| The Devil's Double | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Lee Tamahori |
| Screenplay by | Michael Thomas |
| Based on | The Devil's Double byLatif Yahia |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | Dominic Cooper Ludivine Sagnier |
| Cinematography | Sam McCurdy |
| Edited by | Luis Carballar |
| Music by | Christian Henson |
Production company | Corsan |
| Distributed by | A-Film Distribution |
Release dates |
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Running time | 108 minutes |
| Countries |
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| Language | English |
| Budget | $19.1 million[1] |
| Box office | $4.8 million[1] |
The Devil's Double is a 2011 English-language Dutch-Belgianbiographicalthriller film directed byLee Tamahori, written by Michael Thomas, and starringDominic Cooper in the dual role of Iraqi military commanderUday Hussein and his body doubleLatif Yahia. It was released on 22 January 2011 at the2011 Sundance Film Festival and wasreleased in limited theaters in the United States on 29 July 2011 byLionsgate and Herrick Entertainment to mixed critic reviews.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
In 1987,Latif Yahia, an Iraqi soldier fighting in theIran–Iraq War, is called to become a "fedai" ("body double" orpolitical decoy) forUday Hussein, the son of presidentSaddam. Latif comes from an upper-class family and attended school with Uday, where students would remark on their likeness. He refuses the position. Furious, Uday has him imprisoned and tortured. Latif relents when his family is threatened. Latif undergoes cosmetic surgery to perfect his resemblance to Uday and practices emulating the latter's mannerisms and persona. Latif tries to resist Uday's exorbitant merrymaking and erratic behavior, at one point fleeing a nightclub to attempt to see his family, who believe that he died in the war. However, he is apprehended by Uday's bodyguards and beaten by Uday. After an appearance at a conference withKuwaiti leaders, an attempt is made on Uday's (Latif's) life, apparently by a member of a rebel opposition group, possibly aKurd. The real Uday, though, is more concerned with the Kuwaitis, who he believes wereslant drilling into Iraq'sRumaila oil field. TheFirst Gulf War is launched.
Uday eventually kidnaps a 14-year-old girl and forces her to escort him to a party.[a] There, Uday becomes enraged with Saddam's personal bodyguardKamel Hana Gegeo. Uday believes that Gegeo facilitated an affair Saddam had,[b] which devastated his mother.[c] Uday is also jealous at the trust Saddam places in Gegeo. When Gegeo passes sarcastic comments about Uday's advances towards the girl and drunkenly fires an AK-47 in the air, Uday butchers him with aknife in front of the guests. The next morning, Uday's bodyguards dump the girl's beaten, partially naked body. Furious, Saddam goes to the hospital, where Uday is overdosed on sleeping pills. Saddam beats Uday and nearly castrates him. Only the intervention of a doctor saves him. As the war is in full swing, Latif tries to distance himself from Uday and begins an affair with Sarrab, one of Uday's lovers.
Latif, acting as Uday, is later sent toBasra to rally support amongRepublican Guard soldiers asCoalition forces took control of the war. At Basra, another attempt is made on Latif's life. Latif nearly loses a finger in the assault, which would mean Uday would have to amputate his own finger to maintain their resemblance. Uday enters a hospital and threatens to slaughter it if they fail to save his finger. The doctors succeed.
Afterwards, Uday, accompanied by his usual party, crashes a wedding, eventually raping and beating the bride, who then commits suicide. Angry, Latif assaults Uday but is corralled by the latter's bodyguards, who threaten to kill him. Uday stops them. Later, Latif is confronted by the father of the girl Uday killed. Uday overhears them and is outraged by the man's pleas for "justice" and "compassion." Uday orders Latif to kill the man, but Latif refuses and instead slits his own wrists. He is dumped half-dead on his family's front door. After Latif recovers, he confronts Uday at his birthday party. The confrontation escalates to a shootout and Latif escapes in Uday'sMercedes with Sarrab. The two escape toValletta, but Sarrab, fearing for her daughter in Iraq, calls Uday begging for the chance to return without being harmed. A would-be assassin sent by Uday misses shooting Latif when they arrive on the island. Angered by Sarrab's carelessness, he washes his hands of her. Uday later calls, offering Latif one final chance to return to Iraq, threatening to kill his father if he refuses. Latif's father encourages him not to return and is killed.
Latif returns to Iraq to kill Uday, aided by the man whose bride killed herself. They ambush Uday while he is attempting to lure young girls into hisPorsche.[d] Although his partner is killed, they wound him severely. One of Uday's bodyguards catches up to Latif as he flees the scene. However the guard is one who Latif could have killed at Uday's birthday party but spared, and the guard extends him the same courtesy.
Latif later lives in Ireland with his wife and their two children.[e] Uday is permanently handicapped by the attack but survives until his killing by U.S. forces in 2003.
A Belgian and Dutch production, the film was shot inJordan andMalta.[10]
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The film received mixed reviews, though much critical acclaim has been given to Dominic Cooper's dual role. On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, 54% of 102 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.7/10/10. The website's consensus reads: "The Devil's Double has plenty of gangster spectacle and Dominic Cooper ably playing off his dual roles, but this crime epic struggles to balance the fun of bad behavior with the dead serious crimes of its subject."[11]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, assigned the film a score of 52 out of 100, based on 28 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[12]
IGN awarded it 3.5 out of 5 and said "certainly a fresh perspective on one of the Middle East's most brutal dictators".[3][4][5][6][7]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 38th Saturn Awards | Best Horror or Thriller Film | The Devil's Double | Nominated |
| Best Actor | Dominic Cooper | Nominated |
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