Spoiler-Free New Release Review: Us (2019)

Director: Jordan Peele

A rather novel and compelling horror film by the director who brought us the seminal Get Out, but this follow-up effort I found to have some elements which weren't as effective as I suspect Jordan Peele hoped. Still, it's a movie well worth seeing.

Us follows the story of Adelaide Wilson (Lupita Nyong'o) and her family - husband and two children, during a vacation trip to the shore. When the Wilson's are set upon by a quartet of eerie strangers, Adelaide is forced to recall some very disturbing memories from her childhood - memories which hint at a far larger, far more sinister and horrifying plot unfolding around them.

Being the spoiler-free section of this review, I can only say so much, so I'll stick to general reactions. I found the concept and overall story arc highly engaging. The great strength of this movie is the grand mystery around the Wilsons' attackers - who are they? Where did they come from? What do they want? The answers are teased out at a fairly satisfying pace, and they leave enough mystery in the end to allow viewers to draw more than a few of their own conclusions about several elements of the story. The other great strength of the film is, not surprisingly, the acting. Any movie headed up by Lupita Nyong'o and Winston Duke is one that you know is going to wring everything possible out of the script, and Us is no exception.

But I couldn't shake the feeling that this movie felt just a bit flat. I didn't find the tense moments all that tense, and I didn't find several of the expositions nearly as gripping as I've seen in other thriller/horror movies. To be completely honest, I didn't once feel a sense of dread or anxiety in this movie, unlike other recently-seen horror movies like Hereditary or even the same director's own Get Out. There were also a few of the plot elements that didn't seem to completely add up, though I feel that this is somewhat forgivable, considering that Peele was really swinging for the fences with this story.

I may eventually watch this movie again, or at the very least try to seek out a well-written study of its themes and over-arching messages. There is a certain amount to unpack in this film; I'm just not sure that I need to sit through the entire 2 hours one more time to get at the heart of it all. 

New Release! Get Out (2017) [Spoiler-Free Review]

No Spoilers. Have No Fear.

Director: Jordan Peele

While not the genre-changing, life-altering experience that some might have you expect, this was a very solid suspense/horror movie that offers some thoughtful, rich themes and suggestions about society that go beyond most films in the genre.

As much as any movie in recent history, I wish had not seen any of the previews. I suspect that it might have had far more impact had the trailers, which were being shown at high volume for weeks before the film's release, not given too many hints at the tale. As such, I was able to guess at the general plot fairly well, along with some of the details. To keep this review spoiler-free, I'll stick to a paraphrase of the common preview. Chris Washington is a young, black Brooklyn photographer who is taking a weekend trip to meet his white girlfriend Rose's family for the first time. Shortly after arriving at the impressive New England home of the Armitages, Chris senses something amiss with the environment, especially with the odd behavior of their groundskeeper and maid, both of whom are black. While the Armitages seem pleasant enough, they take odd interests in Chris which give him pause. The sensation becomes more profound when the Armitages host a rather large party, where more of their friends behave towards Chris in similarly strange ways. The details of the unusual behavior become clear, revealing horrors from which Chris must eventually escape. All of this is depicted fairly clearly in the advertisements. Fortunately, there is more to the movie than the plot, which is good since some of of the minor details don't hold up particularly well under close scrutiny. Minor details, though.

While the terrible details in the story make up the horror elements, it is their implications about race and identity that elevate Get Out above nearly all other films of the genre. There are several extremely meaty topics worthy of exploration and discussion, mostly relating to white appropriation of black identity in various forms. There are also themes of psychological bondage and other sophisticated notions that are likely to stay with viewers long after the film ends. They have in my case.

Nothing creepy about these Caucasians. Nothing at all.

In addition to these impressive strengths, the movie is simply a solidly-constructed film. Anyone who has watched much of the Key and Peele comedy sketch show that writer/director Jordan Peele did for five years knows that he is a massive movie buff who knows how to analyze and lampoon nearly every cinematic genre and technique. In Get Out, though, he sets aside the comedy (for the most part) and really shows his film-making chops. Solid scripting and pacing, along with excellent cinematography and editing, enhance the eerie tale considerably. Oh, and the one element of comic relief is consistently hilarious (as expected from a comedy maestro like Peele).

I can't claim to be an expert on horror movies, but I have seen nearly all of the "classics" and I do appreciate a well-done horror flick. Get Out joins the ranks of the great ones, and will likely remain relevant for decades. I highly recommend to those who are not put off by challenging themes and a handful of brutally violent scenes. If you don't mind that, then you're in for one novel film.