The Devil's Double (2011)

A chilling vision of the House of Saddam Hussein comes to life through the eyes of the man who was forced to become the double of Hussein's sadistic son.

Director:

Lee Tamahori

Writers:

Michael Thomas, Latif Yahia (books)

Stars:

Dominic Cooper, Ludivine Sagnier, Raad Rawi

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dominic Cooper	...	Uday Hussein / Latif Yahia
Ludivine Sagnier	...	Sarrab
Raad Rawi	...	Munem
Philip Quast	...	Saddam Hussein / Faoaz
Mimoun Oaïssa	...	Ali
Khalid Laith	...	Yassem Al-Helou
Dar Salim	...	Azzam
Mem Ferda	...	Kamel Hannah
Nasser Memarzia	...	Latif's Father
Pano Masti	...	Said
Akin Gazi	...	Saad
Stewart Scudamore	...	Father of School Girl
Amrita Acharia	...	School Girl
Elektra Anastasi	...	School Girl 2
Amber Rose Revah	...	Bride

Storyline

Baghdad, the playground for the rich and infamous, where anything can be bought - but for a price. This is Uday Hussein's world and with his depraved lust for debauchery and immorality, he helps himself to whatever turns him on. When army lieutenant Latif Yahia is summoned to Saddam's palace, he is faced with an impossible request - to be Uday's 'fiday' - his body double, or have his family condemned to death. In a world entrenched in betrayal and corruption, knowing who to trust becomes a matter of life or death for Latif, as he battles to escape from his forced existence.

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Plot Keywords:

palace | debauchery | uday hussein | body double | betrayal | 

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Taglines:

Play the part or suffer the consequences

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong brutal bloody violence and torture, sexual content, graphic nudity, drug use and pervasive language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Belgium Netherlands

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 September 2011 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

Đavolji dvojnik

Filming Locations:

Grand Hotel Excelsior, Malta

Box Office

Budget:

€15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$96,414 (USA) (29 July 2011)

Gross:

$1,357,042 (USA) (23 September 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Corsan, Corrino Media Corporation, Staccato Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Danny Boyle was considered to direct.

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Goofs

Scenes showing the Iraqi army invading Kuwait include an armored personnel carrier marked with an inverted V. This symbol was used on vehicles belonging to the coalition invading Iraq during operation Desert Storm.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Azzam: [to Latif] Hey.

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Connections

Referenced in The Real Devil's Double (2011)

User Reviews

The Devil's Double, twice the performance and Top Movie10/10

After the slew of Iraq movies, all of them from the American soldiers perspective (Green Zone, The Hurt Locker, Three Kings) I found the subject matter of this film to be a refreshing change. What most people know or remember of Gulf war one, is completely overshadowed by Gulf war Two/ Iraqi Freedom. So to be able to go back in time and get a glimpse of Baghdad in it's hey day was a remarkable break from "Victory movies", this is the only movie about Iraq to date as seen from an Iraqi viewpoint. Yes, it's violent (not necessarily moreso than Saw, Texas chainsaw massacre et al) but then since it is a portrayal of events in a real persons life would you want it any other way? Dominic Cooper is just fantastic, he inhabits both characters flawlessly and for the most part you genuinely believe that he is two people.

As for the excess, obscenity, gratuitous violence and material wealth that some other reviewers have complained about, well, that was Bagdad in the '80's, does it have to be dressed up in Military Fatigues screaming "U.S.A" to be a good movie? If you liked Scarface, if you want an action packed ride, if you love depth of colour and sound in your movie. If you want to see great acting from Dominic Cooper, then this is the movie for you.

When you go see it, ask yourself, what would you have done in the same situation as the main character Latif Yahia? Could you have survived, because, unless you hadn't heard it is based on a true story.

Watch and Enjoy, I have watched it twice and want to watch it again because each time I watch it I can't believe it's over, I want more! Stories like this don't come around everyday. Unless of course you want to watch another Hurt Locker, it may have won a lot of Oscars but The Devil's Double deserves more.