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Ichthyosaurus

Banned
Dec 26, 2018
9,375
Every actor had a wonderful performance, including the child actors. Lupita Nyong'o was a revelation in both roles. Hollywood needs to give her all the lead roles she wants.
 

Gawge

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,628
I thought it was excellent, and my opinion of it goes up more and more as time passes since seeing the film - it has really stayed with me.

It was constantly unsettling, but masterfully put really good genuine humour in there without taking away tension.

A really enjoyable ride, but it stays with you as well.
 

honest_ry

Banned
Oct 30, 2017
4,288
Seen it last night. Was disappointed to be honest after reading reviews. Im not a massive horror fan but do see the very well reviewed and received horror flicks.

I tried to suspend disbelief and allow silly things to pass like any horror movie, but here....damn it was tough.

Will say something though, the directing and cinematography was incredible. Absolute top tier.
 

hordak

Member
Oct 31, 2017
2,540
Anaheim, CA
This movie is alot like M. Night's Signs. They're both good movies that make you think but once you bring in logic, they both fall apart.

There's a race of uneducated clones living underground with access to an escalator. They only eat rabbits. Their children look identical to their clones children and they get pregnant at exactly the same time? And they manage to kill a bunch of people with scissors? Where are the cops? The military? The invasion would have been all over Twitter and FB and IG.

Otherwise the movie is pretty good.
 

UltraMagnus

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
15,670
This movie is alot like M. Night's Signs. They're both good movies that make you think but once you bring in logic, they both fall apart.

There's a race of uneducated clones living underground with access to an escalator. They only eat rabbits. Their children look identical to their clones children and they get pregnant at exactly the same time? And they manage to kill a bunch of people with scissors? Where are the cops? The military? The invasion would have been all over Twitter and FB and IG.

Otherwise the movie is pretty good.

When you put it like that ... yeah it does kinda fall apart, lol, but I kinda gave it a pass. I thought they would have been better off not really explaining all that and leaving it to the imagination of the audience. It does remind me of Signs but scarier.

This film scared the crap out of me, not gonna lie. The doppleganger concept is just really creepy.
 

Deleted member 3058

User requested account closure
Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,728
Am I the only one who thought it was "obvious" that right at the end of the film Adelaide became aware that she was the "clone"? It seemed like a revelation that came to her through flashbacks given the trauma of the event? I didn't get the feeling Adelaide was aware of her past at all until then.

My read was when they girls switched they became less aware of their individual pasts through their new circumstances. Adelaide being tethered had some sense of experience of her other before the switch, and possibly even the child therapy would have talked her out of the "delusion" of being trapped underground. Similarly, the trauma of Red, entrapment, and whatever mechanism is driving the tethering may have condemned her to being (or at least feeling) trapped, and 20+ years of not talking to anyone plus the confinement drove her mad.


In any case, really enjoyed it. Too many highlights, so the lowlights for me were the initial text intro and the overly long exposition by Red at the blackboard. Both felt unnecessarily heavy handed.
She was always aware. She was hiding that she was a tethered. Her son figured it out when he saw her kill the twin and she was acting/sounding like a tethered.
 

Nox

Member
Dec 23, 2017
2,904
Where are the cops? The military? The invasion would have been all over Twitter and FB and IG.

I think cops got overwhelmed very quickly, hence the 14 minute wait time and the eventual no show and no answers from 911. Not sure about the military, the same may have happened to them as well, with their ranks getting decimated. Not sure about how it works in the states, but the whole thing happened in the course of the night, not giving them enough time to mobilize. We saw the whole thing happen through the eyes of (technically) two families, one that got murdered almost right off the bat. The whole thing was probably on Twitter/Insta, judging by the news report, we didn't see that since Zora didn't have the time to check after the invasion. There are things that haven't been explained by the movie but I dont think those are it.
I am more curious about when Zora was running away from her clone, she went into residential areas with no evidence of the invasion. Like, didn't the guy that murdered there have a clone invading his house?
 

effzee

Member
Oct 26, 2017
9,213
NJ
She was always aware. She was hiding that she was a tethered. Her son figured it out when he saw her kill the twin and she was acting/sounding like a tethered.

I actually saw it that way too. That it came back to her overtime because she had worked very hard to forget. Even the flashbacks we have, they all cut away before the memory would show that she was the clone. Until the very end when she has the realization that it was her who made the switch and trapped the real one down there. Her not wanting to go back to the beach, I saw it as her adopting that traumatic experience as her own.

