To mark the film’s release on DVD and Blu-Ray, three Redbrick Film critics take a look at Jordan Peele’s sophomore release, Us
Kim Garande – Film Critic
Without giving too much away, Us, written and directed by Jordan Peele, follows the Wilson family, who go on holiday to their beach house in Santa Cruz which is broken in by a family of doppelgängers, identical to themselves. The mother, Adelaide (Lupita N’yongo) is already hesitant about the trip as a result of a traumatic experience that she had on the same beach as a child. At its heart, Us is a home invasion movie, but unlike most films of this genre, what makes the villains scary is the fact they’re duplicates of the family that they wish to torment, thus setting itself up to be a commentary and criticism of humanity.
The cast are indisputably committed to their dual roles and to great success. Parents Adelaide and Gabe (Winston Duke) play a captivating couple, and the juxtaposition of Adelaide’s terror and anguish alongside Gabe’s comical nature creates a wholly believable dynamic between them. Furthermore, the soundtrack for this film is phenomenal. It is simultaneously eerie and funky, and enhances the viewing experience. Moreover, Peele’s writing is exquisite, and his tonal shifts are extremely sophisticated. He succeeds in seamlessly blending comedy and horror within the same scenes, creating truly engaging, quality dialogue that is far from cringe-worthy.
[Jordan Peele] succeeds in seamlessly blending comedy and horror within the same scenes
It appears that Peele has taken a sociopolitical stance with this film. What makes it so horrific is the fact that it represents something so normalised and ever-present within our society; that being the fear of those different to us. Us is a film that I believe to be focused on perspective, the title already eliciting an ‘us and them’ mentality, often associated with xenophobia. Upon leaving the cinema, the Rudyard Kipling poem We and They came to mind. This is a poem that focuses on the division of cultures as well as the judgement from two differing cultures, that deem the other as abnormal because they act in a way that differs from what they perceive to be normal. I believe Us to reflect similar attitudes; the Wilson family perceive their doppelgängers as less human and less like themselves, despite being mirror images of one another. Arguably, this could be a metaphor for class and race relations, and Peele might be criticising the perpetual issues of othering and dehumanisation of people who are quite literally just like us, but have been raised in a different context or are disadvantaged in some way.
Us is a home invasion movie, with what I believe to be an underlying Marxist quality to it, that’s complemented by a delectable soundtrack and stunning actors. Us is a social horror that I will be watching again soon.
9/10
Sam Denyer – Film Critic
Us is Jordan Peele’s hall of mirrors, which is fitting given that the film opens with its protagonist meeting her doppelgänger in one. The less of the plot you know the better, as this is Peele operating in mystery box mode even more so than in Get Out. Peele is constantly scattering clues to his central mystery; like a hall of mirrors, you find yourself searching left, right and centre for an answer, particularly now we as an audience have become accustomed to the veiled politics and chilling mysteries Peele is becoming famous for. Even more potent is the way in which he seeks to turn this distorted mirror on his audience; or, at least, his domestic audience. ‘We’re Americans,’ Lupita Nyong’o’s character croaks in the film’s most memorable line, as Peele aims to reveal something about the national character. He is not entirely successful but watching him grapple with such ambitious ideas is riotously fun.
Nyong’o is the lightning strike at the centre of Us‘s hurricane. It is an astounding dual performance, evoking emotion in both versions of her character even when the doppelgänger could be so impenetrable. One wishes Elisabeth Moss (initially co-billed with Nyong’o on the announcement poster) had material as substantial as hers. Winston Duke’s goofy humour breaks up some of the more tense set pieces and Peele is mostly adept at blending these two tones. Duke’s character amusingly asks a set of doppelgängers to get off his property but the instant they spring into action the smiles are wiped off your face. The stakes are never in doubt.
Much of Us is a home-invasion movie as the doppelgängers haunt Nyong’o et al. These sequences are effective, particularly because Peele has managed to craft yet more compelling iconography, making the sinister versions of his cast, armed with golden scissors, run around in ghastly make-up and red boilersuits. These are images which linger in the mind as much as Catherine Keener slowly stirring her tea, or Daniel Kaluuya sinking into the black.
