A neurotic actor, struggling to perform in a Chekhov play, has his soul temporarily extracted and rents a Russian one. Success– rave reviews! Now he must find and reclaim his soul which has been stolen and implanted in someone else.

As I indicated, this is not an easy film to logline. I originally thought only to post a logline with the story hook.? Just the 1st sentence that lays down the set up:

A neurotic actor, struggling to perform in a Chekhov play, has his soul temporarily extracted and rents a Russian one.

The 2nd sentence refers to the MPR moment.

Actually, the first sentence doesn’t really convey how the plot unfolds.? Here’s the sequence of plot beats:

1]INITIAL SITUATION: the actor is floundering in rehearsals to play Uncle Vanya.
2]INCITING INCIDENT: At tip from his agent about a New Yorker article on soul extraction directs him to a consultation.
3] DEBATE AND INDECISION: After learning more and overcoming his doubts and concerns…
4]END OF ACT ONE: He crosses the threshold, has his ineffectual soul extracted and stored.

5]BUT (complication):? Not having a soul to put into the role only makes his performance worse.
6] In desperation, he rents the soul of a female Russian poet.
7] Now he’s able to give a soulful performance. Success!
8]BUT (complication): he develops an allergic reaction: the Russian poet’s soul is too great to dwell in a mediocre person such as the actor.? So he must return it and regain his own soul.
9]MPR:? He goes to retrieve his soul from storage, discovers it’s gone.