After Jordan Peele’s surprise smash hit, Get Out, his follow-up effort, Us, was as highly anticipated as any other 2019 movie (save for two small movies you may have heard of, Avengers: Endgame and Star Wars: Episode IX). The fact that Get Out and Us were his first and second directorial efforts only added to the intrigue. As much positivity there was surrounding Us, there was some hesitancy. Peele had long made his bones as a comedian. Was Get Out a one hit wonder? Or did it solidify Peele as a new force to be reckoned within the horror/thriller genre?
Well folks, let me tell you, Jordan Peele is here to stay. Us is a profound cinematic achievement. It’s nearly perfect from a technical standpoint. To start, Lupita Nyong’o gives an incredible performance (two, actually). I know it’s a March release, but she has to be in serious consideration come award season. And that’s not to say she’s only the one at the top of her game here. Everyone brings their best. Multiple actors are tasked with dual roles, and yet nothing suffers with this extra work load.
And beyond the acting, Peele is at his best as a director as well. He is an expert at creating tension, and the result is countless edge-of-your-seat moments. While the actual violence, blood, and gore provides the visual elements to a horror film, the build-up to those moments is just as important. There is no payoff if the lead in drops the ball. But make no mistake about it, Us has more than its fair share of violence, but it doesn’t feel over the top or like overkill. Each moment fits within the larger narrative.
But the biggest surprise of the film it how funny it is. There are no laugh out loud moments, but there are plenty of legitimately funny ones. When done correctly, humor can be a great asset to a horror movie, but it’s a delicate balance. If a movie uses too much humor and you change the overall feel of the film. If the humor is ill-timed, it takes the the audience out of tense and scary scenes. Thankfully, that is not the case with Us.
While all of that is undoubtedly great, the premise itself is what draws you in. Lupita Nyong’o plays Adelaide who, as a child, goes through a dramatic experience. Years later, she returns to the same spot for a vacation with her husband and two children. Once there, she starts flashing back to that childhood memory. It comes to a head when her family falls victim to a home intrusion…by a family of their doppelgängers. What follows is dark, twisted, and all sorts of f-ed up (all in a good way, of course). Ultimately you very well may leave the movie with more questions than you came in with.
And that’s all I’m going to say about plot specifics. The less you know going in, the better. And yes, that’s always the case with new movies, but it’s especially true here. But the plot is where Us does run into a little bit of trouble. Like I said the premise is great. But it doesn’t all come together when it plays out on screen. There are a few plot strings that don’t quite line up. And the ending leaves something to be desired. That’s not to say the ending is all bad. It’s just that with how great the set up is, the ultimate reveal doesn’t quite meet expectations. But all in all, it’s a small quibble for an otherwise great film.
Lastly, you can’t talk about a Jordan Peele film without touching on the deeper themes at play. And I will, kind of. I’m not going to delve into the specific metaphors and allegories. What I will say is that one of the beautiful things about this film is that you can enjoy in one of two ways. You can dive deep into the larger themes at play, or you can enjoy it as a fantastic surface level horror film. Either way, while the gore and violence may make it a movie you don’t want to see again, the mind-twisting plot may make it a movie you need to see again.
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