“The Substance” (2024) is a grotesque body horror film–a horror subgenre focusing on the human body’s transformation in a graphic way–portraying Hollywood’s obsession with allure and youthfulness. The film does this by showing the downfall of the lead character and her beauty because she never appreciated her own.
Director Coralie Fargeat’s sophomore film is about Elisabeth, played by Demi Moore, who strives to find anything to make herself appear more youthful. In doing so, she encounters “The Substance.”
After taking the drug, a more beautiful and younger version of herself, Sue, played by Margaret Qualley, is created. The film explains this as that the user must give each a week between themself and the clone. If they abuse this, the substance will punish them.
“The Substance” is a daring film that strives to be different while promoting feminism in Hollywood. It examines Hollywood’s demeaning beauty standards.
Moore serves a career-defining performance. She brings the pain of Hollywood’s mistreatment of elder adults. Her performance works so well with the dark twist of how the substance can take away from you.
The film’s visual aesthetic is enthralling. The bright, vibrant colors mixed with the creepy body horror elements put a new spin on Cronenberg’s style. The grotesque style of the film’s vibrant colors makes it visual candy, but simultaneously with the visual horror. The harsh contrast between the two elements makes the film’s visual style so interesting.
The cinematography of the film is intriguing yet unsettling. Every scene gets under your skin while still managing to be visually pleasing. The close-up shots of each character are up close and personal, especially when Harvey (Dennis Quaid) comes onto the screen.
Harvey represents the sleazy, disrespectful side of Hollywood. Every scene with Harvey is beyond uncomfortable. Between the weird sounds to the up-in-your-face cinematography, the film is performing a masterclass on how to get under the viewer’s skin.
The screenplay of the movie guides the direction of the film masterfully. Whenever a new character is introduced, there is an unsettling title card for each one. Those cards set the movie’s tone.
Overall, “The Substance” is one of the best body horror films in years. With vibrant direction and disgusting practical effects, Fargeat crafts some of the most memorable images in the film that will stay with you after watching.
Rating: 4.5/5