A Different Man Review

A Different Man is the third film by Aaron Schimberg and explores issues with body image and self-esteem.

Edward Lemuel (Sebastian Stan) is an actor with neurofibromatosis. His facial deformities make him isolated. When a playwright, Ingrid (Renate Reinsve) moves into the apartment next to Edward the pair form a friendship. However, Edward agrees to join a drug trial that could remove the tumours on his face and change his life.

A Different Man has been a festival favourite. It premiered at Sundance and at the Berlin Film Festival it won the Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance and was nominated for the Golden Bear. It has been a critical darling and been a part of an acting double bill for Stan since he already gave an excellent performance as Donald Trump in The Apprentice.

A Different Man was similar to another 2024 release, The Substance. Both films were about the issues of body image and showed a character going through a metamorphosis. The main characters take drugs that change their appearance and live a ‘better’ life. Both films looked at marginalised groups based on their appearances and the main characters took body-altering drugs that resulted in a painful transformation.

There was a different reason why the main characters took their treatment. In A Different Man there was a risk the tumours could grow so big that they could affect Edward’s sight and hearing. When Edward does transform, he’s allowed to experience the fun of drinking, partying, and casual sex and has success as a real estate agent. But a life of hedonism doesn’t mean he’s happy.

A Different Man had a message that what really mattered was confidence. There was a change when Oswald (Adam Pearson), an Englishman with the same condition as Edward but was outgoing and friendly so allowed him to achieve his goals. It’s a nice sentiment but as anyone who has had issues with self-confidence and appearance knows it’s not as simple as being more confident.

Edward was a sympathetic character due to his disability, isolation, and awkwardness. After his transformation, Edward was still nervous and awkward since he wasn’t used to all the attention. I related a bit too much with the pre-transformation. Edward’s life slowly falls apart after he meets Oswald and shows the life he could have had if he had been more secure. Oswald inadvertently replaced Edward in Ingrid’s play and Edward’s self-destructive behaviour made things worse for the man. Even though the crux of A Different Man’s second half was about Edward and Oswald competing to be in Ingrid’s play and Edward’s growing envy, the film became less interesting and focused.

A Different Man had a gritty look to it. There was grain to the film and the locations looked lived in. Edward’s apartment was in a dilapidated state and the people in the building ignored him. Edward did suffer from prejudice as shown when he was on a subway where other passengers either stared at him or adverted their gaze. When Edward was eating at a diner with Ingrid, he was stared at by all the passersby.

A Different Man has been described as a dark comedy and a satire. There were moments of awkward comedy, like a sex scene and the film was about the treatment of people with disfigurement. It’s easy to think of cinematic villains with facial disfigurements, like Batman Returns, Wonder Woman, and many Bond films, and A Different Man wanted to reserve these negative stereotypes. However, as a satire about appearance and show business, The Substance was much more insightful and biting.

A Different Man was a commendable film considering the subject matter and the strength of the performances, but it has been overhyped. It was more of an awkward experience that lost momentum as it progressed.