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Self/less
2015 117 min United States of America PG-13 16+
★5.6
Science Fiction, Action, Thriller
Director: Tarsem Singh
Trailers
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Description
An extremely wealthy elderly man dying from cancer undergoes a radical medical procedure that transfers his consciousness to the body of a healthy young man but everything may not be as good as it seems when he starts to uncover the mystery of the body's origins and the secret organization that will kill to keep its secrets.
Budget:
$26M
US Gross:
$12.28M
Worldwide:
$31.81M
Starring
Ryan Reynolds
Actor
Natalie Martinez
Actor
Matthew Goode
Actor
Key opinion
Self/less is generally viewed as a competent but derivative science fiction thriller that struggles to balance its ambitious philosophical premise with standard genre tropes. While performances by Ben Kingsley and Ryan Reynolds are often praised for grounding the thin material, critics are divided over whether the film succeeds as a thoughtful drama or fails as a generic action movie.
| Originality | The narrative relies heavily on well-worn genre tropes, offering no truly original contribution to the concept of consciousness transfer. | |
| Acting | Ben Kingsley delivers a compelling, high-level performance that effectively anchors the film's emotional core despite his limited screen time. | |
| Production | The film's technical execution is praised for its clean production design and cinematography, though it notably lacks the distinct visual flair associated with director Tarsem Singh. | |
| Screenplay | The screenplay is widely criticized for being weak and predictable, with many viewers noting that it fails to fully explore the intriguing moral questions it raises. | |
| Pacing | Opinions on pacing are divided: some find the two-hour runtime tightly edited and engaging, while others perceive it as repetitive, dull, and lacking necessary action momentum. | |
| Acting | The overall effectiveness of Ryan Reynolds as the lead is contested; some see him as a capable anchor, while others argue his characterization is implausible or poorly developed. |