‘Us’ is an intense, clever, and fun experience that you have to… well, experience. It will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish.
Plot:
Haunted by an unexplainable and unresolved trauma from her past and compounded by a string of eerie coincidences, Adelaide feels her paranoia elevate to high-alert as she grows increasingly certain that something bad is going to befall her family. After spending a tense beach day with their friends, the Tylers (Emmy winner Elisabeth Moss, Tim Heidecker, Cali Sheldon, Noelle Sheldon), Adelaide and her family return to their vacation home. When darkness falls, the Wilsons discover the silhouette of four figures holding hands as they stand in the driveway. Us pits an endearing American family against a terrifying and uncanny opponent: doppelgängers of themselves. –RT
Rotten Tomato Score: 95%
Audience Score: 72%
Our Score: 9.5 (95%)
Review:
Us is a movie that keeps your nerves on edge, with a family of characters you like, relate to, and feel for. It is hard to go too in-depth without revealing the juicy bits of the film, but I will try my best to instead focus on why I liked it without delving into beefy plot details. The fact is, Us is more of a psychological thriller than a horror film, although it is scary often enough to be mistaken for something more horrifying in the genre. It is clear to the audience that the film has an underlying message intent on opening eyes to the state of modern America, but even without that, there is so much else happening to enjoy.
The standouts here, are the two young stars, Shahadi Wright-Joseph (Zora) and Evan Alex (Jason). These two were central to the film’s pacing and forward movement and clearly shine brightly among Lupita Nyong’o and Winston Duke, the latter of which is the clear comedic relief throughout. The four of them have chemistry that make the feel like a genuine family going through a genuine crisis the likes of which no person(s) could fathom. No matter what combination of them is onscreen together at any given time, they all provide impressive performances that really make you feel for them as they go through these unspeakable horrors. But then you have to remember each of these actors is playing two characters, polar opposites that make you feel as if they are two completely different actors, which, to me, is what moved me the most as I watched this movie over the weekend.
Elizabeth Moss also gives an amazing performance that reminded me of Heath Ledger’s Dark Knight performance. I won’t say more than that, but when you see this unfold on-screen, you will know what I am talking about. Truly mesmerizing.
From the moment that the opening credits filled the screen, until the final scenes that wrapped up with a unique message to America in its entirety, Us was an emotional roller coaster that I can’t speak highly enough of. Fun, funny, intense, suspenseful, this movie has it all. Adding incredible performances from the core and supporting cast with writing and directing that all went in the proper direction together, Us is just great. Flat out. That is what you need to know. Us is great.
Trailer:
