What is the point of the cinema room? We often advocate the strength of the big screen, but I would like to talk about the experience of the collective. It is also one of the membranes of the horror genre, which is only delicious when shared with several people. I certainly would not have seen, heard or experienced The Substancethe new film from Coralie Fargeatthe same way if I had been completely alone. Screened in May 2024 at the Cannes Film Festival, it was positioned as one of my biggest expectations, for me who had already been largely won over by Revengethe first film by the French filmmaker. I came out more upset than ever, nearly losing my eye more than once, but blissful and hallucinated, especially to have gone through such an adventure in a room full of people. An experience shared by many others, as evidenced today by the triumph of Demi Moorerewarded at the Golden Globes for her brilliant interpretation.
Demi Moore in The Substance by Coralie Fargeat (2024).© Working Title
Who’s afraid of overbidding?
This was perhaps the link that unites many of the films in the Official Cannes Competition in 2024. Halfway through the Cannes Film Festival, the stormy Megalopolis of Francis Ford Coppolathe cruel Kinds of Kindnessthe enchanter Emilia Perez of Jacques Audiardand now the Dantesque The Substance of Coralie Fargeat. A program that reflects the ambition of Thierry Frémauxgeneral delegate of the Festival. “It’s so sad that the Competition only presents films for the general public and is no longer interested in real arthouse films at all.” sighs a Swedish critic between two screenings. I think I have rarely disagreed so much with someone, as I imagine that the border is much more porous than we think between auteur cinema and so-called cinema. mainstream – believing the opposite seems to me to be a very sad vision, very pessimistic for the future of cinema.
So, as Furious presented Out of Competition last May, The Substance achieves this tour de force of being two-headed: both a cinema monster, made for packed theaters, and a gem of an author (or here, an author), which is teeming with references. In front The SubstanceI think of Carrie of Brian de Palma (1976), but also Eraserhead of David Lynch (1977). The first for its cascades of hemoglobin, which sprinkle sublime sequined evening dresses, the second for the exploration of what makes monstrous, in an impossible quest to be seen, admired and loved by all. Because yes, in this horrific epic, which does not hesitate to use comedy (and thus attracts a hilarious audience for almost two and a half hours), Fargeat achieves the feat of moving me, notably thanks to the character of Demi Mooreboth moving and pathetic, in a composition that seems to be directly inspired by his own life.