Cinema’s latest auteur is still on fine form
Us stumbles slightly when the central doppelgänger metaphor does not track as neatly as you would like. It is obvious on the surface (they represent the evil within us!), but Peele is clearly searching for something more. The third act offers up all kinds of complications for the audience to digest but wanting to leave so many ideas open to interpretation can often make them too vague or amorphous to really connect. Your mileage on this matter will vary depending on how willing you are to fall into Peele’s new sunken place.
He might not find the thematic grace of Get Out, but his sophomore effort proves that Jordan Peele is already a brand – and an event. He has ideas aplenty and knows how to make them exciting to mainstream audiences all while ensuring that they cannot stop looking behind their shoulders on the walk home.
Scary and funny enough for those seeking a straightforward thrill-ride but possessing more than enough substance for those who like a bit more subtext, Us shows that Jordan Peele has already earned his distinct reputation. Cinema’s latest auteur is still on fine form.
8/10
Matt Taylor – Film Editor
Damn, Jordan Peele is the man. He astounded audiences worldwide in 2017 with Get Out, his directorial debut and an astonishing examination of contemporary attitudes towards race. While Get Out wasn’t a horror film per se, it was scarier than many other movies of that type we see. With his second film, Us, Peele has gone full horror, seemingly pulling no punches whatsoever. And boy, it is one hell of a ride.
Us follows a family of four; mother and father Adelaide and Gabe and younger children Zora and Jason (Shahadi Wright Joseph and Evan Alex), who suddenly find their holiday home besieged by a group of people … who look exactly like them. Alone, confused, and terrified, the four must fight to find a way out of their situation.
Let’s start by saying this: Us has no weak spots. None. It is an astonishing, terror-fuelled, edge-of-your-seat thrill ride that will leave you shaking by the time the credits start to roll.
[Nyong’o’s performance] will surely go down as among the greatest in the history of horror
Its greatest strength is its performances. Lupita Nyong’o is just perfect in this. Her terrifying dual performance as Adelaide and her doppelganger will surely go down as among the greatest in the history of horror. Her turn as Adelaide is beautifully human, getting us instantly on side (aided by a superb script and even better chemistry with the rest of the family), but her performance as Red is genuinely the stuff of nightmares. Peele’s fascination with faces allows her to really show off her abilities; her face fills the screen on a number of occasions, and a deranged-yet-oddly-composed look in her eyes in tandem with her horrifying voice for Red will haunt you for days afterwards. It’s admittedly very early to say, but I will personally lead the riots in the streets if Nyong’o isn’t nominated at next year’s Oscars. Duke, Joseph and Alex all shine too; even the way they feel when they sit down for dinner together gets us to really believe in them as a unit, and their doppelgänger performances are wonderfully eerie.
Also of note are Michael Abels’ utterly terrifying score; Peele’s excellent direction and script; and the themes the film brings forward for us to examine. Abels, returning from scoring Get Out, absolutely goes to town here. Every piece of his music shines, but perhaps the best is his dread-inducing remix of Luniz’s I Got 5 On It, showcased in the film’s trailers. The track is used to a gleefully horrifying effect towards the film’s end, and it perfectly captures the mood of the film; punchy, new, exciting, and terrifying. Peele’s script is fantastic, full of narrative and character-based twists and turns, that constantly keep us engaged. The themes he grapples with are broader than those he explored in Get Out, a little more Biblical in places, as well as following a more general but still pertinent theme concerning xenophobia of the ‘other.’
The question on many people’s lips will almost certainly be, ‘Is Us better or worse than Get Out?’ To that, I simply say: does it matter? Let’s not pit Jordan Peele against himself here: let’s instead celebrate what is undoubtedly the most intriguing voice working in cinema today. Peele has such perfect control over his craft for the entirety of Us’ runtime – he has this marvellous ability to both scare us to death and make us giggle with glee in the space of a handful of lines of dialogue. A transcendent work of art, Us cements Jordan Peele as the most innovative, original, and exciting director in years.
10/10
Us is available on DVD, Blu-Ray and 4K UHD from July 29th, 2019.
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