I read it as she bought into the story about her getting lost when she went into the mirror house and only at the end does she realize she was the clone. Her acting out while killing the clones and the real Adelaide seemed like it was just pure rage which to the audience obviously is a clue of her true self but don't think she was conscious of her own self. Not until the very end.

I thought the movie was both good and bad. I wanted to love it but the plothole or lack of a plot overall really bothered me. Just too many questions and lack of plausibility about the whole scenario.

Also, is the end scene supposed to show that the govt is shooting the clones down? As they are lined up on the hills?
 

hordak

Member
Oct 31, 2017
2,540
Anaheim, CA
I thought the movie was both good and bad. I wanted to love it but the plothole or lack of a plot overall really bothered me. Just too many questions and lack of plausibility about the whole scenario.

Also, is the end scene supposed to show that the govt is shooting the clones down? As they are lined up on the hills?

I only saw three helicopters and they all look like news choppers. I didn't see any police or soldiers. I understand everyone was attacked by murderous clones armed with soldiers but if two children can takeout three of them like they're playing Dead Rising, I'm sure the santa Cruz police Dept can handle kill a lot more.

The bum clone literally stood on the beach for a day with no scissors. Once every clone killed their counterpart they stood in line holding hands. Like sitting ducks

Also if the clones donwstairs mimic their upstairs counterparts, like eating and riding roller coasters, shouldn't Red be acting like she's handcuffed to a bed? Also Adelaide couldnt just run up the escalator? There was literally no door.

Again, like Signs, there are major plotholes (spoiler: aliens allergic to water but attacking a planet teeming with water, able to travel vast distances of space but can't open a door, etc) but I guess it's a trade off to making the point that people can be better than the class they are stuck in. Also you are what you make of yourself.

Also where the fuck did they get thousands of perfectly fitted overalls?
 

carlosrox

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
10,270
Vancouver BC
I only saw three helicopters and they all look like news choppers. I didn't see any police or soldiers. I understand everyone was attacked by murderous clones armed with soldiers but if two children can takeout three of them like they're playing Dead Rising, I'm sure the santa Cruz police Dept can handle kill a lot more.

The bum clone literally stood on the beach for a day with no scissors. Once every clone killed their counterpart they stood in line holding hands. Like sitting ducks

Also if the clones donwstairs mimic their upstairs counterparts, like eating and riding roller coasters, shouldn't Red be acting like she's handcuffed to a bed? Also Adelaide couldnt just run up the escalator? There was literally no door.

Again, like Signs, there are major plotholes (spoiler: aliens allergic to water but attacking a planet teeming with water, able to travel vast distances of space but can't open a door, etc) but I guess it's a trade off to making the point that people can be better than the class they are stuck in. Also you are what you make of yourself.

Also where the fuck did they get thousands of perfectly fitted overalls?

I can suspend my disbelief for Signs way easier than I can for this.

And I really enjoy Signs either way. Can't say the same for Us.
 

Regulus Tera

Member
Oct 25, 2017
19,458
I'm less interested in the believability of "the plot" as opposed to what kind of allegory Peele is trying to make. I thought the message evoked the prison system and the way the US treats inmates like an afterthought, but it's not a very clear cut message beyond some obvious imagery like the cages and uniforms.
 

Boogs31

Member
Oct 28, 2017
1,099
Ohio
To me, as a lifelong horror fan, I wish the family would have been a lot more injured. I didn't have that, "man they barely survived" feeling I do with pretty much all other home invasion movies and I personally would have enjoyed the movie more if it had that.

This was my biggest issue. At no point did you actually feel the family was in danger because there were so many opportunities for them to be killed and they get away for no apparent reason. The dad getting to the boat while he's crawling at the speed of a tortoise is baffling.

Say whatever you want about the symbolism/metaphor and the amount of exposition, a horror movie should be scary and this failed at that on a very basic level. Horror movies need to be more than just creepy imagery and good filmmaking to elicit any sort of emotional reaction.

I will commend the humor though I thought it was rather funny.
 

Tophat Jones

Alt Account
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
14,946
I loved it. And the reaction in this thread is much more cold than I expected. I guess I wasn't really interested in plot holes, and stuff. I just thought it was wonderfully made and kept my attention throughout. Jordan Peele is insanely talented.

Did think there would be a little more 'explanantion' In this thread I could dive into though, and it kinda seems like it was left open ended on purpose. So there's that I guess.
 
