US; A Professional Scotsman Review #28
Director Jordan Peele's debut feature Get Out (solid 8) is great. You've all seen it so you know this. Except, that is, for my Dad who complained that he couldn't understand why they were being so nasty to that nice young man - he's not senile just yet, he's just deliberately obtuse to the point where he seemed to miss a complete genre. It's a cliche to say it was superbly crafted horror, but it really was. And the first obvious thing to notice with Us is that Peele has certainly maintained his high level of craftmanship.
"Creep on in, on in. Woo. See I'm ridin' high, ridin' high. Whoooo!"
But am I damning with faint praise? After all there are a lot of decent horrors being made these days. Lot of poor ones too but seen as I'm a glass half full (of blood) kinda fella let's just take a moment to consider the strength and diversity in the current field. We've got last year's off beat weirdness in Hereditary (8), the tight, Psycho-esque Split (8) which was so unexpectedly good it resulted in a brief rejuvenation of M. Night Shyamalan - a feat previously considered impossible. In the remake department we have the very watchable It (7) and Suspiria (which I've not seen yet but it looks really great). Marry this to the very strong TV field including American Horror Story, American Haunting and even The Walking Dead and it's clear were in a booming golden age. What I'm trying to say is that classy production values doesn't necessarily make something stand out. It's the idea, the hook, the premise and the directorial execution matter most, now more than ever given the competition. In this regard, everything works almost seamlessly to begin with.
"Playa. Gimme some brew an' I might just chill, but I'm the type that like to light another joint, like Cypress Hill."
The opening is extremely tense. The atmosphere is perfect. The little girl who will grow up to be Lupita Niongo is very good and all the 80s horror references are present and correct. The film looks fabulous and we're quickly presented with the theme of duality which will drive the rest of the film. The lead up to the start of the present horror involving the family going on a holiday is exceptionally done. It's tense, funny, intriguing, and has an incredible sense of foreboding. It was as good as anything in Get Out. Then, and this is all in the trailer, a replica version of their family turns up and tries to kill them.
"I'm gone, beatin' my chest like King Kong." Whilst all this is handled fairly well - and isn't quite as silly as it sounds - after an initial confrontation I found that the tension slowly started to ebb from this point on. Interestingly, the themes of home invasion gone gonzo expands in the last third of the film, which piqued my interest again, before it all wound down. Don't get me wrong; I was entertained continuously. It was just quite clear I was watching a slightly silly romp as opposed to a nightmare from which there was no escape. And while I did enjoy much of it, the terror was continuously undercut by the comedy. Yes, it is funny. And yes, it is scary. But goodness me the mix of this is so jarring by the end. Get Out was a horror that used comedy to relieve tension. This, that is to say Us, is practically a comedy that uses horror to create ocassional tension.
"I come to school with a taylor on my earlobe, avoiding the thick teasers, skeezers and weirdos."
And let's touch on the theme of duality. Though it's an interesting theme, I couldn't really tell you what it all means. Does it mean that America (or any capitalist country) thrives on the misery of an underclass? Does it mean that we're all capable of violence? Does it mean we literally all have evil doppelgangers out to get us? The film has no final answers, and in fact is very literal by the end which I wouldn't have expected. If the movie had stayed nebulous like, say, Phantasm (9) does with it's bizarre underexplored alternate dimension and you had to guess what the source of the horror was, it would be terrifying. What we get instead is a grab bad of ideas along with an uneven tone.
"I be blowin' up the land like where tha bomb at? Give me two bucks, you take a puff and pass my bomb back." FINAL ANALYSIS: I had a lot of silly fun. It looks fantastic and anything that utilises Luniz hip hop classic I Got Five On It as the definitive track (including a baroque, ballet inflected version) is an interesting movie. In fact it's fascinating to think about, just a little tensionless to watch in the second half. And that means director Jordan Peele's greatest work will still be his "Gremlins 2" skit from Key and Peele which I've linked at the start of this review. Please watch it immediately because it's a 10.
"I got 5 on it."
SCORE: An ambitious but flawed shaky 7. Now click on that "Gremlins 2" link.
ALERNATE TITLE: Luniz
