Us
A thrilling new adventure from the mind of Jordan Peele. - 7/10
by Francesco Bakhos - 365 Movies Lebanon
A thrilling new adventure from the mind of Jordan Peele. Or as i would like to say a modern-day interpretation for the strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.
This movie follows Adelaide Wilson, whom grows increasingly concerned that something bad is going to happen after being haunted by a traumatic experience from the past. Her worst fears soon become a reality when four masked strangers descend upon the house, forcing the Wilsons into a fight for survival. When the masks come off, the family is horrified to learn that each attacker takes the appearance of one of them.
Jordan Peele's latest cinematic achievement failed to live up to my expectations yet somehow thrilled me all at the same time. So that's why I will be dividing my review into 2 main categories : the positives and the negatives.
Starting with the positives : Academy Award winner director Peele doee it once again in creating one hell of a disturbing atmosphere that's bound to send shivers down your spine. Just like "Get Out", US explores the idea of possession but this time from a deeper and darker angle. A theme I always found fascinating and exciting. The whole idea of splitting the human spirit into 2 bodies/ into good and evil is nothing new. Take the example of the Famous Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. But the way it was interpreted and presented in this dark thriller is whay nightmares are made of.
You see, we all have a little bit of darkness inside of us. An aspect we wish for it to stay hidden, but what happens when this darkness starts to have a mind of its own and eventually a vessel where it can live in absolute freedom? This unique way of thinking of Jordan Peele is what made this movie stand out.
To continue, this movie doesn't only talk about possession, as it is multilayered, it also underlined alot of interesting themes such as fear, anxiety, family unions, PTSD... And the list goes on.
So you might think with a content this dark and deep, there won't be any place for humor right? Well think again because the script contained a huge amount of jokes and humor that I personally liked. Some might think this way, the whole disturbing atmosphere will get demolished but on the contrary it only highlighted it and made us connect with the characters even more.
The last thing i would like to talk about in this category is the amazingly well chosen cast that absolutely KILLED IT. KILLED IT. Lupita Nyong'o is a force to be recokend with. She absolutely dominated the screen and gave one of her best performances up to date.
And not to forget about that little twist in the end thats both disturbing and amazing.
But unfortunately, this movie also contained some flaws.
Starting with US' story, it was totally predictable, a bit underwhelming and repetitive. At the end, its just a story about a mother trying to save her family from a certain danger. Its so been there done that. Khalas let's move on from these clichés.
Moreover, the climax, which was supposed to be this extremely powerful collection of events, was to say the least pretty average. I was expecting something really big and powerful.
To continue, the characters needed some major work. Both, protagonists and antagonists, were flat and underdeveloped. Too bad!!
And the not so great editing didn't help as well, it decreased the quality of the experience.
So you see, US is not flawless but it sure is a fantastically disturbing experience not to miss.
Highly recommend it.
Connect with Francesco Bakhos - 365 Movies Lebanon
InstagramView other reviews by Francesco Bakhos - 365 Movies Lebanon