Apr 21, 2018
6,969
I enjoyed it, but I feel like the comedy held it back from being a true horror classic. The family just never acted scared or reacted in a believable way. It's hard to be scared when the main characters aren't scared. All of the tension certain scenes including the finale could have had, simply didn't for me, because if the family wasn't taking it seriously, why should I? Once they got to the white families house, it was all fun and silliness with no terror, dread, fear, or anything that even seemed remotely threatening. It honesty felt like a cartoon.

It's a solid 7/10, fun movie. I actually love the premise and found it refreshing and very creative. I love that it has an all-black cast without making the theme about race. I just thought it could have been an all-time horror classic if they kept the tone consistent.

I enjoy comedy horror, but there is a threshold of greatness comedy horror can't hit for me with the fundamental inconsistency of the tone. It never allows me to fully engage or believe in the world. The comedy in this film was placed within the main characters actions, motivations, and dialog, and I couldn't engage as deeply with the situation as I wish I could have. I loved the premise, and ultimately felt like it was a missed opportunity to be an intense and horrifying experience in exchange for jokes and cartoons.

I hope Jordan Peele goes all in on terror next time and leaves out the cartoonishness.
 
OP
OP
Cpt-GargameL

Cpt-GargameL

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
7,024
With Get Out and now Us, I feel like he's delving deeper into true horror. This film was definitely creepier than Get Out and I can't wait to see what he has in mind for his next film.
 

rainking187

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,147
I was pretty disappointed by this honestly. I had a lot of questions that just weren't answered. The real shock for me was realizing the girl from the trailer was the main character when she was younger. Somehow I never picked up on the fact that she's not in any of the scenes with the family in the trailer. I thought they had three kids.
 

Orb

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
9,465
USA
Finally got a chance to see this. I wanted to like it more than I actually did. It's like somehow despite the fact that things are "explained," it still wasn't satisfying, to the point it feels like he shouldn't have tried to explain anything at all.

Anyone else notice that when they were eating together early in the movie, Adelaide is only eating strawberries and drinking water, while the rest of the family is eating fast food and drinking soda?
 

Sanjuro

Member
Oct 25, 2017
31,065
Massachusetts
I have so many questions regarding this film, but not sure they should ever be answered.

Loved how they kept the comedic elements running, much like Get Out.
 

TAJ

Banned
Oct 28, 2017
12,446
Ooof i wouldn't go that far but yeah it was pretty stupid. Long ass exposition near the back half for NO REASON and then the blinking recreation of the carnival except underground was just plain dumb. It doesn't explain wtf they were stabbing people if they're just mirror images. PLUS the stakes of the hands across the world thing was nonexistent. Why?? I was glad I went with a raucously loud crowd cause I would've been bored as shit and legit upset by the end of it.

You're (accidentally) right that there were no stakes to the huge chain of tethered holding hands. There were no stakes because they'd already killed basically the whole country.
 

carlosrox

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
10,270
Vancouver BC
I want to like this movie, I really do. That douchebag couple beside me definitely helped ruin it for me so I'm willing to give this another chance.

I'm not saying the movie isn't devoid of merit, there's good ideas in there and well executed stuff but the poorly executed parts just totally take me out of it. I feel like there's an alternate cut of this movie that I would totally dig but what we got isn't it.

I would dig a dialed back and/or fleshed out version of this movie.

I felt the same about the new Halloween.

I am also reminded of loving so much about Prometheus (huge fan of the *ENTIRE* Alien series) but having a few things utterly ruin the rest of it.

A few bad apples..
 

Malverde

One Winged Slayer
Avenger
Man this movie is something else. I saw it yesterday and I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. This movie is riddled with foreshadowing and it also feels meticulously crafted even though not everything is explained. Get Out is a much different movie. It is straightforward and spoon feeds the story and even the themes in an easily digestible way. Us on the other hand decides not to explicitly answer all questions but seems to provide just enough information taunting you to figure it out. Peele is flexing with this movie and I am here for it.

There is great commentary on the ignoring of society's undesirables, these are people that are literally the exact same as those living above ground, and yet they have to live with no sunlight eating bloody bunnies and shit. The "good" family boasting about kill-counts, acting "whatever" next to the bodies of their dead friends, and even the greed shown by the father who let's go of his plan when it is suggested they can take the fancy car all challenge the idea of a moral high ground being held by our protagonists.

