We have seen many movies where an old, wealthy man is shown in a negative and dark way. He’s someone who would go far and beyond to eliminate anyone who comes in his way of accomplishing evil plans. But what’s presented in Self/Less is quite different. Tarsem Singh shows us his version of being rich and powerful while being caring, loving, and not selfish at all…

A dying real estate mogul, Damian (Ben Kingsley) agrees to transfer his consciousness into a healthy young body (Ryan Reynolds). He quickly starts feeling regret, as he realizes that the body he gets has a complicated story and the company that performs the procedure is far from the way it seems… ‘An old consciousness’ must decide whether to go with whatever he has and enjoy life, or investigate and find the truth, something which is not going to be that pleasant…

When Self/Less begins, Singh takes only ten minutes of the screening time to develop an old Damian’s character quickly. We find out about his daughter for whom he did not have much time, his sickness and quick decision making. Right after, we see a younger version of Damian in the body of Ryan Reynolds. Before it happens, we also get a chance to know Ben Kingsley’s character as a soft, calm, and not ‘not-ready-to-go-man’. The idea of becoming much younger, healthier, and live longer makes Damian to think of endless possibilities and opportunities that will come to him with his new look. However, his personality and who he is does not change after the transformation, which is what makes Damian an interesting character to root for.

In conclusion, Self/Less is a movie with an interesting point. You watch the movie and see Ryan Reynolds desperately trying to find out the truth and escape from bad guys. All this time you can’t help but still see Kingsley’s version of Damian who somehow does not want to give up his principles of life and keep sacrificing what he has in order to find out about the body he owns. But more importantly, throughout his journey, Damian will learn and get courage to do something he could not have thought of doing it before…