Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Self/Less Blu-ray Movie Review

Want/More

Reviewed by Martin Liebman November 10, 2015

What does it mean to be alive? How is life defined? Is life the mere beating of the heart and the sustaining of the physical body, or is there more to it? Can one replenish, renew, or even restart life by transferring an invisible essence -- be that collected experiences or something more metaphysical, like the soul -- into another host body? If one hopes to find the answers to those questions, or even thought-provoking hypotheticals, by watching Self/Less, the result will be frustration, not enlightenment. Director Tarsem Singh (The Cell, The Fall), known for his high concept work, succumbs to disappointing cliché and an almost disturbing emptiness with his latest film. Self/Less primes itself, and audiences, for a fascinating journey into what it really means to be alive but instead devolves into a mostly mindless Action movie with little consequential payoff, dramatic weight, or satisfactory examination of the deeper, and much more interesting, themes that are so ripe for exploration but that are left achingly alone for the duration.

Reborn.

Exceedingly wealthy businessman Damian Hale (Ben Kingsley) may have enough money to do whatever he wants, but all the wealth in the world cannot cure him of cancer. He's fought it tooth-and-nail. He's keeping up appearances by wearing the finest clothes and dining at lavish restaurants with his longtime business partner Martin O'Neil (Victor Garber), and he's even trying to reconcile with his estranged daughter (Michelle Dockery) by throwing another large check her way. He has only months left to live. It's been a good, fruitful life, but he's not ready for it to end. Enter Phoenix Biogenics, a firm specializing in "shedding" or, in layman's terms, the process of replacing a sick, decaying, or aged body with that of a fresh twenty-something custom grown in a laboratory. It's a $250,000,000 process that seems to hold all the answers. After a particularly violent setback to his health, Damian is rushed to the clinic and, while the rest of the world believes him to be dead, is reborn a new man.

Damian awakens believing the process has failed, but he's quick to realize that, even as his mind remains his, it's inhabiting another body (Ryan Reynolds). Damian is forced to undergo intensive physical therapy -- strength training, water aerobics -- to familiarize himself with his new body. And once he's unleashed, he takes full advantage of his newfound youth. He vigorously shoots hoops with a new friend named Anton (Derek Luke) and beds beautiful women. But when he misses a round of his medication, he suffers a serious side-effect: hallucinations. These aren't random images but rather specific visions of a past reality that was never his. An investigation into the glimpses he remembers leads him to Missouri where a terrible truth comes to life, a truth that puts not only him, but others, in great danger and calls into question everything he believed he knew about himself, his new body, Phoenix Biogenics, and the people who run the company.

Self/Less is a disappointing departure from form for Singh, a gifted, visionary filmmaker who, with Self/Less, has sold himself well short of both the visual wonders and heady themes for which he is rightly known. The movie is little more than a straight Action film with an interesting yet almost fully unexplored Sci-Fi theme that just screams "potential" from the word "go." The movie has all the makings of something like Face/Off or RoboCop meets Total Recall -- and wouldn't that make for an interesting combination? -- but the movie never comes close to doing anything with the idea, instead populating it with the usual array of car crashes and shootouts that aren't poorly assembled by any stretch of the imagination but that only serve to, rather than draw attention away from the thematic vacancy, reinforce it with a deluge of action that seems like it's getting in the way of a better story that's just not there.

The performances are at least decent within the framework the movie provides its actors. Kingsley sells the sickly billionaire well enough, and it's a shame his screen time is limited and doubly disappointing that an actor of his stature can't work with the meatier themes that are achingly a fingertip away from his creative genius. Ryan Reynolds is fine as the younger hero. He's never all that believable as the character Kingsley creates in the film's first act, but considering that Kingsley's Damian is seen only as a sickly old man -- there's not much backstory here -- the performance works well enough if one considers Reynolds a younger version more in spirit than mind or body. It's a part that's almost impossible to master, particularly with a script that's not interested in exploring the finer details. Reynolds essentially holds serve and looks good enough running around and shooting a gun, but it's otherwise a fairly routine acting job that satisfies the movie's disappointingly simple requirements, nothing more and nothing less.

Self/Less Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Self/Less features a slick and smooth 1080p transfer. While there's a noticeable digital flatness to the movie, there's not a lost detail or unrefined texture to be found. Precise, complex elements are the norm, whether finely appointed suits, worn faces, crisp country exteriors, or dense city objects. Outside of a few modestly soft moments in more challenging nighttime and low light action scenes, the image dazzles with its complex and effortless attention to detail. Colors are rich and robust, whether the gold, steely blue and gray Phoenix Biogenics interiors or lush green Missouri exteriors. Golden accents around Kingsley's kingly dwelling are particularly impressive. Black levels push a mild gray at times but are generally deep and satisfyingly so. Flesh tones present no cause for concern. Mild banding creeps across a few backgrounds, but the image never suffers from any macroblocking, aliasing, or other disfigurements. This is a fine Blu-ray presentation from Universal.

Self/Less Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Self/Less features a fully capable DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The presentation is satisfyingly dynamic and engaging, with every element precisely defined and placed around the stage. Music plays with seamless stage immersion (though certainly a front-heavy posture). Score is impressive but the track's best musical moments come by way of a Jazz piece in chapter five. Every smooth note saturates the stage and the supportive low end is hefty and detailed. Gunshots hit hard and realistically. Other assorted crashes and action-specific elements are tight and aggressive. Various environments spring to life with finely tuned and precise atmospherics, including everything from buzzing fluorescent lights to more dense restaurant clatter and city traffic din. Dialogue delivery is clear and center-focused with no problems pertaining to prioritization or drift from the middle.

Self/Less Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Self/Less contains a commentary and a few featurettes. A DVD copy of the film and a voucher for a UV/iTunes digital copy are included with purchase.

• Inside Self/Less (1080p, 6:37): A look at how Steve Jobs partially inspired the story, bridging the gap between Kingsley and Reynolds, set and prop design, and more.
• On the Run: The Action of Self/Less (1080p, 6:46): As the title suggests, this piece looks at the making of several of the film's action scenes, including Director Tarsem Singh discussing his visual style for action.
• Shedding (1080p, 2:27): Cast and crew briefly discuss the core story driver from the movie and experts discuss the possibilities.
• Audio Commentary: With Director Tarsem Singh.
• Previews (1080p): Hanna, Kill the Messenger, The Place Beyond the Pines, The American, and Closed Circuit.

Self/Less Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Self/Less is, in a word, disappointing. The movie has all the ingredients in place -- including the right director -- for a brainy Sci-Fi film but instead settles for a slick but still second-rate Action bore-fest that's neither creative nor exciting. The movie works well enough as a mindless romp through a litter of potential that the movie seems almost afraid to touch, but anyone expecting even a modicum of dramatic satisfaction should look elsewhere. Universal's Blu-ray release of Self/Less does offer top-shelf video and audio. Supplements are of the standard commentary and featurette variety. Rent it.