A Different Man

Director: Aaron Schimberg
Starring: Sebastian Stan, Renate Reinsve, Adam Pearson, C. Mason Wells, Owen Kline, Charlie Korsmo, Patrick Wang, Michael Shannon
Running Time: 112 min.
Rating: R

★★★★ (out of ★★★★)

With A Different Man, writer/director Aaron Schimberg's asks the intriguing question of how someone living with a seemingly permanent condition would react if they were cured. It's easy to assume they'd be thrilled to put the agony behind them and start over, maybe even reinventing themselves to take advantage of all the opportunities that slipped by. But if said disorder directly ties to their physical appearance, it's more complicated, forcing them adjust to an existence that no longer hinges on how others see them. 

The film's facially disfigured protagonist knows all about perception, as it fully informs how he talks, walks and carries himself through various interactions, many of which are unpleasant. And though it's become routine, this doesn't necessarily make it any less easier or tiresome, even as he tries to take it in stride. Some glance, others turn away in shock while the rest either just politely pretend not to notice him or are too involved in their own business to care. 

Assumptions that Schimberg would make some kind of disabled PSA are shot down with an early scene that spoofs one, setting the stage for a dark, absurdly hilarious satire anchored by a gut-wrenching turn from Sebastian Stan on par with his recently Oscar nominated work in The Apprentice. That this is the same actor we just watched play a young Donald Trump is mind boggling, even while acknowledging both characters' affinities for real estate and reinvention. Here, he creates this indelible portrait of a man who gets a life changing gift, only to collapse under the weight of a jarring new reality that might cost him everything.

Struggling, socially awkward New York-based actor Edward Lemuel (Stan) suffers from neurofibromatosis, a genetic medical condition that causes disfiguring facial tumors. Plagued with lingering self consciousness and anxiety, he befriends new neighbor and aspiring playwright Ingrid Vold (Renate Reinsve) moves in next door, with him even gifting her his vintage typewriter. Fearing to express his romantic feelings, he soon gets a call to participate in an experimental drug treatment that could potentially cure his condition, Shocked to discover it actually works, an entire outer layer of skin peels off as the tumors begin dissipating 

Now with a new appearance, Edward fakes his suicide, taking the name of "Guy Moratz" as he accumulates wealth and success as a hotshot realtor. But when he discovers Ingrid is producing an off-Broadway play based his life, he's compelled to audition for the lead, with her unaware of his true identity. As the two grow close again, a confident, outgoing neurofibromatosis patient named Oswald (Adam Pearson) takes interest in the production. Soon, his input into the show's direction heavily influences Ingrid, jeopardizing Edward's chances at tackling the role he was born to play.

The possibility it wasn't Edward's physical appearance that held him back, but his own insecurity is a notion that taints what should be a celebratory metamorphosis into the man he always wanted to be. But the recognition this miracle cure won't just flip a switch that shuts off his problems is a tough pill to swallow, especially since there are issues related to having the condition that aren't solely physical. 

Putting the film's magical realism aside to view this strictly as a actual medical breakthrough, it's likely any patient would have mental health professionals charting their progress for years following the procedure. And while that could have very well been protocol, Edward disappearing in an effort to erase his past throws that for a loop. In actuality, the hardest lesson he'll learn is how he's still the same exact person, regardless of looks. 

Edward's top priority soon becomes reconnecting with Ingrid in an attempt to take the place in her life and on stage he feels he's owed. But when Oswald bursts onto the scene and stands out as someone with the same affliction, but a far different personality, his plan unravels. Gregarious and fun, Oswald's everything he isn't, and as crazy as things get when this man politely interjects himself into the play, Schimberg's script carefully avoids painting either as the villain. It's Edward who becomes his own worst enemy. 

Beneath makeup artist Mike Marino's facial prosthetics (which draws Elephant Man comparisons), Stan's withdrawn demeanor and closed off body language offer powerful glimpses into Edward's defeated state of mind and sense of inadequacy. And the feeling's only heightened by a hypnotic, insanely catchy original score from composer Umberto Smerelli that captures the story's bizarre idiosyncrasies. Stan's performance truly takes hold when the miracle drug does, with an uncomfortably anguished Edward slowly becoming invisible in this new skin, going so far as wearing the mask mold of his old face to reclaim his "original" life.

Reinsve brilliantly plays Ingrid as full of inscrutable contradictions, her true feelings and intentions constantly keeping us on our toes. While cultivated over a relatively short period of time, the bond she shares with Edward seems genuine, even if her promise to write him into a play that revolves around his life can be read any number of ways. If we're left speculating whether this is charity or borders on exploitation. she also wrestles with that herself. The idea pops up again in a superb later scene where Edward glumly listens to an irritating but observant audience member's interpretation of the show that mirrors our own conflicted theories.  

Pearson (who's best known for 2013's Under The Skin and lives with neurofibromatosis) is a revelation as the free spirited Oswald, whose eerily timed presence is offset by his charm. Even when a frustrated Edward's jealously take over, he still can't really bring himself to hate someone whose jovial personality becomes the measuring stick for what could have been. He sees at least part of himself in this pleasant stranger, culminating in a third act that skirts the line between tragedy and farce as cruelly comical misfortune unfolds. And while the possibility of revealing the truth to Ingrid constantly hangs over this picture, coming clean and attempting to regain his allegedly stolen life isn't so simple when it's already gone.

With elements recalling that classic Twilight Zone episode, "Eye of the Beholder,"The Substance and even Adaptation, this film examines an anti-hero who can't emotionally disengage from the supposed ugliness he thought was holding him back, no matter how miraculous the outward transformation. Maybe Edward was just incapable of change this entire time, unable to let go of who he always viewed himself to be.The final line is an ironic gut punch, finding profound meaninglessness at the bottom of a meta rabbit hole where art and morality intersect.