Summary
A sharp, satirical body horror that critiques Hollywood’s obsession with perfection and the toxic beauty standards it imposes on women
In September 1962, a 54-year-old Bette Davis placed a now-famous ad in Variety: “Mother of three – 10, 11, & 15 – divorcee. American. Thirty years’ experience as an actress in motion pictures. Mobile still, and more affable than rumour would have it. Wants steady employment in Hollywood. (Has had Broadway.)”
Though later dismissed as a joke, the ad highlights a bias as old as Hollywood itself: the industry’s relentless sidelining of ageing actresses. This uncomfortable truth is at the heart of Coralie Fargeat’s THE SUBSTANCE, a film that wryly opens with the image of a cracked and faded star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
We don’t know the career path that led Academy Award-winning actress Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore) to becoming a TV aerobics instructor. Yet, when she’s fired on her 50th birthday by her sleazy boss Harvey (Dennis Quaid), a freak car accident introduces her to a drug known only as “The Substance.”
Fargeat’s film occupies an inky, dark mirror world somewhere between Alice in Wonderland and Requiem for a Dream. The Substance creates a “more perfect” version of Elisabeth, known only as Sue (Margaret Qualley), who goes on to enjoy the success that now eludes the original. The catch is that they must swap back every seven days or face dire side effects.
You might think you know where this is going, but you’d be wrong. THE SUBSTANCE is an alternately gripping piece of body horror, sharp social commentary, and, through Moore’s character, imbued with a deep sense of sadness. Demi Moore, to paraphrase Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, might initially seem like an odd choice for a film exploring the idea of ‘fading’ beauty.
Yet in a performance worthy of awards, we watch Elisabeth become consumed by the notion that she is somehow inferior to her Substance-created counterpart. It’s a clever in-joke that the 29-year-old Qualley’s body is enhanced with prosthetics to create an idealised “perfect” version. What better way to critique the unattainable beauty standards imposed by the industry?
With its visceral camera work, tactile sound design, and unsettling climax, THE SUBSTANCE isn’t just a film to watch; it’s a film to experience. Does it go over the top in the second half? Absolutely, and gloriously so. By then, Fargeat makes the subtext glaringly obvious, much like the giant billboard of Sue that looms over Elisabeth’s apartment. We might laugh and cringe at the absurdity of the finale, but there’s an uncomfortable truth behind it all.
2024 | USA | DIRECTOR: Coralie Fargeat | WRITERS: Coralie Fargeat | CAST: Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, Dennis Quaid | DISTRIBUTOR: Madman Films (Australia), Mubi (UK and US) | RUNNING TIME: 141 minutes | RELEASE DATE: 20 September 2024 (USA and UK), 19 September 2024 (Australia)
