By – Gareth Jones

For fans of challenging independent films, disability representation, Sebastian Stan and Adam Pearson

I first became aware of actor Adam Pearson in Jonathan Glazer’s chilling film Under the Skin in 2013.  He plays the only survivor of Scarlet Johanson’s alien. Is he spared because he is pitied by her or because is more innocent than the other lustful men?  Adam Pearson has neurofibromatosis, a condition where tumors grow on the skin, in Adam’s case on his face and head.  We have been conditioned as a society to fear and shame people with this condition. This is one of the major themes explored by A Different Man.  In addition, it examines how people with disabilities are typecast, not given a chance, or exploited in mainstream media.

The film follows the story of Edward, an aspiring actor with neurofibromatosis, who is only able to find work in sensitivity training videos. He is portrayed by Sebastian Stan, most well-known to the world as Bucky, or the Winter Soldier in the Captain America films, but who has also built an impressive independent career, often taking on challenging roles.  This definitely falls in that category.  He wears a prosthesis made from a mold of Adam Pearson’s face. In his daily routine, he encounters a new apartment neighbor, an inquisitive yet selfish playwright played by Renate Reinsve, who made a huge impression in the cinematic world with The Worst Person in the World, an equally complicated film. One day at the doctor’s office, his doctor tells him about this revolutionary treatment that can cure his condition.  Of course, he jumps at the opportunity and slowly his face begins to fall off in true Cronenbergian body horror style.  What emerges is the Hollywood handsome face of Sebastian, but he still has the mannerisms, body language, and self identity of the man with neurofibromatosis.  The rest of the film shows how he deals with this and how he struggles with it.

The film is written and directed by Aaron Schimberg, and is his second collaboration with Adam Peason.  Their first film together is the masterful and insightful Chained for Life which confronts and examines the monster stereotype of disabilities through the meta-making of a low budget horror film.  In that film, Adam is cast as an actor hired to play the monster in the film.  Of course, Adam is an incredibly kind and thoughtful person countering the stereotype.  In A Different Man his performance is even more powerful as he gets to play the confident, charming side of himself. His flamboyant clothing, attitude, and speaking counter how society expects those with his condition must act.  In real life, Pearson has become a well traveled speaker including TED talks and lectures.  He is a naturally charming person and it is lovely to see him be able to show this side of himself in this film.

Schimberg creates incredibly authentic films about disabilities because he himself has a disability, a cleft palate. Once again, this shows the value of having someone with a disability directing and writing a story about disabilities.  The lived experience brings a realness that able-bodied directors often struggle with creating.  Schimberg also balances the challenging material with a strong sense of humor. Here, he builds on his previous work with a larger budget and has made his best work yet.  Finally, it is so ironic that Sebastian Stan has this film and his portrayal of a real monster, Donald Trump, in theaters at the same time.