The Actor is a weird, trippy, movie that has themes of reinventing oneself when you think it is too late to do so. André Holland is incredible.
NEON never disappoints when it comes to delivering unconventional movies. The Actor is their latest venture and it is just as weird and twisted as you might expect after reading the synopsis. After an accident, Paul E. Cole (André Holland) loses his memory. Over the course of ninety minutes or so, he searches for his identity, never quite knowing what is real and what isn’t.
Paul leaves notes for himself so that he will remember the important details, but in every town that he visits, the people look the same. Honestly, this is a brilliant move by Director Duke Johnson – casting the same actor to play several characters. It causes viewers to find themselves in the same situation as Paul, trying to put the pieces together and establish which identity is the real one.
Holland is absolutey incredible in this film. He is, of course, the main focus of the movie. There is never a scene without him in it, allowing the audience to go on this journey alongside him. Because of this we channel his emotions like confusion, anger, and love.
The thing that I truly love the most about this film is the message that it is never too late to change yourself. Paul is, understandably, curious about the man that he is. He doesn’t know much, and the more he learns about himself, the less he likes about himself.
When he meets Edna (Gemma Chan) she points out that because of his memory loss, he now has the chance to reinvent himself and become whatever he wants. This is a gift that many people in this world would want to take advantage of. We all have things in our past we would change.
Edna and Paul’s relationship might not be the core focus of The Actor, but it is an impactful part of the plot. Any time that Chan and Holland are on screen together, I was completely captivated.
Much of the events in this movie are chaotic. Paul often finds himself not knowing what to say or think because of his condition. There are times where he tries to lie his way out of situations and others where he gives in and admits what is wrong with him. All of these feelings and actions are completely valid.
It might not sound like it, but The Actor is a really fun movie. It keeps you on your toes as Paul’s memories end up twisted together. There are times where your heart will be pounding right alongside Paul, waiting to see what happens next. While the ending seems to be a bit open to interpretation in terms of what exactly this man went through, it is touching and empowering.
The Actor comes to theaters on March 14, and it is more than worth checking out on the big screen. Be sure to stay through the credits as there are sure to be some surprises when you discover all of the characters the different actors were playing.
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About The Actor
Based on the novel Memory by Donald E. Westlake, The Actor finds Paul Cole (Holland) stranded in a mysterious small town with no memory of who he is or how he got here. Without a sense of identity or purpose, he starts from scratch and begins courting a local costume designer Edna (Chan).
As bits and pieces of his past slowly emerge, he attempts to find his way home, but time is slippery, appearances can’t be trusted, and it’s unclear which of his identities is real.