“They look exactly like us. They think like us. They won’t stop till they kill us.”
Jordan Peele’s follow-up to his 2017 award-winning horror film “Get Out,” “Us” is finally here. After only one movie, Peele went from a comedy legend to horror mastermind, with “Get Out” blowing audiences away. Does “Us” keep the momentum alive?
The film’s plot spans three decades, beginning with main character Adelaide Thomas’s traumatic experience at Santa Cruz. Thirty years and countless therapy sessions later, Adelaide has managed to overcome the trauma, fall in love and have two children. When her family takes a vacation to a beach near the site of the trauma, doppelgangers of Adelaide and her family appear and begin to torment them.
Jordan Peele continues to impress with a fantastic script and impressive direction. He manages to make the film consistently funny without making it a black comedy — a trick that very few horror films are able to pull off.
A phenomenal cast backs up Peele’s script and directing. Lupita Nyong’o gives the standout performance of the film, perfectly conveying desperation, fear and insanity. Winston Duke backs her up as her husband, Gabe Wilson. While mostly providing the film’s comic relief, his character never feels unbelievable.
Shahadi Wright Joseph and Evan Alex prove that good child actors do exist. They not only give good performances as the children of Adelaide and Gabe, but also some truly unsettling performances as their doppelgangers.
“Us” is an incredibly well-made movie. The cinematography by Mike Gioulakis is stunning. The film consistently blew me away with its beautiful-yet-terrifying visuals, which it accomplished with little to no CGI.
The film constantly keeps viewers on edge with a score by Michael Abels. A mixture of unsettling operatic songs and classic violin-filled horror tunes lead to a score which turns scenes from potentially mundane to horrifying.
While “Us” does more right than it does wrong, it isn’t a perfect film. The ending feels a bit muddled with a reveal that feels unnecessary, leaving the audience with a sour taste in their mouth as the film ends. While most of the comedy works in the film, a few moments feel very forced and ruin the tone of scenes that would otherwise be terrifying.
“Us” is a movie that will leave many audiences with mixed emotions. The film leaves a lot up to interpretation and doesn’t give the audience all of the answers. It will lead to many conversations about what the ending means, and it might inspire more than a few conspiracy theories. Expect this one to stay with you for a long time after you leave the theater.
Whether you are a die-hard horror fan or simply want a good scare, “Us” will provide nightmares for the week.
4/5 Stars
