THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
If you're going to ask Jordan Peele the difference between Get Out and Us, he'd say that Get Out is a documentary, while Us is pure horror. After seeing his sophomore film in 2019, I couldn't agree more.
PLOT
The film follows the Wilson family: Gabe, Adelaide, Jason and Zora who have a vacation at Santa Cruz. The wife Adelaide is uncomfortable being there because in 1986, she got lost and encountered another child that looked like her. As they go to the beach hanging out with their rich friends, the Tylers, her son Jason notices someone covered in blood after using the bathroom. This scares her because she thought she almost lost him, due to not telling anyone but Zora his whereabouts. At night, she explains to Gabe when she encountered the other girl, claiming that she ran away from her. Around that time, the power goes off and everyone notices another family in the driveway. They break into their house and reveal themselves to be their doppelgängers of them. Adelaide's doppelgänger, credited as Red, explains that they are all connected, and they came to 'untether' themselves. Zora is chased away by her clone Umbrae, Addy is told by Red to cuff herself to a table, Jason is forced to play with Pluto and Abraham tries to kill his counterpart Gabe. As Gabe is able to kill Abraham in the middle of the lake, the rest of the family is able to escape and flee by boat. They go to the Tylers but they are already killed by their clones. After they kill them, they see on the news that the rest of the United States is being swarmed by other clones. When taking the Tylers' car, Umbrae catches up. When she jumps on top, Zora is able to throw her off, leading to her being impaled by a tree. As they reach the boardwalk, they find their own car burnt, roadblocking them. Pluto appears and attempts to light up a gasoline trail from the Tylers' car, which will kill the Wilsons. However, Jason tricks him to walk into the fire, due to his satisfaction of imitation. After that happens, Red is able to take Jason away unnoticed, leading to Addy searching for him. She finds the hall of mirrors where she first met Red but also finds a secret tunnel. When discovering Red again, she explains that the clones are called the 'Tethered'. She gives a theory believing that the government had succeeded in duplicating the human body. But when unable to do the same with the soul, the Tethered had been abandoned for generations. That all changed when Red organized to escape after meeting Addy. Addy fights Red and is then able to kill her by stabbing her with the fireplace poker and strangles her with her handcuffed arms. She finds the keys in her neck, un-cuffs herself and finds Jason. As the family leaves in an ambulance truck, we see a flashback revealing that the real Red strangled the real Adelaide, which fractured her voice box, cuffed her to the underground and took her place up above. Jason suspiciously looks at his mother, aware that she is not what she appears. The film ends with a view of the Tethered formed in a human chain across the hills.
THOUGHTS
Because of Get Out, there were high expectations and it goes without saying how this one lived up to it. Looking back, this film just gets better every viewing. What makes Us scary is the message Peele successfully delivers that we are the same as any enemy. Them is us, us is them. And the caution that we try to judge others, we indict ourselves. It sounds crazy to believe that this is the case in first viewing but if you have seen it as much as I have, you'll see it too. Every moment here drove me to the edge of my seat as I could not figure out what to expect, proving again the fresh air Peele brings with his writing. He really cared about the details in this movie more than his predecessor: You see VHS tapes of The Man with Two Brains, The Goonies and CHUD, movies that have tunnels. You see the 11:11 expressed throughout, and spotting the Twin Towers referenced during the ‘Hands Across America’ ad. Throughout, you also see rabbits as the only thing a Tethered can eat, which makes sense because it is true that rabbits can actually be cloned in real life. This is the best bits of detail that Peele has put to screen thus far. If this story isn’t somehow scaring you, than the score of Michael Abels will. I’m always biting my nails when hearing the track ‘Pas de Deux’, which plays during the final confrontation. I try not to overthink this movie because that’s much how much I love it but after many viewings, I have to admit there are stuff I scratch my head about. First off, it is a big coincidence that Adelaide was the only one to discover the tunnel because it’s insane to believe that no one at the carnival has ever went to the hall of mirrors after all this time. Also, if Red is Adelaide, she should’ve expected that they were going to the beach during the vacation because she’s been there before. My biggest gripe goes to the ending. We get one of the best plot twists ever with this film but I scratch my head about the logic. While it’s one thing to pick on how did Adelaide find enough red jumpsuits and scissors for every other Tethered, but it’s hard for me to believe that Red was able to do the swap in fifteen minutes, according to Addy’s parents. The second you ignore that, you will still call this a second masterpiece in a row by Peele. If you’re gonna make a great horror film, you’ll need a great cast and thankfully, we were covered on that end. Every actor succeeded in being some of random citizen but are also a silent monstrous counterpart. Winston Duke first makes us laugh with the almost gullible Gabe and then we are intimidated of the presence that is Abraham. Shahadi Wright Joseph makes us believe she is a typical teen and creeps us out with every smile as Umbrae. Evan Alex surprises us as the innocent Jason and the next thing you know, you’re terrified of the doglike persona of Pluto. Zora and Jason are badass kids that they were able to stand their ground when fighting other Tethered in their way. The scene where they go up the stairs as the song ‘Fuck Tha Police’ by NWA is playing, stands out to me for being the most intense of the whole film. Tim Heidecker, Cali and Noelle Sheldon are on point going from any priveleged person to the psychotic perspective of the Tylers. The one who does it best is Elisabeth Moss. At first, she’s someone who has regrets where you might feel bad. The next thing you know, you are even creeped out of her Tethered presence, due to how silent she is. Every stare she provides, gives me chills. Last but not least, the best of the cast that nailed the dual performance best has to be Lupita Nyong’o. The layers of this performance is goddamn insane. In first viewing, you believe that Adelaide is the most innocent person but then you’re shook that she is the real monster. When re watching, you’ll likely see the hints and enjoy it more. From her reaction to going to the beach, to the glare of the living room, finding the spare key, and the growls that were made, the dots are connected between both characters. It’s crazy when you realize that the one we were rooting for was just saving her own skin while the one that was labeled a monster was just trying to take revenge, in order to have her life back. Sure she was saving her son but she still was also concerned of herself by the end. The stare she gives in the middle of the film always scares the shit out of me because of how up close she gets. Above all scenes, she is acting her ass off when telling her story, ‘The Girl and the Shadow’. We know that it’s about the two of them but it becomes more tragic when you discover who is who in the story. That implies that while Red was in her own paradise, Addy was in hell. The single tear shown between both characters does imply their connection but it can be deeper if you look at it another way. The real Addy could be crying to the pain she’s describing, while the real Red is crying because she thinks she’s screwed. Even in the ending, you know that Red has no regrets when you notice her flashback smirk at the end. I also want to give a shout out to Madison Curry for creeping me out with her own smiles, again implying the character did not regret her actions. In short, Peele succeeds once again making another great horror film with Us because it's another that is smarter than it appears. If you love Get Out, you won’t regret checking this out.
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