Self/less

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2:30

Self/less

PG-13

2015

1h 56m

Sci-Fi

Mystery & Thriller

Action

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

18%

Tomatometer

142 Reviews

46%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Billionaire industrialist Damian Hale (Ben Kingsley) is master of his universe, until he encounters a foe that he can't defeat: cancer. His only hope is a radical medical procedure called "shedding," in which his consciousness is transferred to a healthy body. After the procedure, Damian, now called Edward (Ryan Reynolds), starts a new life in New Orleans, but he's plagued by disturbing images. When he delves into Edward's mysterious origin, he learns that some will kill to keep it secret.

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Critics Consensus

Self/less boasts a potential-packed premise, but does frustratingly little with it, settling for lackluster action at the expense of interesting ideas.

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Mark Kermode

Observer (UK)

Reynolds's failure to display the faintest trace (verbal, physical) of Kingsley's character negates any potential mind/ body tension. Self/less? Point/less!

Rated: 2/5

Jul 19, 2015

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Charlotte O'Sullivan

London Evening Standard

Tragically, the film itself is as dumb as a doorknob.

Rated: 2/5

Jul 17, 2015

Full Review

Geoffrey Macnab

Independent (UK)

Tarsem Singh's sleekly shot sci-fi thriller begins intriguingly but loses its identity.

Rated: 2/5

Jul 16, 2015

Full Review

Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

Borrowing all kinds of pieces and ideas from better, more coherent, and more menacing science fiction and action films, "Self/less" blows any attempt at being a compelling thriller at each supposed twist and turn it seems fit to fashion.

Rated: 1/5

Jul 28, 2025

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Tarsem loses his audience in actionized nonsense, leaving the story's best ideas to remain under-developed, if developed at all.

Rated: 1.5/4

Jun 9, 2022

Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

What should have been a tale of slowly uncorrupting a callous, wayward soul becomes a standard sci-fi body-swapping yarn full of obligatory action sequences.

Rated: 5/10

Dec 4, 2020

Full Review

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Paul S

This movie was great! It had a really compelling story and an incredible sci-fi concept. Maybe it's not the best action-thriller out there, but it had a lot of intense moments and was really fun to watch. I definitely recommend it for sci-fi, thriller, and action fans!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

09/06/25

Full Review

Adzz S.

Not so great, but one of the worst Ryan Reynolds movies he’s done so far.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

09/05/25

Full Review

Blu B

Well...the music is ok I guess. Boring, generic and forgettable. But everything else is subpar. This is an absolute slog to get through. The editing just feels choppy not really jumpy though. And it's just not very clear at times how we get from one point to another. It sort of makes sense but it's borderline incoherent throughout. The flashbacks aren't good and don't really fit either. The acting echoes back to that classic 00's style of acting that became popular where everything is said really serious, emotionless, and wooden throughout. The two love interest have at best nothing special chemistry. The villian is so forgettable. Reynolds is trying and has moments but he's weighed down so much by the choppy story and lifeless slog direction. It's a shame he can't pick good things consistently to be in that's not comedic. This really doesn't feel like a Sci-Fi plot. Whenever it does look Sci-Fi it's just metallic grey and looks like it could have come from any 2010's Sci Fi movie from Oblivion to Passengers and I'd completely believe you if you told me it was. It's not interesting to listen to, the acting is wooden, the direction is very basic and sometimes lifeless, and hard to follow. This film really has nothing going for it and the commentary on the conciousness of a human is lost in all of it. This should 100% be remade and fixed by a more talented director and sharper script. Skip this until than.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

09/01/25

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Dawn F

An interesting concept but a little predictable.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/11/25

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Bruce H

This is an absorbing story for the most part. I was able to enjoy it and I think the 18% rating of the critics is stupid. Maybe you'll like it too.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

10/16/24

Full Review

Sensei H

This movie is so bad, I forgot I saw it when it first came out in 2015. Today is March 5th 2024, and it's just as forgettable as I remember. Ryan Reynolds is still trolling as much as Deadpool with his movies.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/05/24

Full Review

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Tarsem Singh

Director

Ryan Reynolds

Young Damian

Natalie Martinez

Madeline

Matthew Goode

Albright

Victor Garber

Martin

Derek Luke

Anton

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Self/less: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Billionaire industrialist Damian Hale (Ben Kingsley) is master of his universe, until he encounters a foe that he can't defeat: cancer. His only hope is a radical medical procedure called "shedding," in which his consciousness is transferred to a healthy body. After the procedure, Damian, now called Edward (Ryan Reynolds), starts a new life in New Orleans, but he's plagued by disturbing images. When he delves into Edward's mysterious origin, he learns that some will kill to keep it secret.

Director: Tarsem Singh
Producer: Ram Bergman, James D. Stern, Peter Schlessel
Screenwriter: Àlex Pastor, David Pastor
Distributor: Focus Features
Production Co: FilmNation Entertainment, Focus Features, Ram Bergman, Endgame Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Sequences of Violence|Language|Some Sexuality)
Genre: Sci-Fi, Mystery & Thriller, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 10, 2015, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 16, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $12.3M
Runtime: 1h 56m

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