The questions raised on the idea of "good" vs "bad" are located throughout and I would love to rewatch it with this lens in mind. Although an obvious "twist" that the mother was switched with the shadow, I have found myself grappling with that whole situation. Yes, it was fucked up what the young shadow Lupita did. But her doing that allowed her the opportunity to live above ground and get a normal life that she otherwise never would have been able to do ever. She and her people were completely ignored by society, and her doing an undeniably fucked up thing was her only way of getting out of an undeniably fucked situation. Otherwise she would have been damned to eat bloody bunnies forever. It is hard to be completely unsympathetic to her situation. With that said, once she got out, she turned her back on her people. She could have told the world about the suffering of the shadow people and tried to get them help but instead she decided not to risk her awesome new status. She is no longer Jenny from the block.

The son is another character with a lot to unpack and I would need another viewing to finalize any thoughts on it. The theories online about the son also having swapped with the shadow mostly seem pretty convincing to me, and it is interesting that the boy is the only one no one ever attempts to kill. When the shadow family all take their victim to kill, the boys are the only ones instructed to go play, and the shadow boy never shows any intention of hurting the boy (at least not that I remember). My read on the ending though is the boy accepting the fucked up madness (regardless of whether he is or is not a shadow) and accepting that much like his mother, he is a monster too.
 

Ichthyosaurus

Banned
Dec 26, 2018
9,375
The questions raised on the idea of "good" vs "bad" are located throughout and I would love to rewatch it with this lens in mind. Although an obvious "twist" that the mother was switched with the shadow, I have found myself grappling with that whole situation. Yes, it was fucked up what the young shadow Lupita did. But her doing that allowed her the opportunity to live above ground and get a normal life that she otherwise never would have been able to do ever. She and her people were completely ignored by society, and her doing an undeniably fucked up thing was her only way of getting out of an undeniably fucked situation. Otherwise she would have been damned to eat bloody bunnies forever. It is hard to be completely unsympathetic to her situation. With that said, once she got out, she turned her back on her people. She could have told the world about the suffering of the shadow people and tried to get them help but instead she decided not to risk her awesome new status. She is no longer Jenny from the block.

Except she never had to do that, and is acting like a super villain during the act. She likes what she did to her real double, switching fates like that. When the two meet she just attacks and locks the original up then leaves her in hell with no exit to get out. When they could have talked, and she could have asked to come with the girl's family. As she grew older she became more human and as a nice person, but she never regretted doing that and showed no sympathy for why her original would want revenge or try to find peace between the two worlds. Deep down she was still a monster.
 

Sinder

Banned
Jul 24, 2018
7,576
I didn't think this was great. It would have worked way better as a one hour episode of Peele's new Twilight Zone or something similar.

The writing was contrived and there's no logic whatsoever to the untethered. It makes no sense how or why they exist, how their existence "controls" people up top, nor why Lupita as a young girl didn't just find the exit and leave as soon as she got unchained. I'm not even sure what the metaphor was supposed to be here, it seemed ripe for political/racial commentary but didn't really deliver there as far as I can tell.
 

Malverde

One Winged Slayer
Avenger
Except she never had to do that, and is acting like a super villain during the act. She likes what she did to her real double, switching fates like that. When the two meet she just attacks and locks the original up then leaves her in hell with no exit to get out. When they could have talked, and she could have asked to come with the girl's family. As she grew older she became more human and as a nice person, but she never regretted doing that and showed no sympathy for why her original would want revenge or try to find peace between the two worlds. Deep down she was still a monster.

I don't know that she "likes" what she did. If she had just left on her own, then what? She would have been a homeless unable to speak or communicate. If she tries to join the family there is a chance she isn't accepted and is given to social services, or government scientists because the whole idea of the tethered is weird. Locking up the original was the safest bet for her to get out and live a "normal" life. The analogy the film seems to be going for is someone leaving their current low economic position and getting to that good life, stepping on heads to get there. Shit, look at the real life stories of billionaires and all the immoral shit that had to do to get to where they are now.

The most fucked up thing, to me, is that she never went back to help her people. The movie appears to raise the question "does everyone have a responsibility to help their fellow human? Do those who get out of poverty hold a responsibility to help those still stuck?" The whole Hands Across America thing seemed to be Peele smacking the audience across the face with this.
 
