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[SXSW Review] ‘Us’ is a Masterstroke of Genre Genius

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Us

Jordan Peele’s move from comedy to horror forged a new name among the masters of horror lineup. With Get Out he added social commentary relevancy back to genre film in game-changing ways. And while a sophomore jinx is always scary and a heck of a possibility, his latest film Us takes a peak in a new terrifyingly relevant area of our society while offering up a new breed of horror.

Us follows a family on vacation down to the coast near Santa Cruz. The introduction to the family leads you safely in, allowing you to put your guard down and experience the events to come shoulder to shoulder along side them. When their home is suddenly attacked by what appears to be doppelgängers, their night goes down a weird, dark and revelatory path. From there the film becomes very much a home invasion thriller with their doppelgängers, who are referred as ‘The Tethered’, attempting to untether themselves using giant pairs of gold scissors.

The cast is absolutely amazing with Elisabeth Moss giving food for nightmares in her portrayal as her doppelgänger, Dahlia. Lupita Nyong’o absolutely transcends as both Adelaide and her dopple, Red. Her choices as Red especially full of a quite menace and is definitely an approach I haven’t seen before.

Peele is on point aesthetically and tonally taking us from bright Instagram gold exteriors to dower claustrophobic areas. Along with these things, he also creates a living mythos out of a a viciously entertaining two-hour runtime. He is also an expert at giving the audience what they don’t want to see in terms of having characters make iffy decisions that he knows will have people screaming “don’t go in there, dummy!” from the aisles. But, he does so with a deep understanding of the genre never allowing you to know where the scare is going to come from within the fun of yelling at the screen.

Where before Peele deconstructed underlying racial injustices through the genre. Here he peels back the covers on America as a whole and explores where the Reagan administration, 80’s era new money and our current state of social media usage has lead us to a time we are embolden to our digital selves.

It’s one of those films that I’m sure can be dissected a hundred ways. And that’s what is really special about it. I can already feel that my second, third and fourth viewings will each bear new theories.

While it is a razor sharp cookie of a film, it is a simultaneous blast and a crowd pleaser. Creating big moments that had our audience cheering, the mood of the film is still very Jordan Peele and in the vein of honesty in comedy and horror. For example, from the beginning of the film, multiple VHS cases are visible on a shelf that include C.H.U.D., The Goonies, The Man with Two Brains among others. And each is playfully paid homage to throughout. This makes for intense melding of fun, smarts and genre nerd stuff that I can totally get behind.

The film is full to the brim with symbolism as well, ranging from baby boomer generation inspired multiplying rabbits, to the easter eggs of strange coincidence that fill each frame. Even the doppelgängers names are in references to specific queues. “Umbrae” for example refers to the darkest part of a shadow. The entire film is filled with these little mysteries that beg to be pieced together.

Cinematographer, Mike Gioulakis is responsible for creating the visual tension in both It Follows and Glass and follows up here with the best thing I have seen him do yet. Not afraid to play around with angles, close-ups and wide shots Gioulakis is able to maintain an energy that is hard to look away from even with the threat of being petrified with fear.

In its final moments the film gives what is going to be one of my favorite edited, choreographed and scored sequences of 2019. It’s entirely haunting, beautiful and grounded in genius and I can’t wait to discuss this in a more spoilery way after the film comes out. Cause… damn!

Us is weird, hilarious, terrifying and poignant. Most importantly it’s devilishly entertaining and has a lot of fun to unpack. Peele is at ease that stance has lent to creating more tension, frights and laughs than he has before. Get Out was good, Us is plain masterful.

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‘The Strangers’ Invaded Coachella in Instagramable PR Stunt

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Renny Harlin’s reboot of The Strangers isn’t coming out until May 17, but those murderous home invaders are making a pit stop at Coachella first.

In the latest Instagramable PR stunt, the studio behind the film decided to have the trio of masked intruders crash Coachella, a music festival that takes place for two weekends in Southern California.

The Strangers

This type of publicity began when Paramount did the same thing with their horror movie Smile in 2022. Their version had seemingly ordinary people in populated places look directly into a camera with an evil grin.

The Strangers

Harlin’s reboot is actually a trilogy with a more expansive world than that of the original.

