A triumph for Dominic Cooper, The Devil’s Double doesn’t quite deliver as a film.
Here’s Nick’s review…
Absolute power corrupts absolutely, they say.
Its a frequently excessive tour through some of Udays greatest crimes.
His presence lights up every scene hes in, and luckily, hes in pretty much all of them.
Cooper is faced with an almost Herculean task in this film.
He must essentially create three separate characters, Uday, Latif, and then Latif impersonating Uday.
But they wouldnt be enough on their own.
Cooper inhabits each character individually.
You will genuinely believe these two men are different, save for their identical visages.
But by Coopers own admission, the way into the character is through his torturous father issues.
Imagine having Saddam Hussein as your role model.
Both men are compelling to watch as they go through their twisted together journey.
The film takes a while to settle, and never really seems to know what it wants to be.
Is it biopic, social commentary, war film, thriller, love story or character study?
It tries to be all of the above and more, and sadly, this proves its undoing.
What was it like day to day becoming a monster?
What does that do to a man?
What led him to find this confidence?
Make no mistake, though, this film is worth seeing for Dominic Cooper.
This should surely be the role that makes him, and gives him an opportunity for future leading parts.
If you only know him for his somewhat slight supporting gigs, then be prepared to be blown away.
This is one of the finest acting tours de force you will see in this or any other year.
Its just a pity the rest of the film cant keep up with him.
Rating:
3 out of 5
