Awarded at the Cannes Film Festival, this feature film directed by French director Coralie Fargeat caused a sensation on the Croisette. An organic body horror experience that should not be missed. Our review.
Every year, the Cannes Film Festival offers a selection of a trashy or transgressive film which inevitably gets people talking on the Croisette after the screening. For the 2024 edition, it is The Substance which made a strong impression on the spectators, shaking up the then purring competition before leaving with the Screenplay Prize. For a film belonging to the subgenre of “body horror” (which particularly features the transgression of the body and psychology), it is rare enough to underline it.
Directed by the French Coralie Fargeat, The Substance tells the story of an actress in decline, who decides to ingest a product that allows her to generate a younger version of herself, and to divide the time between these two versions every other week. Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley (Maid) embody two versions of this same woman.
Gore and feminist comedy, The Substance is a visceral and enjoyable cinema product like we rarely see. Coralie Fargeat films a powerful tale about the ageism that is rife in entertainment society (but not only that). The metaphor spins with precision and what each person can experience in their flesh in an indescribable way and transcribed with enjoyment and explosion in a strong cinematic gesture: eating disorders, dysmorphophobia, or even our own relationship to image and other.
If it is definitely political and feminist, The Substance is above all a visceral and resolutely organic film which does not leave the spectator unscathed. The staging is mastered from start to finish, evoking numerous cinephile references to implement its own style, served by surprising stylized and colorful photography.
Grotesque, prankster, outrageous, flirting between horror and comedy, The Substance is above all a playground for its two main actresses who engage in an internal war. After a sluggish period, Demi Moore dares to twist her image and indulges in all excesses, reminding us of the exceptional actress that she is. This Wednesday, November 6, Coralie Fargeat offers an extraordinary experience as only cinema can offer.
Synopsis – Have you ever dreamed of a better version of yourself? You should try this new product:THE SUBSTANCE. He changed my life. It allows you to generate another version of yourself, younger, more beautiful, more perfect. Follow the instructions: YOU ACTIVATE once, YOU STABILIZE every day, YOU SWITCH every seven days without exception. Just share the time. It's so simple, what could go wrong?
