The Substance: Body horror of the year

At a surface level, “The Substance” seems like another candy-colored horror movie in the vein of Pearl, Club Zero, or Bodies Bodies Bodies. As a visual style, this is not something of which I have been a fan, mainly because many of these movies tend to fall into the “style-over-substance” category. They are just trying to create a contrast through stark colors, without them serving any purpose beyond that. 

But this is not the case for “The Substance”, a film about a fitness star, played by Demi Moore, who is trying to recapture her glory days by taking a mysterious substance that allows her to essentially spawn a younger version of herself, played by Margaret Qualley.

(Credits: Den of Geek)

Just on this premise alone, I, and no doubt many other people would’ve figured out where this movie is going. Granted, “The Substance” is not going to surprise that much in terms of where the plot is going. It is a commentary about the reality of aging, the vanity of the entertainment industry, and the male gaze. 

Despite that, this movie does all these things remarkably well. Director Coralie Fargeat does a good job of making sure that the film’s distinct visual style serves the message of the film. For example, early in the film, we see close-up shots of a male producer eating shrimps. And I mean really close-up. The kind of close-up that makes appetizing food like cocktail shrimps seem absolutely inedible. We also see in the previous scene that this guy did not wash his hands after taking a piss. This is in contrast to all the female characters, who, within this entertainment industry, cannot so much as have one single imperfection shown on camera, even if you’re literally Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley.

Fargeat’s editing - specifically the use of close-ups - serves other purposes too. It is especially interesting how she uses extremely grotesque close-ups of the female body to neutralize any association with sexual desires. There is a scene where shots of Qualley’s body are intercut with chicken meat and foodstuff of other sorts. These juxtapositions help remind us that we are all just, well, substances. Just because society prefers these substances to be arranged in particular ways doesn't change the fundamental fact of what they are. 

The candy-color visual style also works to neutralize any sense of attractiveness that a human body possesses. It drowns scene after scene in grotesque brightness - the kind you find in Stanley Kubrick’s films - to the point that they lose any kind of natural feel.

All this of course is building up to the crescendo of body horror. And, not to spoil too much here, but it is the best body horror I have seen this year. The special effects team headed by Pierre Olivier Persin should win a damn Oscar for this. 

The substance is a film that does a great job at using specific techniques - candy-color aesthetic, juxtaposition, body horrors, close-ups - to achieve purposes. The congruence between technique and purpose is beautiful. This makes some of the film’s weaknesses more forgivable. These include Fargeat’s tendency to use quick flashbacks and narrations to remind the audience of information that was introduced before. Not having these would make those scenes more subtle. And there is one moment when the thesis of the film is way too clearly stated in a very stilted dialog. 

Still, this is a film that will be in the running for best of the year. And if they’re not too squeamish, the Oscar voter should be interested as well.