Man, Richard Ayoade's The Double just didn't work for me.
I know I came into this thing with expectations. It's appeared on several "Best of 2014" lists. But nothing about the story was compelling or actually made any sort of sense. Let's be serious, if anybody was actually as afraid of life as Jesse Eisenberg's character Simon, they probably wouldn't have the job he does in the first place. So this is the concept... Simon (Eisenberg) loves Hannah (Mia Wasikowska) from a distance, but nothing in his life seems to work. Then one day James (also Eisenberg) shows up and proves to be everything that Simon isn't. But since they look alike, they sort of strike a deal.
This is basically just Fight Club meets Dead Ringers without any of the fun, mystery, or suspense. And while I enjoy Mia Wasikowska in almost everything she does... and Jesse Eisenberg gives two solid performances... and considering Wallace Shawn plays a crucial role... the positives still don't outweigh the negatives.
Richard Ayoade and Avi Korine wrote a completely baffling and convoluted script with no room for justification or explanation. Given all of these missteps, I can only refer to The Double as a sloppy and unfortunate mess.
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