Horror fans often find themselves feeling at a loss when a new movie comes out but don’t quite fit the level of gore that would really surprise them or give them anything new — Coralie Fargeat’s “The Substance” is a revolutionary change for that.
Body horror is arguably one of the scariest types of horror movies. From “Tusk” to “The Human Centipede,” it’s simply one of the most uncomfortable genres to watch. Yet it is also one of the most intriguing and one of the most iconic. This is particularly why “The Substance” is currently rising in the box office, calling attention from horror lovers and non-horror lovers alike.
The 2024 film first screened at the 77th Cannes Film Festival back in May and won Best Screenplay at the festival. It received an 11 minute standing ovation from the crowd.
While originally bought by the movie streaming service Mubi, the film was also set to release theatrically world wide. In the first weekend of its box office run, the film generated $3 million domestically. Internationally, it received $13.5 million.
Spoilers ahead for “The Substance.”
The film stars Demi Moore as Elisabeth Sparkle, an Academy Award winning actress who is told she is too old to continue her successful career. At the hospital, Elisabeth is lured into the substance, a new and experimental serum that would create a younger and more beautiful version of yourself.
With seemingly no other choice if she wants to stay in the spotlight, Elisabeth takes the serum and true to its advertisement, a younger version of herself played by Margaret Qualley crawls out from her back and adopts the name Sue.
“The Substance” deals with the topic of the life cycle of a star in Hollywood.
Elisabeth and Sue both become obsessed with the substance. The former is excited to have all eyes on her again while the latter is excited about the newfound freedom and the opportunities to run young and free in the industry.
Moore is no stranger to feeling the same conflict Elisabeth faces in the film.
“Even just the idea of, like, what I did to my body, it’s, like, so crazy, so ridiculous,” Moore said for CBS News.
The commentary of addiction within the film is evident too.
While the agreement works for a while, Elisabeth becomes increasingly dependent on the substance. Sue sees her counterpart and decides to take more stabilizers to keep control of themselves and while Elisabeth has a chance to stop Sue, she can’t.
Sue’s living her former life.
So, Elisabeth continues to unravel in her life and decides to take back control — only for it to be too late. The film ends with both of the actress’ deaths in a grotesque yet symbolic way of the remains of Elisabeth and Sue crawling on top of Elizabeth’s Hollywood star.
Fargeat doesn’t hold back on the body horror either.
“I felt strong enough to kind of cope with the disturbance that digging into this is going to create,” Fargeat said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
Overall, the film is a pretty hard watch if you’re not into body horror but so worth it in my opinion. The performances from Demi Moore felt real and raw in a way that makes you feel for Elisabeth.
