Over the years, lots of great horror directors have tried to reach the pinnacle of the genre: to become the next Alfred Hitchcock. George Romero got close. So did Wes Craven. James Wan most recently. And then Get Out happened, and we suddenly had a new front runner. Jordan Peele’s last film was such a phenomenon, it successfully took Peele away from comedies and into the realm of horror and suspense. Us isn’t quite the feat Get Out was, but it’s damn good, keeping Peele skyrocketing towards the Master of Suspense.
The Us in Peele’s new movie is the Wilson family. Gabe (Winston Duke, clearly playing Peele himself) and Adelaide (Lupita Nyong’o) are taking their 2 kids Zora (Shahadi Wright Joseph) and Jason (Evan Alex) to Santa Cruz to partake in the beach activities. Adelaide is on edge though, as this particular beach reminds her of a traumatic event she experienced there when she was younger. Her fears become realized one horrible evening, as a family of Wilson doppelgangers shows up at their house, scissors in hand, to…what? No one knows.
If you’re gonna be the master of suspense, you better prove your worth over and over again, and Peele certainly brings it in droves during Us. The minute nightfall occurs, this movie grabs you like the Red family and never lets you go. Each actor plays an effective creepy complement to their heroic character, particularly Nyong’o’s Red. The costume design is sufficiently creepy, turning people on scissors the way Hitchcock turned people on showers and other day to day common items. Peele for the most part balances scenes of tension with scenes of comedic relief, like a family death competition, lulling us before we get jump scared or freak out at the sight of hundreds of rabbits. Plus there will be a twist or 2 that you may or may not see coming. In Us, Peele uses the playbook Alfred Hitchcock developed and adds a few plays of his own for a new era of filmmakers to look at and think about.
Part of the reason Get Out was such a phenomenon was how meticulous Peele was making every piece of that movie say something important about society he wanted to say. Us takes that ambition and amplifies it, at times to absurd levels. Symbolism infuses every scene, just like Get Out, with weapon choice, or music choice. One of the movie’s standout sequences uses Luniz’s “I Got 5 On It” in a way where you won’t be able to hear that song and shudder at least a little bit. Us sees the former TV comedian tackling subjects of control, PTSD, government surveillance, race, personal duality, and inner demons all at the same time. The sheer amount of cultural topics Us is trying to get us to think about does cause the movie to lose focus a few times, but each audience member will leave the movie feeling like they experienced something important, and maybe can project even something personal onto the story like I have been doing for the past couple hours.
2nd films by directors who nailed their first are tricky. Some try something completely crazy. Others cash in on their success. And some completely fall on their face. Jordan Peele opts for the first, and mostly succeeds, proving Get Out wasn’t a fluke. The talented Oscar Winner has a Twilight Zone future ahead of him, merging Hitchcock with Rod Serling. Maybe that’s Jordan Peele’s master plan: he wants to outduel all the horror greats and become the horror movie director version of The Blob. I’m definitely along for the ride, so please Lupita, put the scissors down please.