Us

2019 horror movie

Rating: 14/20

Plot: A vacationing family is harassed by doppelgangers.

Bonus points awarded for originality although this is a movie I've enjoyed thinking about and reading about a lot more than I did watching it. Visceral thrills abound, Lupita Nyong'o astounds in complex dual roles, and Tim Heidecker adds a nice flavor with his comedy stylings. Logically, this is a mess with narrative strands left stranded and several pieces of this twisty puzzle just don't fit together in any satisfying ways. My worry is that the movie this reminded me the most of was M. Night's The Happening.

Kudos to Jordan Peele for using this extended Serling-esque story and its plethora of film and other pop culture references to say something--or maybe a lot of things--about our society and how it all works. The metaphor, sometimes clever and sometimes a little too on-the-nose, is a sick burn on capitalism and privilege, and the more intellectual aspects of this movie are going to be the reason I return to it if I ever decide to do that. It's possible that it all comes together much better than I think it does.

That Beach Boys to N.W.A. transition was a nice one.