Us, the latest movie from Jordan Peele, provides a blend of horror, comedy, and social commentary that is sure to entertain and engage viewers while leading them to question the world around them.
“They think like us. They know where we are. They won’t stop until they kill us . . . or we kill them.”
Us, the latest movie from writer, director, and producer Jordan Peele, is a movie that will stay with you long after you see it. Like Peele’s 2017 Get Out, Us provides a blend of horror, comedy, and social commentary that is sure to entertain and engage viewers while leading them to question the world around them.
Here’s a look at the official description – “From Academy Award-winning visionary Jordan Peele comes another original nightmare. Starring Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave) and Winston Duke (Black Panther), an endearing American family is pitted against a terrifying and uncanny opponent: doppelgangers of themselves.”
In addition to Nyong’o and Duke, the film stars Shahadi Wright Joseph, Evan Alex, Madison Curry, Elisabeth Moss, and Tim Heidecker. Us runs 116 minutes.
Us opens in 1986. Young Adelaide (Curry) goes to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk with her parents to celebrate her birthday. While her father plays Whac-A-Mole, she wanders offs to see the beach. Adelaide goes into the hall of mirrors to avoid a storm but is traumatized by what she finds in there . . .
In the present day, a now grown up Adelaide Wilson (Nyong’o), her husband Gabe (Duke), and children Zora (Joseph) and Jason (Alex) are on a family vacation. Gabe wants his family to spend time outdoors and to show off his new boat to their friends Kitty (Moss) and Josh (Heidecker) at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Adelaide, remembering her past trauma there, is reluctant to go, but she agrees.
At the beach, Jason wanders off and witnesses a man staring into the sky with what appears to be blood dripping from his hand. Adelaide panics when she can’t find her son. When Jason come back over to his family, he doesn’t mention the man he saw.
That night, Adelaide shares her story from the hall of mirrors with Gabe and her concerns that her past is catching up with her. Coincidences, she says, seem to be occurring more and more frequently. Gabe remains unconvinced until the power cuts out. Jason walks into the room with an ominous message – “There’s a family in our driveway.”
If you’ve seen any trailer or heard anything about the movie at all, you know who is in the driveway. You know that this is where the real story, the action, is going to start. Jason’s line is said calmly, but your own expectations of what’s about to happen make it a fantastic and memorable line.
And the movie does not disappoint! The family in the driveway are doppelgangers, or look-alikes, of the Wilson family. This double family, led by Red (Adelaide’s counterpart), call themselves the Tethered. Discussing any more about the Tethered, the plot, the surprises, or the kills would be a disservice to both the movie and the viewers, so we’ll end it here and talk about the movie’s more general elements.
This is a movie where there is far more “good” to discuss than “bad,” so let’s get the flaws of the movie over with quickly. The biggest challenge the movie faces is in its general premise. This is a storyline that starts to fall apart a little bit the more you think about it. A few key elements seem just a bit too unlikely to be believable. However, it isn’t terribly hard to suspend your disbelief, sit back, and enjoy the film. It could also be pointed out that characters appear in the right place at the right time with little explanation as to how or why; however, given the movie’s intentional inclusion of coincidences, we could be willing to overlook that just this one time.
On to the good!
All four actors portraying members of the Wilson family deliver not one but two stellar performances each. The actors had to fully develop and portray two very different characters, and often these characters are playing off each other in the same scene. Lupita Nyong’o is the movie’s most valuable performer. As both the movie’s central protagonist and antagonist, she has the most to do and is given the most screen time. Both of her characters are distinct and captivating. The performances by all four actors are so strong that viewers can often forget that two characters are being played by the same person.