Oct 2, 2018
3,902
Except she never had to do that, and is acting like a super villain during the act. She likes what she did to her real double, switching fates like that. When the two meet she just attacks and locks the original up then leaves her in hell with no exit to get out. When they could have talked, and she could have asked to come with the girl's family. As she grew older she became more human and as a nice person, but she never regretted doing that and showed no sympathy for why her original would want revenge or try to find peace between the two worlds. Deep down she was still a monster.

you know. you really don't want to think too deeply about US or it will fall apart.

like I did the other day

not even sure how adelaide escaped from her cuffs. If its too believe that the tehtered all droney and have no free will echoing people up top, who found the key and freed a little girl? Adelaide would have starved and died. /endmovie

US is a movie that is so full of loop holes that it falls apart like a house of cards if you even blew on it. She has free will. If she can escape from the cuffs, what's to stop her from climbing an escalator?
 

plié

Alt account
Banned
Jan 10, 2019
1,613
What an awesome movie! Way better than Get Out! Fell asleep twice during it.

Anyone know what was the song during the ending credits?
 

Ichthyosaurus

Banned
Dec 26, 2018
9,375
I don't know that she "likes" what she did. If she had just left on her own, then what? She would have been a homeless unable to speak or communicate. If she tries to join the family there is a chance she isn't accepted and is given to social services, or government scientists because the whole idea of the tethered is weird. Locking up the original was the safest bet for her to get out and live a "normal" life. The analogy the film seems to be going for is someone leaving their current low economic position and getting to that good life, stepping on heads to get there. Shit, look at the real life stories of billionaires and all the immoral shit that had to do to get to where they are now.

Adelaide didn't show any remorse for what she's done. She never tried to reach out or show signs of trying to understand what she did to Red was wrong, and the last image is of smiling like an evil maniac. You're right that she didn't grasp the complexity of what she did to get where she is as a child, but once she grew into a supposedly "good" adult she never shows any signs of the above that she's grown from that evil decision.

Why would scientists want a weird kid another kid found near a festival? All we have is Red's theory about the government being involved and her own theory has major gaps to put them in there. You'd think the government would appear to recognise these people or they'd act but nope. Nothing.

Which suits the metaphor angle, for the story angle this coincides that Adelaide is a monster - who might murder her son since he knows too much. Now I'm thinking about it, the metaphor goes both ways, it shows that those who want to murder the billionaires in revenge don't have the moral high ground and are monsters themselves.

The most fucked up thing, to me, is that she never went back to help her people. The movie appears to raise the question "does everyone have a responsibility to help their fellow human? Do those who get out of poverty hold a responsibility to help those still stuck?" The whole Hands Across America thing seemed to be Peele smacking the audience across the face with this.

True. Then you remember every one of them was there to kill their doppelgänger, and since they're alive this means their above ground self was murdered by them.
 

adamsappel

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,503
Very well-made movie. Looked great, sounded great, wonderful acting from every role. Intricate and clever, with I'm sure every twist telegraphed for those who want to look for it. Simultaneously, the idea of millions of doppelgängers existing undiscovered in sewers and abandoned subway tunnels for decades is so monumentally stupid that you just have to accept it as the core "suspension of disbelief" conceit. I'm looking forward to watching it again, though I'll probably wait for it to hit streaming.

One thing that seems clever on the surface is the self-replicating food source of the rabbits. I'm sure Peele is aware of this and counted on people not knowing, but if your only food source is rabbits, you will die of malnutrition. It's actually called "rabbit starvation".
 

Stuggernaut

Member
Oct 28, 2017
2,902
Seattle, WA, USA
I found the movie interesting, story wise, but there were WAY too many plot holes and it was so linear in how it all played out with far too many clues to the big "twist" that ruined that impact early on.

I can suspend my brain because it is a movie for fun, but it was also over the top unrealistic and that took a way a bit as well.

All that may sound like I hated it, but I enjoyed it for what it was. It just left me wanting more detail and substance.

"Get out" was better from Peele, this just felt like some drama/writing class idea that was undeveloped.

Would be interesting if the "universe" is developed more.

Here are a few questions my wife asked me that made me laugh...

"Where did they get all the scissors and red jumpsuits? Was there a cult store in the subway?"
"How did the girl get unhandcuffed from the bed?
"Why didn't anyone (especially the little girl) just walk up the escalator?"
"Where are all the 'Merica guns in this movie? Did not see a single dead red-suit"

And my favorite...

