The Substance Review

        Of all the films that I’ve watched this year, this one is easily up there in my level of enjoyment. There were other horror films that were decent, some were sequels and a prequel. I’ll say that this year is probably the best in terms of horror. What makes this one different was that I didn’t even know it existed. To me it is the perfect mindset to watch a movie by going in blind. Not knowing what you’re going to see and not knowing what to expect. The Substance is easily the best horror film of the year and one of the best horror film of the decade.

1.     Elizabeth and Sue

        Just as the film starts, I thought it was going to be some art film that’s trying really hard to be artsy for the sake of it. Then it started to click when we see this new substance at work as it duplicates the egg yolk that is presented. With that, we follow Elizabeth as she is an aerobics instructor, it is established that she has been doing it for a long time and considered washed up. Much to the ire of the producer, she overhears his conversation to let her go. After a car crash, she receives an invitation to try the new drug called The Substance.

        She follows through and takes it. From there, she spawns a younger clone of herself, named Sue. As with any horror film, it has that monkey paw effect where Elizabeth gets some unintended consequences. This film is a lot to take in, which I will go over. There’s really two ways to do this kind of story and with how its presented is going to the tongue and cheek angle. Like, the film is embed with irony where there’s no possibility of rust as far as what you’re going to get when you are watching it.

        What I mean by that is just how it’s shot is so in your face as far as subverting voyeurism. Meaning, those shots where one part of a woman’s body is shot in a seductive and up close way. One example is Quentin Tarantino’s recurring visual motif of shooting woman’s feet in a majority of his films. With this film, it sets up the difference between both Elizabeth and Sue’s aerobics show. Obviously, Elizabeth’s is reminiscent of the 80s aerobics such as when Jane Fonda unintentionally made it popular. Sue meanwhile has a hyper look to it where the workout outfit is more revealing, and it has a lot of those voyeur shots that I mentioned.

        Additionally, I love how there is a clear distinction between the two characters. Elizabeth seems endearing enough where she is kind, although becomes self conscious over the revelation that she is too old. Sue meanwhile is young and definitely abuses her use of the substance so she can have more fun. It has to be stated that both of these characters are one person. Especially in the moments where Elizabeth becomes concerned that the mysterious vendor tells her that the “she” that is the problem is really her.

        If there’s one thing that makes the film work is whenever Dennis Quaid is in. Originally Ray Liotta was supposed to be in the movie, but he passed away just before filming started. Who knows how he could have pulled off the character that Quaid portrays. Dennis plays Harvey who’s the main producer, and everything about him is so over the top and gross that it is enjoyable to watch. One scene in particular when he and Elizabeth are discussing her future, he eats shrimp during the discussion. The way it’s shot and how he eats it is so disgusting that it’s basically the appetizer of what’s coming.

        The moments he shows up is never a dull moment. He’s so over the top that it does not come off as he is not trying or it’s just a bad performance. All of it is on purpose since it definitely showcases how out of touch as far as wanting to control his stars by having them be perfect and smiling. He never receives his comeuppance but is basically the problem representing just how cutthroat the entertainment business is.

2.     Body Horror and Youth

        For as much as I’ve been talking, this is the most unique body horror film that I’ve watched in recent memory. For those not in the know, what body horror is specifically is a type of film where we see the human body be mangled into something like an abomination or be transformed into a creature. It was prevalent during the 80s with films like The Thing and The Fly to name a few. Those films use it as a way to represent the fears of the AIDS virus at the time and they were very graphic.

        This one is like a pendulum where it is tame briefly and then swerves into bloody disgusting. I’ll break it down further by showcasing the tame aspect. As we see Elizabeth take the substance, she convulses and then Sue bursts the formers back all grown up. It’s like a reverse Alien where the offspring spawns from the back instead of the chest. There are rules that both have to follow so that the host doesn’t have any consequences, and of course that’s thrown out the window as soon as Sue embraces her independence.

        We really see Sue as a younger version of Elizabeth as she parties and gets grabby with her boyfriend. She abuses her host to the point where Elizabeth starts to encounter severe aging in her limbs. I just love how gradually she is aging and it’s hilarious as she fights back by eating foods that ruin Sue’s figure. It’s not just the body being ripped to shreds but more so how it’s getting abused because of how wild the offspring is.

        As I mentioned earlier, when Elizabeth reaches out to the vendor and complains about what Sue is doing, the voice says that they are the problem since they are one. In a way, one can interpret the film as having commentary on women’s appearance and when they are in the entertainment business. They have to be beautiful but immediately when they age, a new replacement is discovered and becomes the new face in beauty. It makes the moment when we see Elizabeth ruin her makeup tragic since she doesn’t embrace her age but gets jealous of Sue’s popularity.

        I just feel bad for the only guy that talks to Elizabeth since he genuinely cares for her and isn’t aware of what’s going on with her. Like the moment when Elizabeth is applying layers of makeup and rubbing it off her face is just tragic in the bigger context. It all inevitably leads in the fight between the two and, for a moment I thought the shots that we see would be skewed like seeing two different perspectives fight, but it’s just crazy how much strength Sue has as she beats up the decrepit Elizabeth.

        Lastly, I’m at odds with the ending of the film. I don’t want to give it away. I mean I’ve talked about so much that people will stop reading this and go watch the film. Why are you reading this far? Anyways, the last minutes is when the film gets really bloody as a new character pops up and is an amalgamation of both Elizabeth and Sue. Like this thing is so gross, and it’s utterly hilarious that it grabs a cutout of Elizabeth to make people think that it is her. From there, it’s reminiscent of Carrie with the level of blood and carnage that I think it’s too much. Again, maybe it’s dependent of the mood.

3.     Overall

        The Substance is easily the best horror film of this year and I’ll even say it’s up there with the best films of this year as a whole.