The Substance – ★★★★★
dir. by Coralie Fargeat
World Premiere @ Cannes Film Festival: May 19th 2024
U.S theatrical release: September 20th 2024
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A lot of movies have used the universal concept of aging as a framing device for its story, and while they seem to all meditate on the constantly evolving societal resistance against aging… I don’t think I’ve seen a film talk about aging in such a reverent and thought-provoking way as “The Substance”. This is the second feature film from French director Coralie Fargeat, and although I never saw her 2015 debut feature film “Revenge”, I can immediately tell that she portrays the female experience with such a delicate balance between fantastical and grounded. Now obviously I’m no expert on the female experience – and I’m not gonna sit here and pretend I am. But it’s undeniable that there’s a huge disparity in the expectations between women and men, and especially in the entertainment industry – and ESPECIALLY with aging. And what “The Substance” does the best is not only crafting a brilliantly nonsensical yet hard-hitting satire around this all-too-real issue in Hollywood, but also just happens to deliver a really damn good movie at the same time.
The very first thing that I – along with most other people – saw in the film right off that bat is that…well, it’s absolutely disgusting. Disgusting to look at in every sense of the word. The uncomfortable close-up camera angles showcasing every pore and wrinkle on the actor’s faces, the incredibly intricate sound design capturing every slosh and gulp of bodily fluids, and especially in the way that the world is established as such this wildly fantastical and satirized depiction of the entertainment industry yet depressingly realistic at its core. Hell – even the score is weirdly crafted to sound so repugnant yet ominously attractive at the same time. But this unabashed commitment to repulsive visuals and sound design is made to be incredibly tactical and serves the wider plot in such fascinating ways, which I’m really thankful for – because “The Substance” could’ve very easily just been a gross-out sludgefest. So not only are these visuals in the opening minutes a great way to set the stage for the body horror to come, but it also present itself in a perfectly restrained yet wonderfully grotesque way.
Another thing that I think makes “The Substance “stand out as an effective and poignant dark satire is that it doesn’t concern itself with being subtle. And I’m not saying that this is one of those movies that beats you over the head with the message to the point that you can’t appreciate any other elements of the film without the writing spelling out every little thing. Instead, this is a movie that wears these heavy-hitting themes and equally heavy impact on its sleeve but still leaves plenty of room for viewer interpretation. “The Substance” is one of those rare movies that everyone can get something different out of, so a solid conversation with another fan of the film can really enhance your perspective on the movie.
But all of this couldn’t have worked as well as it did if the pacing wasn’t absolutely fantastic, which thankfully – it is. “The Substance” clocks in 2 hours and 21 minutes, which is a little on the longer side…but the plot is perfectly laid out and evenly distributed throughout the entire runtime to ensure that there are no dry spots in the story. I mean, sure – there are other non-story elements that do wonders to keep your eyes glued to the screen like the electric and profound performances across the board from career bests from Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley to a wonderfully sleazy and unabashedly campy Dennis Quaid…but when it comes to the narrative itself, I find it incredibly impressive how it can deliver have so much substance (pun definitely intended) and not feel either over bloated or like it’s overcompensating for a weak structure.
If you’re a fan of Cronenberg-esque body horror, you’re gonna love “The Substance”. But more importantly, this was a movie that – at its core – was by women for women. The experience of being held to impossible beauty standards and discriminated against because of age is something that all people can relate to, but the female experience has always been held up to much more systemic scrutiny. So while I’m not sure if this will be cathartic in the same way that Barbie was for a lot of women, it’ll definitely make a lot of people feel seen. And I just love it when a movie can do that – even if I’m not the target audience (well…except for with all the blood and guts stuff…that’s right up my alley). Easily in my Top 5 of 2024, totally worthy of the numerous accolades it’s received including the five Oscar nominations as well as the plethora of other awards it’s nabbed this season, and definitely worth the watch if you haven’t already. Just, don’t hit up the chow hall before sitting down to watch this. I doubt a Sodexo meal and body horror go well together…
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There’s a lot more heavy stuff that goes on in this movie that might be considered a big no-no for a school paper, so if you want to read a more in-depth review of “The Substance” – click here.