Another one of the movie’s most valuable people is writer, director, and producer Jordan Peele. Like the formula he introduced in 2017’s Get Out, Peele again uses a blend of horror and humor to keep viewers engaged and entertained. A lot of the humor is given to Winston Duke. Viewers will likely know him as M’Baku from Black Panther, but Gabe Wilson has very little in common with the warrior. Gabe is the fun, dorky father who loves to embarrass his children and is always ready to go with a dad joke. His character’s reactions to the Tethered and the movie’s central conflict provide much of the movie’s humor, and Duke is well cast in the role.
As for the horror, Peele again excels at psychological horror. Though there is a bit more blood and gore then he used in Get Out, Us is more largely driven by dialogue and intense situations. Peele has the ability to change the tone of a scene instantly, often before the audience realizes what is happening. For example, in a scene referred to as “Seven Second Massacre,” a humorous scene quickly turns violent; however, as the name of the scene implies, the action is over in seven seconds. This ability to quickly switch the tone and the scene keeps the movie at an excellent pace and far from ever dragging or feeling slow at any point.
Peele manages to combine horror and humor all the way through the movie, even including the movie’s soundtrack. The tension of one scene is diffused by the use of “F**k the Police” playing behind it. (Hard to explain – you’d have to see it.) The movie’s most iconic song, a remix of Luniz’s “I Got Five On It,” is perfectly played several times in the movie and used most notably in the movie’s climactic scene.
In addition to humor and horror, Jordan Peele’s writing often includes a degree of social commentary. Get Out addressed questions of racism and ageism. Us challenges viewers to question privilege and social class. These topics are subtly included yet evident all throughout the story.
All in all, Us is another entertaining and engaging movie from Jordan Peele.
Is There a Scene After the Credits?
No.
Special Features –
1. “The Monsters Within Us” (4:45) – Writer/Director Jordan Peele and cast members Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseph, and Evan Alex talk about the challenges of developing two characters each for the same movie.
2. “Tethered Together: Making Us Twice” (7:29) – The cast members discuss the challenges of learning many scenes twice – from two different perspectives. A look at visuals, shooting logistics, and Peele’s ability to mimic Red’s voice off-camera is given.
3. “Redefining a Genre: Jordan Peele’s Brand of Horror” (5:31) – Peele talks about his horror inspirations and the importance of having comedy to balance the tension.
4. “The Duality of Us” (9:56) – Peele talks about the social messages presented by the story. He also dissects the familial archetypes, imagery, and motifs he incorporated into the movie.
5. “Becoming Red” (4:09) – This unique, one-of-a-kind feature watches Nyong’o stay in character as Red between takes.
6. “Scene Explorations” – Three scenes are dissected in terms of choreography, ad-lib choices, and actors’ contributions to their characters.
7. Deleted Scenes (6:28 in total) – These six deleted scenes are complete with music and context to let viewers know where in the movie they would have belonged.
8. “We’re All Dying” (6:22) – Winston Duke and Tim Heidecker do various ad-libbed takes of the conversation between Gabe and Josh on the beach.
9. “As Above, So Below: Grand Pas De Deux” (5:02) – This is an extended version of one of the movie’s most pivotal scenes.
This release offers a wide range of special features and is easily one of the best collections of special features of the year. Jordan Peele – his presence, his influence, his inspirations – is found all throughout these features, and after watching the movie, Peele is exactly who viewers will want to see. His dissection of scenes and explanation of choices add new layers to the movie. “Redefining a Genre” gives the movie context within the horror film industry, while “We’re All Dying” acts as a pseudo-gag reel. Viewers also get a look at character development across several of the features. “Becoming Red” gives viewers a totally unique look at Lupita Nyong’o staying in character as the leader of the Tethered between takes. This release also includes both deleted and extended scenes. Overall, it’s a fantastic set of entertaining, informative, and one-of-a-kind special features.
Takeaway –
Us, the latest movie from writer, director, and producer Jordan Peele, is a movie that will stay with you long after you see it. Like Peele’s 2017 Get Out, Us provides a blend of horror, comedy, and social commentary that is sure to entertain and engage viewers while leading them to question the world around them.
