A Different Man: Elephant Man By Way of Adaptation

How far away are we from the people we want to be and the life we want? This is a question that A Different Man ponders in its investigation of the desire to be desired, and the desire to know exactly what it is we do want. Aaron Schimberg’s (Chained for Life, Go Down Death) latest sees Fresh and Marvel Cinematic Universe star Sebastian Stan as Edward, a man with facial differences who lives a mostly lonely existence as a working actor until his life changes with the arrival of his new neighbor Ingrid (Renate Reinsve), as well as his participation in a clinical trial for an experimental drug. With Ingrid, he finds a new friend, a playwright who seems to promise to write a part for him sarcastically. The experimental treatment, meanwhile, transforms his appearance, turning him into the conventionally attractive face of Sebastian Stan. 

Edward’s transformation is more than physical—he can’t seem to stomach living on as who he is; he declares himself dead and moves on to a new life as Guy, a real estate agent who garners a reputation for selling houses off of his good looks. His new life then transforms once more when Ingrid appears again, as well as Oswald (Adam Pearson), a man with a face strikingly similar to what Edward’s once was. Oswald, however, is the furthest thing from Edward; they’re polar opposites in their outlooks and personalities. Oswald is the kind of man that finds fulfillment on his own, while Edward craves to be seen and validated, especially by Ingrid. 

Stan’s performance as Edward/Guy is wonderfully complex and visual. The film’s psychological nature and Edward’s shyness keep his performance very reserved, with his face and mannerisms communicating more than lines of dialogue really could. It’s no easy feat to communicate character and emotion without words, but he accomplishes it well, and without too much theatrical, “look-at-me”-type acting. Reinsve is similarly good as Ingrid, whose play around which so much of the film is set ultimately says more about her than it does about Edward. 

It is Adam Pearson as Oswald who really steals the show and is its centerpiece, with his theatrical innocence and suave-ness. Pearson himself even embraced the way his performance evokes the charming goofball energy of a character like Austin Powers. Oswald is good-natured to a point that Edward can’t stand, and the more he learns about Oswald, the more Edward drives himself into the throes of envy and regret. 

The contrast between the two men forms the basis of A Different Man’s psychological puzzle. It’s a simple question we’re driven to ask: If Oswald is so happy and fulfilled living with facial differences, and Edward isn’t, then why did Edward do what he did to himself, and how can he learn to be happy? One gets the sense that some cosmic force sent Oswald down to Earth to show Edward that what he was missing was not a conventional face, but an interior life. Oswald has that, and as he creeps ever more into Edward’s life, serves, from Edward’s perspective, as a pounding reminder of his own deficiencies as a person. 

Aaron Schimberg’s script and direction is to be praised, too. A Different Man’s script is sardonic and silly, wasting no time over a relatively lean 112 minutes. The film is very meta at times, stewing in the implications of a story like this and someone like Pearson’s participation in it. The way it interrogates the nature of a story like this plays out almost like Elephant Man by way of Charlie Kaufman. 

The film is, furthermore, steeped in film-noir style, with Umberto Smerilli’s piano-based score doing much of the work to evoke that tone, making it an eerie highlight of the film. The cinematography, too, by Wyatt Garfield, is striking, especially when it deals in dramatic shadow and darkness. Taylor Levy’s editing is very to-the-point; one might even describe it as blunt in how it moves from scene to scene and illustrates the passage of time. The film is definitely of a type with other hitchcockian psychological thrillers, but with a welcome levity to it that makes it a pleasant watch, even with its darkness and tension.

A Different Man is, ultimately, an eerie yet farcical story of vanity and regret. Edward is a tragic character who desperately seeks the approval of Ingrid, while Oswald seems to attract her just by being himself. Oswald represents the kind of man that Edward could be, but simply isn’t—someone kinder, more curious, and more interested in living life, rather than whatever it is Edward is doing. Aaron Schimberg’s stylish direction and layered script make it worth watching, but the performances, particularly from Stan and Pearson, raise A Different Man above the pack.