Self/less, film review: Sleekly shot sci-fi thriller loses its identity

(12A) Tarsem Singh, 117 mins. Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Matthew Goode, Ben Kingsley

Madeline (Natalie Martinez) and daughter Anna (Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen) flee with Young Damian (Ryan Reynolds) in psychological science fiction thriller Self/less

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

Billionaire property mogul Damian Hale (Ben Kingsley), suffering from a terminal illness, strikes a Faustian pact with scientist Professor Albright (Matthew Goode). For $250m, Damian undergoes "shedding".

This means he is provided by Albright with a seemingly new body (in the shape of Ryan Reynolds). Suffering from flashbacks into the man's past, Damian tracks down the man's wife.

As the uncanny quality of the early scenes gives way to conventional action fare, such issues as Damian's predicament as an old man in a young hunk's body are swept to one side.