Film review: ‘THE SUBSTANCE’ by Nick Gardener from ‘Built For Speed’

French writer/ director Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance disturbingly updates Oscar Wilde’s The Picture Of Dorian Gray and adds a smattering of Showgirls for a gruesome body horror satire of Hollywood, the beauty industry and the damaging expectations placed on women.

In an unsettlingly appropriate piece of casting, Demi Moore plays celebrity aerobics trainer Elisabeth Sparkle who hosts a successful Jane Fonda-esque TV fitness show. When she overhears the show’s grotesquely sexist producer, Harvey (Dennis Quaid) demanding that she be replaced by a younger woman, Elisabeth contacts a mysterious company who promise treatments that can not only rejuvenate people but actually create a younger and more attractive version of themselves.  After injecting a strange sinister gloop, a young woman calling herself Sue (Margaret Qualley) literally emerges from Elisabeth.  Taking the TV role from which Elisabeth was booted, Sue basks in the favour bestowed upon the beautiful people and becomes a network star.  Meanwhile, Elisabeth begins to experience horrifying side effects of the treatment.

Be warned, this film contains some grotesque sequences reminiscent of The Thing and Society as well as lots of gizzards and pointy things going into flesh.  This is not a film to be viewed just before dinner.

Some might think a gory body horror film would just be low budget schlock but this is one of the most striking looking films of the year.  In a style that combines 80’s sheen with Kubrick-like precision, Fargeat and cinematographer Benjamin Kracun compose remarkable meticulously framed shots drenched in mesmerising colours.  There’s references to David Cronenberg and David Lynch among others but Fargeat never loses that distinctive voice.

Both Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley are terrific in what appear to be very demanding roles.  They bring both monstrousness and touching pathos to characters that in many ways critique their respective positions in Hollywood.  Most monstrous of all, though, is Dennis Quaid’s repulsive Harvey.  While he cranks the character’s vile clownish mannerisms and nauseating misogyny up to 11, he never feels too over the top; such is the queasy lurid world Fargeat conjures.

The concept here is limited and the film becomes a little repetitive as if an episode of a Black Mirror-style sci fi horror tv show has been pushed out to feature length.  Still, the potency of the images and the quality of the filmmaking means it’s never dull.

Suffice to say, a film like The Substance will not be to all tastes but for those with strong stomachs who revel in vicious and visceral satire of the entertainment world, this will no doubt be one of this year’s most vital films.

Nick’s rating: ****

Genre: Horror/ satire.

Classification: R18+.

Director(s): Coralie Fargeat.

Release date: 19th Sep 2024.

Running time: 140 mins.

Reviewer: Nick Gardener can be heard on “Built For Speed” every Friday night from 8-10pm on 88.3 Southern FM.

 

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