This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The old showman Cecil B. deMille showed in "The Ten Commandments" that the most audience-pleasing way to condemn evil on film was to wallow in it, in all its gilt-edged greed and carnal glory — giving the audience all the salaciousness it could want, then making it even sweeter when good, or God, prevails in the final reel.
A similar idea is at work in "The Devil's Double," which revels in the gold, girls and guns of the high-living sons of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, as seen from the front row of the madness.
First we meet Latif Yahia (played by Dominic Cooper), a young Iraqi military officer who is summoned to the presidential palace in the early 1980s, near the start of the Iran-Iraq war. There he meets Saddam's son Uday (also played by Cooper). Uday and Latif were classmates years before, and others remarked how much they looked alike. Now Uday offers Latif a job as his body double — for security purposes, but also to enjoy the grand life of the Husseins. Latif refuses the job, and Uday throws him in solitary confinement and threatens his family. Then Latif accepts.
As a member of Uday's inner circle, Latif sees firsthand the swimming pools, fast cars, designer clothes and half-naked women that were a daily part of the Hussein family's life. He also sees and experiences Uday's horrible side: his random gunplay; his habit of kidnapping, raping and killing teen schoolgirls; his use of his position as head of the Iraqi Olympic Committee as a personal torture chamber. Latif also gets close to the one person Uday has declared off limits: his girlfriend Sarrap (played by the gorgeous French actress Ludivine Sagnier).
Director Lee Tamahori — whose career has gone from the great Maori drama "Once Were Warriors" to "Die Another Day" (one of the worst James Bond movies) and the Nicolas Cage time-jumping "Next" — skims lightly over recent history (most of the first Iraq War is seen in news footage) while overloading on the sexuality and violence of Uday's life. The script by Michael Thomas ("Ladyhawke," "BackBeat") leaves a bit of room for introspection, as when Latif talks frankly to Uday's sage security chief (Raad Rawi) and calls him "a good man in a bad job."
The best thing about "The Devil's Double" — and, really, the only reason for the movie's existence — is the acting challenge presented to Dominic Cooper, who runs with it. Cooper (recently seen as industrialist Howard Stark in "Captain America") revels in the over-the-top madness of Uday, playing him with a broad goofy smile like a murderous Mr. Bean. And he ably contrasts that with the serious, thoughtful Latif, looking at all the angles as he seeks an escape from this dangerous job. Cooper's dual performance is smart and slick, and worth the price of admission.
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The Devil's Double
Dominic Cooper's dual performance, as madman Uday Hussein and his reluctant body double, enlivens this dark drama of sex, violence and corruption.
Where • Broadway Centre Cinemas.
When • Opens today.
Rating • R for strong brutal bloody violence and torture, sexual content, graphic nudity, drug use and pervasive language.
Running time • 109 minutes.