The Substance
Elizabeth Sparkles, is a over 50 fading celebrity – worried about losing her looks and her place in the world of fame.
She discovers a way to stop the inevitable and signs up to ‘The Substance’,
When it ‘spawns’ Sue a perky both physically and personally young woman (a younger version of Lizzie) who quickly takes Elizabeth’s place as they must trade lives every 7 days.
Soon, Sue is breaking the rules of The Substance – and this has serious ramifications for not just Elizabeth – but for them both!
Direction
French director Coralie Fargeat gives a stunning direction – with a crisp, clean look. She favours a depth of field style – which I think was one of the greatest points of the film.
She also uses ultra close up shots effectively, to add to the grotesque’ness’ of the feel of the film – such as when one character is eating lots of shrimp – we see an ultra close up of his mouth.
The camera work also becomes more erratic – as Lizzie dives deeper into her madness later in the film.
This all is done brilliantly and Fargeat is well deserving of her Oscar nomination. I also feel that this film could not have been either made, or given the recognition it deserved had it been a man directing.
Cast/Characters
Demi Moore gives one of the greatest performances of her career (and it has earned her an Oscar nomination for it too). She dares to go where not many actresses over 60 go.
Her journey from a faded starlet, to (no spoilers) what The Substance causes is a journey you have to take by watching.
Margaret Qualley is too just simply phenomenal. She shakes off any nepo baby identity by this film, and wish her the best for her future.
Screenplay/Setting/Themes
Despite the filming location of France, the setting is quite noticeably Los Angeles.
The practical effects are some of the best I’ve seen recently – such as when Lizzie becomes an elderly woman – and Moore is clearly under prosthesis. The third act Monster which has John Merrick like vibes to it, is Qualley under even heavier prosthesis.
There are also references to many Horror directors such as David Cronenberg (The Fly), Stanley Kubrick (The Shining corridor), and Brian de Palma (Carrie).
It is both violent and gory, and not for the faint hearted (it got a rather rare R18+ here in Australia, which is similar to America’s NC-17)
Score/Soundtrack
Sound editing and effects should be mentioned too as they are a prominent feature – especially in some of the graphic parts of the film (needles going into bodies, and when Sue is ‘breaking down’ and her hearing becomes muffled).
The score by Raffertie is stunning – and the Substance sound is eerie and mesmerising.
Overall
This film will absolutely stand the test of time. A true masterpiece, and deserving of its 5 Oscar nominations, and winner for Makeup at this years Oscars.
4.5/5
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