Respond to these rapid questions in our Selfless quiz and we will tell you which Selfless character you are. Play it now.
For decades, those who work in the film industry have been preoccupied with the question of how to define a human being. Are you nothing more than a collection of bones and flesh? Do you have faith in the existence of the human soul? Or does your mind stand out as the defining characteristic of your existence? The concept of the human body as a shell, one that is capable of housing a persona other than your own, has fascinated some of our most creative voices, from Rod Serling to “Seconds” to silly body switch movies like “Freaky Friday.” And when it was announced that a director whose previous film, “The Fall,” was both aesthetically arresting and philosophically ambitious, like Tarsem Singh, would be wading into these waters himself, there was reason for significant optimism. Because of this, the conclusion “Self/less” is even more aggravating to consider. “Self/less” is a bland and generic product that almost defiantly refuses to explore the complex issues that it raises. This may be an attempt to appeal to a wider audience, but either way, “Self/less” is a disappointing piece of work. The plot summary of “Self/less” is a philosophical theme park that is primed and ready for the production of a daring and intricate film. In addition, Singh and his team of writers don’t ever ride any of the attractions.
Damian Hale (Ben Kingsley), a mega-wealthy New York businessman, is the type of person who seems to have chosen to cover his entire lavish apartment in gold one day simply because he was bored. Ben Kingsley plays the role of Damian Hale. Unfortunately, even an infinite amount of money cannot save him from the cancer that is taking his life, nor can it bring a resentful father and his estranged daughter back together again (Michelle Dockery). Hale is given a mysterious business card that makes a promise regarding his future that his body is unable to fulfill. He talks to a clearly nefarious scientist and CEO named Albright (played by Matthew Goode), who tells Hale about a process called “shedding,” which enables a person to exchange their damaged body for a new, genetically grown one at a cost of only $250 million. This process is available to anyone. Hale signs up.
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Selfless Quiz
After going through a visually monotonous process (and here is where you start to wonder why Tarsem didn’t make different aesthetic choices, and not for the last time), Hale awakens in the body of Ryan Reynolds. This is not the last time you will wonder why Tarsem didn’t make different aesthetic choices. He now goes by the name Edward and has moved to New Orleans, which appears to be the ideal setting for him to live out the rest of his life. He has many accomplishments, including driving a fast car, playing basketball, and even making a new friend (Derek Luke). The one and only catch is that Edward needs to take a small red pill at precisely the same time every day or he runs the risk of experiencing hallucinations, migraines, and even passing away. Edward has a vivid hallucination that seems more like a flashback after he forgets just one of his pills. During this hallucination, he realizes that this body was not grown in a laboratory. It had been owned by a family man who had given up his career in order to save his daughter’s life by paying for medical treatment. He learns the truth about his new life after discovering Edward’s family, which includes an expectedly startled wife portrayed by Natalie Martinez. Albright and his suited cronies will do anything in their power to conceal this information from him.
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About the quiz
It is abundantly clear that this material contains numerous complex ideas, such as the manner in which the 1 percent takes advantage of the desperate needs of the poor for their own gain and the dependence on pharmaceuticals to maintain one’s happiness and one’s life. However, every time that “Self/less” seems like it is going to actually explore one of those themes and give them more than lip service as plot details, it pulls back to standard, genre fare, both narratively and visually. This is the case for both the narrative and the visual aspects of the film. The depressing affair known as “Self/less” is one of those works that, as it goes on, becomes less interesting to the audience. The opening scenes of opulence in Hale’s penthouse have a strong visual aesthetic — empty rooms like empty minds waiting to be filled — but that disappears in the seemingly neverending second act, during which “Self/less” sags and never recovers, feeling at times more like a failed cable TV pilot than a film. The film’s main character, Hale, has a difficult time accepting the fact that he has a mental illness. It is simply inexplicable how “Self/less” manages to become as visually engaging as a “CSI” spin-off despite the fact that it deals with hallucinations, questions of identity, and philosophical resonance. It’s possible that the producers of the film held Tarsem back because they didn’t want their “Ryan Reynolds Vehicle” to become “artsy,” but if so, they made a terrible mistake. “Self/less” is 116 minutes long and has a narrative that gives away every twist a half-hour before it actually occurs. Due to these factors, the film required a visual language that it simply does not possess.
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This lack of personality is not compensated for by anything else, either. Reynolds isn’t terrible, but he seems to have been directed to play Edward just a tick north of bland, which isn’t exactly his strong suit. Reynolds isn’t bad, but it seems like he was directed to play Edward just a tick north of bland. Someone in this room needed to realize that a film with such outlandish ideas should still be entertaining. The fact that Nicolas Cage, John Travolta, and John Woo KNEW they were being ridiculous and laughed and winked at the audience throughout the entirety of the film “Face/Off” is a large part of the reason why such films are entertainingly ridiculous. The game “Self/less” is played in a linear fashion and is never nearly as entertaining as it might have been or ought to have been. Who would have thought that living forever would be so dull?
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