“When setting out to remake The Strangers, we felt there was a bigger story to be told, which could be as powerful, chilling, and terrifying as the original and could really expand that world,” said producer Courtney Solomon. “Shooting this story as a trilogy allows us to create a hyperreal and terrifying character study. We’re fortunate to be joining forces with Madelaine Petsch, an amazing talent whose character is the driving force of this story.”

The Strangers

The movie follows a young couple (Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez) who “after their car breaks down in an eerie small town, are forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive in The Strangers: Chapter 1 the chilling first entry of this upcoming horror feature film series.”

The Strangers

The Strangers: Chapter 1 opens in theaters on May 17.

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‘Alien’ Returning to Theaters For a Limited Time

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It’s been 45 years since Ridley Scott’s Alien hit theaters and in celebration of that milestone, it is headed back to the big screen for a limited time. And what better day to do that than Alien Day on April 26?

It also works as a primer for the upcoming Fede Alvarez sequel Alien: Romulus opening on August 16. A special feature in which both Alvarez and Scott discuss the original sci-fi classic will be shown as a part of your theater admission. Take a look at the preview of that conversation below.

Fede Alvarez and Ridley Scott

Back in 1979, the original trailer for Alien was kind of terrifying. Imagine sitting in front of a CRT TV (Cathode Ray Tube) at night and suddenly Jerry Goldsmith’s haunting score begins to play as a giant chicken egg starts to crack with beams of light bursting through the shell and the word “Alien” slowly forms in slanted all caps across the screen. To a twelve-year-old, it was a scary pre-bedtime experience, especially Goldsmith’s screaming electronic musical flourishes playing over scenes of the actual movie. Let the “Is it horror or sci-fi?” debate begin.

Alien became a pop culture phenomenon, complete with kid’s toys, a graphic novel, and an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. It also inspired dioramas in wax museums and even a frightening setpiece at Walt Disney World in the now-defunct Great Movie Ride attraction.

Great Movie Ride

The film stars Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, and John Hurt. It tells the tale of a futuristic crew of blue-collar workers suddenly awakened out of stasis to investigate an undecipherable distress signal coming from a nearby moon. They investigate the source of the signal and discover it’s a warning and not a cry for help. Unbeknownst to the crew, they have brought a giant space creature back on board which they find out in one of the most iconic scenes in cinema history.

It is said that Alvarez’s sequel will pay homage to the original film’s storytelling and set design.

Alien Romulus
Alien (1979)

The Alien theatrical re-release will take place on April 26. Pre-order your tickets and find out where Alien will screen at a theater near you.

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Home Depot’s 12-Foot Skeleton Returns with a New Friend, Plus New Life-Size Prop from Spirit Halloween

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Halloween is the greatest holiday of them all. However, every great holiday needs amazing props to go with it. Luckily for you, there are two new amazing props that have been released, which are sure to impress your neighbors and frighten any neighborhood children who are unfortunate enough to wander past your yard.

The first entry is the return of the Home Depot 12-foot skeleton prop. Home Depot has outdone themselves in the past. But this year the company is bringing bigger and better things to their Halloween prop lineup.

Home Depot Skeleton Prop

This year, the company unveiled its new and improved Skelly. But what is a giant skeleton without a loyal friend? Home Depot has also announced that they will release a five-foot tall skeleton dog prop to eternally keep Skelly company as he haunts your yard this spooky season.

This bony pooch will be five feet tall and seven feet long. The prop will also feature a posable mouth and LCD eyes with eight variable settings. Lance Allen, Home Depot’s merchant of decorative Holliday gear, had the following to say about this year’s lineup.

“This year we increased our realism within the animatronics category, created some impressive, licensed characters and even brought back some fan favorites. Overall, we are most proud of the quality and value we are able to bring to our customers with these pieces so they can continue to grow their collections.”

Home Depot Prop

But what if giant skeletons just aren’t your thing? Well, Spirit Halloween has you covered with their giant life size Terror Dog replica. This massive prop has been ripped out of your nightmares to appear frighteningly on your lawn.

This prop weighs in at almost fifty pounds and features glowing red eyes that are sure to keep your yard safe from any toilet paper throwing hooligans. This iconic Ghostbusters nightmare is a must have for any fan of 80s horror. Or, anyone who loves all things spooky.

Terror Dog Prop
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