Us

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A couple of years ago, an unsuspecting Jordan Peele took to the director's chair to create a new type of horror movie called 'Get Out'. With its mixture of a good sense of humour and a focus on black social issues, it was a runaway hit with audiences and critics alike. It went on to get nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Lead Actor, Best Director, and it won for Best Original Screenplay. So, it was kind of a big deal. But therein lies the mistake most people will end up making with 'Us'.

Audiences will probably understandably approach this movie with the mindset that we're gonna have another film here about social issues under the guise of horror - making those social issues scary. However here, the message is much more about fearing ourselves, and it doesn't get quite as deep as 'Get Out' did with its plot. This is a film made much more for the creepiness factor of things as opposed to pointing out the way things are in our society. But what does that mean for its overall quality?

Laying out the plot, real quick, a family takes a trip to Santa Cruz, where wife, Adelaide (Lupita Nyong'o) experienced a bit of trauma in her childhood. Husband Gabe (Winston Duke), and their two kids, Zora (Shahadi Wright Joseph) and Jason (Evan Alex) pretty well enjoy themselves, while Adelaide feels reluctant about being there due to her childhood experience.

Soon enough, it turns into a home invasion movie with a twist. The intruders here are known as the tethered, and essentially play the role of their "shadows" in a sort of underground area that I'm not entirely sure is another dimension or what, but I'll go with that for now. By all means correct me on that if I screwed up. Anyway, these "tethered" are out on a revenge plot of sorts, and the reason why might be a bit of a spoiler, but its also incredibly basic.

I'm not sure I liked this one as wella s 'Get Out', but that might be my affinity for the horror/comedy blend. This one is much more straight up home invasion horror, similar to things like 'The Strangers' or even 'The Purge'. But I find this to still be an original take on an otherwise almost overdone horror concept. I also found that with 'Get Out' as it links to human experimentation films like 'Human Centipede' or to a lesser extent 'Tusk'.

With that said, I think that what Peele is trying to ultimately accomplish, and he's thus far proving very successful. 'Get Out' and this were both truly original ideas built on ideas that already exist. It makes me super curious to see what he's got in store for the future. A haunting movie? A demonic possession movie? A movie about escape? The possibilities are many, and he's already nailed it twice. I say I don't like this as well as 'Get Out', but as a truly creep horror flick, it certainly still delivers.

​4/5

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