A Different Man (2024, dir. Aaron Schimberg)

by Jack Martin | Oct 6, 2024

Certificate: 15

Running Time: 112 mins

UK Distributor: Universal Pictures

UK Release Date: 4 October 2024

WHO’S IN A DIFFERENT MAN?

Sebastian Stan, Renate Reinsve, Adam Pearson, C. Mason Wells, Owen Kline, Charlie Korsmo, Patrick Wang, Michael Shannon

WHO’S BEHIND THE CAMERA?

Aaron Schimberg (director, writer), Gabriel Mayers, Vanessa McDonnell and Christine Vachon (producers), Umberto Smerilli (composer), Wyatt Garfield (cinematographer), Taylor Levy (editor)

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

A formerly disfigured actor (Stan) becomes obsessed with a play about his life…

WHAT ARE MY THOUGHTS ON A DIFFERENT MAN?

A now-famous scene from David Lynch’s The Elephant Man sees its disfigured central figure tearfully declare to an angry mob that he is not an animal, but a human being. In that moment, the viewer is compelled to emotionally identify with the already sympathetic character, for his ailment prevents him from ever leading a normal life in a society that will immediately judge someone for their unorthodox appearance.

It’s a stark contrast to the central figure in writer-director Aaron Schimberg’s A Different Man, whose own attitude toward his disfigurement makes him not a human being, but an animal – one whose obsession with fitting into a world that doesn’t care about him either way makes for darkly humorous and unusually fascinating satirical entertainment.

The film introduces Edward (Sebastian Stan) as a struggling actor who because of his neurofibromatosis (NF) – a condition that causes enlarged swelling of the face – is largely relegated to disability-friendly instructional videos. Edward is clearly ashamed by his disfigured face, and lacks a profound sense of confidence when attempting to fit in, which is evident after playwright Ingrid (Renate Reinsve) moves into the apartment next to his less swanky place, where the ceiling is constantly leaking. He soon learns of an experimental procedure that aims to cure his NF, and soon his face literally begins to peel off and reveal a more normal-looking person underneath. However, instead of stunning the world with his newfound looks, Edward takes the opportunity to kill off his old self and start a new life as a guy named, erm, Guy.

But things really kick off some time later, when Ingrid has written an off-Broadway play based on her friendship with the apparently deceased Edward, while the real deal has gone on to a more lucrative gig as a real estate agent. He soon catches wind of Ingrid’s play, and successfully auditions to portray the lead character, which is essentially himself… until Oswald (Adam Pearson), a much more charming and outgoing man who also has NF, swoops in to take control of the production, sending Edward into an increasingly obsessive spiral as his life falls apart more than his old face did.

Edward and Oswald’s dysfunctional relationship forms the crux of A Different Man, for it represents two very different and equally fascinating attitudes towards not just the nature of disability, but how disabled people view themselves. Sebastian Stan’s Edward begins the film as a man wallowing in his own self-pity, feeling that his deformed face attracts unwanted attention and repels anyone who shows the slightest interest in him. But although his face eventually changes, his meek and unremarkable personality remains the same, as does his inability to connect with others or even make a general impression. Edward is as unimaginative as any of his fellow mediocre actors (his boisterous co-workers question his adopted name Guy, which according to them sounds made up), and as Schimberg’s script progresses further, and as Stan’s excellent performance goes to darker places, we begin to see more of his frustration arise from his permanent self-hatred, to where it becomes obvious that this is someone whose disfigurement was never on the outside.

On the complete opposite, Adam Pearson’s Oswald is everything that Edward is not and can never be: confident, charismatic, friendly, outgoing, naturally talented at a lot of things, and able to live life to the fullest. Most notably, nobody ever points out or mocks his physical ailments, instead simply accepting him for the endearing and genuinely gracious person he is. Oswald is someone who, unlike Edward, understands that he doesn’t need to be defined by what he may look like, and thanks to Pearson’s exceptionally magnetic performance the character becomes incredibly easy to win you over, while drawing you further and further away from Edward who, by comparison, becomes more and more unstable as he slowly realises how little anyone still cares about him, least of all himself.

The film ends up being a fascinating study of the stigma surrounding disability, for it presents these two figures with the same condition who have each adopted radically different responses to the way they feel about themselves. One is self-loathing and sees himself as someone to be pitied, even when he no longer has his ailment, while the other has learned to emphasise other aspects of their personality in spite of everything, and of course it is the latter that everyone is far more attracted towards, even Reinsve’s morbidly curious playwright (who at one point asks Edward to wear his disfigurement mask during a sexual encounter).

Both, though, appear to be the result of society wherein those with NF or any other physical impairment may be seen as an “other” rather than an equal, as demonstrated in that previously mentioned scene from The Elephant Man. Schimberg conveys this through the lens of a dark comedy, often generating some uncomfortable laughs as Edward continues to lose his mind from the lengths he’ll go in order to earn sympathy points. Though it can sometimes feel as though things are needlessly taken way too far, and eventually ends on a rather sudden note, A Different Man remains a compelling look at what may be underneath the ailment, whether it’s an animal or a human being.

SO, TO SUM UP…

A Different Man is a fascinating study of the stigma surrounding society’s attitudes towards disability, which writer-director Aaron Schimberg frames as a darkly funny satire with some outstanding performances from Sebastian Stan and Adam Pearson.