"Why is there not rabbit poop everywhere? And what did the rabbits eat for the decades of time down there?"
 

adamsappel

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,503
I think the problem is the "Hands Across America" plot. The story should have stayed small: there was a secret government project in Santa Cruz; all the doppelgängers are of citizens in the town; Red is able to escape because Adelaide comes back to the beach and reestablishes the tether; the doppelgängers should have just been trying to live the lives of their doubles after they kill them. Peele could have zoomed out and shown that it was occurring nation/worldwide at the end (a la The Birds, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, etc.), but the logistics of 6 million clones somehow being taught and outfitted by a single person stretches credulity too much. Doesn't ruin the movie, but makes you say, "Yeah, but..."

I had the impression that Adelaide was realizing she was a clone, rather than the flashback being an explanation from the director, but either way works. Jason might have even known because Red told him. I do not believe he was switched with Pluto, who acted much too feral to have only been underground for a year; plus, that makes him a "bad guy" for killing his human double.
 

diakyu

Member
Dec 15, 2018
17,538
Movie became a train wreck in that last act. A real shame because everything about it up to that point had been really interesting but it really floundered the landing. Best scene is the kids walking up the stairs with Fuck the Police blaring in the background.
 

DIE BART DIE

Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,847
This movie committed the cardinal horror movie sin of fully exposing the main villain(s) to the audience and thus sapping them of their scariness...but it did it what felt like 30 minutes into the movie. Most horror movies try to prolong their tension period for as long as possible, so on a basic horror movie level, Us failed for me. However, my understanding of the movie as a classic exercise in horror was recalibrated around the time that Lupita's (not -) clone dropped her big exposition dump in Forrest Whittaker's Bor Gullet voice, as her husband's clone made guttural Lurch noises.

It's clearly more than a boilerplate horror movie though. Its foray into action comedy at Tim Heidecker's house was like Shaun of the Dead meets American Psycho. Walking that knife's edge between horror and comedy ultmately proved too precarious for me, but I was still entertained enough to see it through to the end.

Much has been made about the film's political agenda or lack thereof, and I can see the arguments on either side, but the whole conceit is too literal for my tastes and opens the film's internal logic up to scrutiny, much like A Quiet Place.

What a fantastic opening, though. I was onboard as hell until They broke into the house. The awesome title theme set to the glacial shot of the rabbits; the evocative period stylings; the eerie atmosphere of the promenade; the creepy hall of mirrors. Such a bold mission statement that sadly didn't follow through to greatness for me.

Get Out is clearly the much superior work. But Us doesn't fully signal a sophomore slump or a Shyamalan-style fall from grace so I'm intrigued to see more from Peele.
 

Stouffers

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
3,924
This movie committed the cardinal horror movie sin of fully exposing the main villain(s) to the audience and thus sapping them of their scariness...but it did it what felt like 30 minutes into the movie. Most horror movies try to prolong their tension period for as long as possible, so on a basic horror movie level, Us failed for me. However, my understanding of the movie as a classic exercise in horror was recalibrated around the time that Lupita's (not -) clone dropped her big exposition dump in Forrest Whittaker's Bor Gullet voice, as her husband's clone made guttural Lurch noises.

It's clearly more than a boilerplate horror movie though. Its foray into action comedy at Tim Heidecker's house was like Shaun of the Dead meets American Psycho. Walking that knife's edge between horror and comedy ultmately proved too precarious for me, but I was still entertained enough to see it through to the end.

Much has been made about the film's political agenda or lack thereof, and I can see the arguments on either side, but the whole conceit is too literal for my tastes and opens the film's internal logic up to scrutiny, much like A Quiet Place.

What a fantastic opening, though. I was onboard as hell until They broke into the house. The awesome title theme set to the glacial shot of the rabbits; the evocative period stylings; the eerie atmosphere of the promenade; the creepy hall of mirrors. Such a bold mission statement that sadly didn't follow through to greatness for me.

Get Out is clearly the much superior work. But Us doesn't fully signal a sophomore slump or a Shyamalan-style fall from grace so I'm intrigued to see more from Peele.
AGREE on all points. I look forward to Peeles next project.
 

Narroo

Banned
Feb 27, 2018
1,819
Now I'm thinking about it, the metaphor goes both ways, it shows that those who want to murder the billionaires in revenge don't have the moral high ground and are monsters themselves.

Hence the title, "US". The under-privileged and over-privileged are one and the same. They're "US," both in a sympathetic sense, and a nihilistic sense.
 

