The Devil's Double

Saddam Hussein was not the only one in his family with a body double; his son, Uday Hussein had one as well. This is the story behind that double, and his name is Latif Yahia. This is definitely not a film to miss when it is released. Lee Tamahori is a skilled director who has his flaws when it comes to his films, but overall he has a very good record behind him (Next, Die Another Day, Along Came A Spider). The acting in this film is good (especially Dominic Cooper), the deliverance is spectacular, and the overall tone and feel for the characters and setting is very realistic. With great effects, cinematography, and writing, this film is, hands-down, one of the best Indie films ever created. I'd see this in theaters twice, given the chance to. I'm sure Latif Yahia will be satisfied with this Indie masterpiece

8.5/10 Stars****

Saw this movie today at Berlinale and was pleasantly surprised that as I walked out of it thought to myself that it's been a really long time since I saw a decent movie like this. Before I looked Uday/Latif up on the internet I had doubts about how close the plot was to reality, turned out to be quite interesting showing that, well everything in the movie has (kind of) happened. Makes it disturbing to know on a different level.

The depiction of Uday's psychotic character throughout the movie seems very real and does not spare or cheat the viewers any disturbing torture/abuse scenes. Some people might dislike this, some maybe even enjoy it.

That being said I liked the overall acting, both main and lesser characters did a good job. And on a side note: i found the movie sets and props were quite awesome.

btw: I can still remember the news of Uday's and Qusai's deaths back in 2003, but that meant little to me at that time. At least now i know.

Why take an amazing true story and turn into a mundane fictional one?

The reality of Latif's life was that he became so entrenched in Uday's character that he practically became him. He became violent and even after he escaped with his wife and kids (not with a hooker on a horse) he continued to behave like Uday.

The acting was not great. The portrayal of Uday was over the top and not believable. Same with the constant backchat from Latif to Uday considering that an out of line comment is the reason Latif ended up getting shot in reality.

The film could have been an intelligent psychological drama instead of a dumbed blockbuster. Shame.

I saw this movie not realizing that both leads were being played by one amazing actor!!! Dominic Cooper was exactly that: amazing. And deserving of an Oscar nomination when the time comes for handing them out. My film club was fortunate enough to have an interview with DC via Skype and found him to be as charming as he is talented.

Some seem to find fault with this film because it reminds them of Scarface. I don't get that at all. Perhaps they mean that at times it is operatic, over the top, but it is, after all, a biopic about a crazy man, and to me anyway, the parts of the film that deal with the double offset the high drama perfectly. Highly recommended!

I'm a big fan of Dominic Cooper, but he's not enough to save this truly bizarre and puerile film.

The film starts off with Uday hiring a doppleganger of himself (Latif), to pass off as him publicly. Latif, hasn't really a choice, and is portrayed as having some morals, Uday is portrayed as a millionaire playboy, who is a murdering brute who gets off on violence, sodomy and rape. His only redeeming quality is his penchant for 80s British synth pop (?).

The film becomes increasingly outlandish. If it were a true story, then this could have been quite fascinating. I learnt nothing, and by the end had tuned out. It reminded me of the last king of Scotland, which I didn't enjoy either.

I thought it were unnecessary for Cooper to play both the leads. It felt unbelievable as both characters appeared unrealistically identical.

I knew nothing of the back story of Uday, a quick glance at Wikipedia describes him as quite the devil. That much the film gets right. There's some artistic license used at the end of the movie.