The Double, directed by Richard Ayoade and starring hot young star Jesse Eisenberg, made its world premiere on September 7th right here at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. Earlier in the day, I had the pleasure of sitting down with these talented individuals to discuss hotel lobby music, acting strategies, and of course, this dense and complicated film.
As I noted in my review of the film, The Double is a highly symbolic piece that does not take place in a specific time or space; although the audience may recognize aspects of their world in what they see, it is clearly not the same universe as that in which they live. Richard explained that removing specificity from a film “creates a sense of dream-like unreality that can mean something different to each person who encounters it.” He believes that “nothing is more phony than realism,” a stance clearly demonstrated by the fantasy that he creates in order to construct an accurate portrayal of real life. When asked how he approached the challenge of creating a world that could not be judged according to the standards of ours, Richard explained that he created a dreamy, or nightmarish, atmosphere by filming almost every scene inside dark, enclosed spaces, rarely venturing outside into uncontrolled space or using natural daylight.
I was very taken by the use of sound within this film. Unnerving sound and music that is often uncomfortably magnified creates an unsettled mood, and very little dialogue appears within a film that chooses to convey meaning through sound instead. Richard highlighted the importance of sound to this film when he revealed that the sound design took an astonishing four months to complete. As for the challenge of translating a piece of literature onto the screen, Richard admitted that film does have its drawbacks, such as the limitation of imagination available to a viewer when compared to the unlimited potential of creativity existing to a reader. However, he defends film by noting the power of the visual; “the uncanniness of literally seeing double,” he explained, “is felt most strongly when it is up on the screen for the viewer to see and respond to.”
Actor Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, Now You See Me) faced challenges of his own, as he played both the role of Simon James and that of his doppelganger, James Simon, in the film. Jesse explained that in order to achieve this effect, he would shoot one part, and then watch it back to decide how the other character would react before shooting the second part; often, he would then end up reshooting the original part. For an actor who claims to “like nothing less than seeing himself on screen,” this process of watching himself perform proved quite difficult. To prepare for the role, Jesse explained that he “watched the films starring classic actors such as Buster Keaton sent to him by Richard.” He did not find them particularly helpful, however, as he prefers to “draw inspiration from the work itself, as opposed to the performances of others.”
Both Richard and Jesse spoke at length about the humour within this film, which they believe to come from the ridiculousness of the situation of a double appearing in the life of an individual. As I watched the piece, I failed to notice this comedic side, focusing instead on the dark tone and confusing symbolism. Although I was not the biggest fan of The Double, after this fascinating and enlightening interview with its director and lead actor I am eager to watch it again and to see if their comments could possibly shed some light on all by which I was confused.
Photo Credit: Toronto International Film Festival
