The Other Me Review- A Confusing Mix Of Regret And Overwrought Ideas

Surreal films are a passion of mine. The weirder and more fantastical, the better. The Other Me, prominently billed as executive produced by the king of surreal David Lynch, is a messy mix of overwrought themes, undercooked ideas, and tired visuals.

The Other Me is the kind of film made by someone who wants desperately to make a Lynchian film but has no idea how to do it. Lynch’s films always have a bizarre dream logic that makes a horrifying amount of sense if given a chance to percolate. Mulholland Drive is terrifying and mysterious because there is a nugget of life truth that we can follow as a through-line across the strange and shifting landscape. Unfortunately, writer and director Giga Agladze doesn’t provide anything for us to grasp, instead choosing to let exhausted metaphors do the talking.

Irakli(Jim Burgess) is a bartender and frustrated architect who is losing his sight due to some unexplained and incurable disease. Before the diagnosis, his life was not going well. After the diagnosis, it is even worse. His wife is cheating on him, and his artist’s heart is completely dissatisfied. Flashbacks to a tumultuous childhood show he was never happy. Shortly after his diagnosis, he completely loses his sight, and it is replaced by a black and white fantasy world of shadowed silhouettes, moving paintings, and literal and figurative metaphors for how he feels about himself and his life. Most of these take the shape of faceless charcoal voids and animal masks.

He meets Nino, although she consistently says she has no name in the film, an affectless woodland sprite of a person. An uncomfortable and out-of-depth Andreja Pejic best known for bit parts is relied on to be the gravitational center of the story without the depth to do so. Pejic is frequently called upon to deliver emotionless lines meant to convey mystery but lacking the essential enigmatic quality necessary to be the cipher. Even stranger, are outbursts of anger that come out of nowhere and resolve even faster.

There are subplots with an employer of Irakli’s wife Nutsa(Antonia Campbell-Hughes) that does nothing to further the narrative. Are we meant to feel sorry for Nutsa? Why is her employer, played gamely by Rhona Mitra, so sad and leaving town? Will Nutsa’s life be any better by running away from her problems to work for this woman she hardly knows? Unfortunately, none of these things are answered and only serve to muddle the overall point of the film further. With very little backstory, it is hard to be invested in their plight. There are just too many holes for us to fill in and not enough substance to do so.

Loosely tied-together scenes do not find any resolution and illogical nonsense like his best friend’s voice that can’t be recognized from just a few feet away only makes things more irritating. Other characters disappear and reappear with no explanation and even less purpose. Roger Ashton-Griffiths, Mace Tyrell from Game of Thrones, gives it everything he has but with so little to work with; he is largely wasted. Likewise, for Into The Badlands’, tremendous Orla Brady and Once Upon A Time In Wonderland and Being Human’s Michael Socha. The former’s emotional weight is eclipsed by strangling dialogue and ill-conceived plotting and the latter by forcing Socha into a character that is one dimensional and wastes his inherent charm.

Only the child actor playing young Irakli, although named Niazi for unknown reasons, fares well. Apple TV +’s Invasion star Billy Barratt brings the same vulnerable tenderness to his short but memorable role. He is a star in the making. The camera loves his sweet face and the intense yearning to be understood and loved nearly saves the film.

Although meant to be inspirational, the final act is forced, confusing, and mildly icky. I’m all for self-love, but The Other Me takes it to new places that neither help define nor highlight that acceptance. Likewise, the final scene with Irakli/Niazi’s father makes no sense narratively with what we already know about his childhood. Likewise, the parting shot that maybe means Irakli is psychic or dead, I’m not even sure is sugary sweet and trite.

The Other Me has a bizarre dream logic: neither innovative nor interesting, just confusing and unnecessary. Snakes slither, and apples are offered in an obvious nod to those who can’t be trusted and opening your eyes to the truth. The Other Me wants to take big swings about gender dysphoria and regret but only succeeds in striking out. Like a blindfolded child swinging at a pinata, eventually, contactless swings become annoying rather than fun. It would be best if you eventually got to the candy inside, or you will lose your audience. It is streaming and in theaters right now.