Everyone needs to have an alter ego in some form. If you don’t have one, then find it because they are awesome. When I go to work, I am “David,” and when I come home and write this blog, I am my alter ego, Zos. The Double is a film all about the battle with the inner-self of who you are and what you aspire to be like. Jesse Eisenberg plays the protagonist, Simon James who is timid, shy and lacks confidence. He soon encounters James Simon, his more awesome alter-ego in his workplace. James Simon is a calm, cool, and confident version of Simon James. Confused to whether that this identical doppelganger is his twin, figment of his imagination or even a real person, James Simon stirs a whole lot of trouble for Simon James.

The logline states:

“A timid guy thinks he’s unique, the opposite of his devious doppelganger. But can doppelgangers really be opposites?”

The David Zosel logline says:

“A timid office hound (Jesse Eisenberg) becomes seriously paranoid after a confident and charismatic doppelganger takes a job at his factory and seduces the dame (Mia Wasikowska) that he lusts after.”

This film makes me ask the question, “Why are we so afraid to be ourselves?” Simon James fails to realize that he needs to step out of his shell to reach his fullest potential. But, we as the audience only know that while we watch the story unfold. Simon James is more worried about if James Simon is real or not. It is his battle to find his inner truth in this psychological thrilling black comedy.

 As an acting performance, this is Jesse Eisenberg’s best performance since The Social Network because of his ability to play two different people from the same character.

What I took from this film is that if you want to be confident, then be confident. If you’re going to ask a girl out, then ask her out. If you want that promotion, then go and get it. If you lay around all day being too scared to do things, then you will go crazy thinking about the person that you wish you were. The Double shows us that if we do not become the person of our fullest potential, then we will always be chasing that person for the rest of our lives, hiding in fear just like Simon James. ​​