The Substance
2024
****
Director: Coralie Fargeat
Cast: Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, Ray Liotta, Isabella Rossellini, Jean-Baptiste Puech, Florent Arnoult, Clara Deshayes, Pauline Lorillard, Eddy Suiveng, Salomé Dewaels
On her 50th birthday, aging Hollywood star Elisabeth Sparkle is fired from her TV job. In desperation, she resorts to a mysterious drug know as the Substance, which creates a younger and better version of herself. Coralie Fargeat's second feature is an entertaining, darkly comic, and extremely graphic body horror movie that asks how far women are willing to go to stay young and marketable in a world shaped by the male gaze. From the very first scene, Fargeat's direction is wonderfully assured and her visual style is eye–catching. The story, visuals, and special effects draw inspiration from or pay homage to classics such as The Fly, The Thing, The Elephant Man, The Shining,.and Videodrome. An Academy Award winner for best makeup and hairstyling.