Shoe

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,184
I thought Get Out was significantly better than this, just saw it. Still great tension (especially in that opening scene, my goodness!), and great performances all around, but the plot seemed pretty messy this time, and the message didn't resonate nearly as much as in Get Out.

Still, 5 bags of popcorn and two sodas
 

Wollan

Mostly Positive
Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,814
Norway but living in France
Loved it. Even above Get Out as this was more ambitious as well as it had some stronger moments.


...The song above played during such an amazing moment. Reminded me of Hereditary in that the music worked in concert with the footage to lift the scene into something that really sticks with you.
[/MEDIA]

Great part and I really digged Lupita Nyong'o's performance.
 

Elderly Parrot

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Aug 13, 2018
3,146
This movie committed the cardinal horror movie sin of fully exposing the main villain(s) to the audience and thus sapping them of their scariness...but it did it what felt like 30 minutes into the movie. Most horror movies try to prolong their tension period for as long as possible, so on a basic horror movie level, Us failed for me. However, my understanding of the movie as a classic exercise in horror was recalibrated around the time that Lupita's (not -) clone dropped her big exposition dump in Forrest Whittaker's Bor Gullet voice, as her husband's clone made guttural Lurch noises.

It's clearly more than a boilerplate horror movie though. Its foray into action comedy at Tim Heidecker's house was like Shaun of the Dead meets American Psycho. Walking that knife's edge between horror and comedy ultmately proved too precarious for me, but I was still entertained enough to see it through to the end.

Much has been made about the film's political agenda or lack thereof, and I can see the arguments on either side, but the whole conceit is too literal for my tastes and opens the film's internal logic up to scrutiny, much like A Quiet Place.

What a fantastic opening, though. I was onboard as hell until They broke into the house. The awesome title theme set to the glacial shot of the rabbits; the evocative period stylings; the eerie atmosphere of the promenade; the creepy hall of mirrors. Such a bold mission statement that sadly didn't follow through to greatness for me.

Get Out is clearly the much superior work. But Us doesn't fully signal a sophomore slump or a Shyamalan-style fall from grace so I'm intrigued to see more from Peele.
VVitch destroyed that cardinal sin. I like the idea of showing that cards early. Pretty much says yeah this is real and there will be no cop outs
 

Malverde

One Winged Slayer
Avenger
I feel like this movie was so clearly focused on larger commentary that arguing about the logic of the plot feels ridiculous. It would be like arguing the logic of Aesop's Fables or and episode of The Twilight Zone. Like, that's not the point.
 

Ramala

Member
Oct 28, 2017
6,047
Santa Monica, LA
I loved it. I think the story is secondary to the commentary. It's all a social allegory. Privilege is something you're often not even aware of till it's under attack.
 

onion

Member
Oct 28, 2017
340
Why do the tethered mimic what their clone is doing underground but not on the surface?
 

ry-dog

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Banned
Oct 25, 2017
2,180
So why was there a hall of mirrors connected to a science laboratory storing a few million people?
The constant mirroring was a cool idea, but fell apart when they went up to the surface and would only do it occasionally for some reason.

And the allegory for classes seems silly when you portray one side of them initiating violence. Jordan did a piss poor job lending fostering any kind of audience sympathy for the tethered.
 
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Blackthorn

Member
Oct 26, 2017
2,317
London
So my understanding is that the clones were created to control the people on the surface, but the plan failed and they were stuck mimicking the surface people. From Red's speech and their behaviour I never got the sense they were in control and seemed to be in pain from the whole thing.

Going with a class allegory, the underclass is painfully trying to mimic the middle class the same way the middle class family is trying to mimic the upper-middle class white family in the film.

The father is constantly trying to match up to the white family and is dissatisfied with his house, boat, car, even though they're far beyond what the average American has.

Red breaks the clones out of this behaviour, after which they're able to escape and exact their revenge in a very Hegelian master/slave sort of way.

You also get the sense that the family in the film especially relishes killing the clones of the white family because it allows them to live out a violent fantasy of forcefully taking their fancy house and car (they literally do take the car).

I'm really enjoying thinking about this film and it's a shame so many people are frustrating themselves with the hows and whys of what is clearly an allegorical story.
 
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Cpt-GargameL

Cpt-GargameL

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
7,024
Very well put Blackthorn there's definitely a lot of ways we can break this film down to understand it's core message and ideals behind it. I'm looking forward to what Peele decides to do next.