into both Edward’s life and into Ingrid’s play, feeding off of Edward’s envy and sending him to madexterity akin to that kindled by jealousy in Shakespeare’s Othello.
The tone of this film shifts constantly from dark humour to poignant reflection with the gamut somehow reminiscent of something in the movie of the Coen brothers but more sombre.
Edward’s misplaced yearning for normalcy is brutally exposed, but this brutality is softened up by Pearson’s outgoing personality and Stan’s subtlety in capturing an indecisive man whose identity he is trying to come to terms with.
And from there, the complexity of the film develops through a late introduction of a famous actor, maybe cast to play Oswald in a film adaptation of the play that Ingrid is writing, developing into a story which quickly starts spiraling in on itself.
Haunting piano chords and swirling melodies guide Edward on his journey through the score written with evocative depth by Umberto Smerilli. It heightens the themes investigated here by this film, reinforcing the message that Edward’s quest for acceptance is fraught with peril.
This film "A Different Man"
This film, “A Different Man”, expands in both narrative and temporal scope in its final acts to achieve a surprising grandeur. As with all the other thematic threads Schimberg weaves together, he wisely leaves some of these mysteries unsolved, leaving the audience to contemplate their own interpretation.
The same time the movie comes out with “The Substance,” in which Demi Moore plays an actress who gets a procedure to regain her youth-in the course of which she undergoes a far greater transformation than ever occurs to Edward.
Whereas “The Substance” explores insecure females forged into a society aesthetics, “A Different Man” explores male anxiety regarding abnormality and insignificance with an unsettling question of what is the price for the epitome of look when inner turbulences do not alter.
As the story delves deep into Edward’s sense of self and identity, the film becomes a stark critique of societal norms, creating more meaning in understanding the human experience.
It portrays the paradox of wanting to be part of everything else and yet finding unique stuff that molds us differently. In a world where the element of look consumes the element of being, Edward’s journey deeply reminds all those of people who feel out-of-place or unearned.
Ultimately, “A Different Man” reads like a provocative investigation into the limits people are willing to go through in order to receive acceptance and conformity.
Intricately telling a story, memorable performances, and a haunting score challenge one’s own definitions of beauty and identity and the often turbulent relationship the two have with one another.
Schimberg has woven a narrative that really reaches in – reminding one that it is inside where all true change really begins and external appearance alone cannot mask inner turmoil.
It is only towards the end of the movie that Edward’s condition does start to symbolize a commentary on pressures within society. The film dares the viewer to ask himself or herself questions over a real identity, unveiling the fact that this has little to do with how we look and is quite more related to who we are beneath.
The plight of Edward brings up the very existential crises that people have in a world equating the ability to be of value in relation to how one looks.
The exploration of identity in “A Different Man” clashes against the notion that our self-value is hugely tied to how others perceive us. The story of Edward epitomizes the pitfalls of change that one needs to find meaning in worldly validation rather than one’s true essence.
The film raises critical concerns about being forced into conformity and the importance of self-acceptance in a world where many live in denial of those who are not the norm.
Linking dark humor with more serious themes, Schimberg directs the viewer to the story from various consumption levels. Satiric aspects of the film balance out the absurdity that one is being judged by societal standards but forces the viewer to question the complexity of human identity.
The character interactions, most especially Edward, Oswald, and Ingrid, illustrate a point of conflict in that human beings cannot define one another.
The story depicts how Edward evolves, not just visibly, but psychologically as the whole narrative moves forward. The complexity of his past identity and everything he is supposed to achieve after this new visage creates an interplay that governs the plot.
Edward’s experiences finally lead him to a confrontation with his insecurities and fears, thus poignantly commenting on the human condition.
In sum, “A Different Man” represents a compelling exploration of identity, acceptance, and the tension between how one thinks of himself and how one is regarded by others.
The themes that are so carefully woven into the movie and the performances of the film suggest an exciting interpretation for the viewers to think about their own lives and presumptions regarding something as complicated as beauty and worth.
It’s more of a cautionary tale by Schimberg, questioning us to accept our real selves in this world where so often it is surface over substance.
It ends with the movie posing a question inside of us: what is humanity, and to what extent is one willing to lose his humanity in desire to be accepted by this apparently superficial world?.