The Substance - Fountain of Youth

The Substance

English - Drama / Horror
141 mins

Mubi (Subscription) / Rent on Prime Video

I took advantage of a free month offer i had earned on MUBI (a premium streaming service for world/indie cinema) for this movie (and a few others). This would explain the lull in my writing over the past few weeks.

I have been deliberate in choosing the the above as the poster for my review and NOT the more popular one used for their marketing. I think this one summarizes the genre of the movie more than the other, without spoiling it.

"The Substance" is the story of Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore) is an ageing Hollywood actor, who is now mostly popular because of an aerobics show. Her producer Harvey ( it had to be!, Dennis Quaid) fires her and is auditioning for a younger lead. 

While Elisabeth is coming to grips with her reality of being past her prime (she also turns 50), she gets into an almost fatal car crash. While in the hospital, a dubious male nurse hands her a pen drive containing a video about a mysterious drug. This drug promises its user a younger, “perfected” version of themselves.

Elisabeth takes the drug and a younger version  literally emerges out of her. The catch is that only one of the two can exist at a point in time and there are rules that must be followed to ensure each version gets to live safely for one week at a time.

The younger  Sue (Margaret Qualley), auditions for the aerobics show. As expected, rapidly becomes its new star. Ratings soar, Sue becomes the talk of the town, and her face is everywhere in Hollywood. But when her week is up, she returns to the “substance” state, allowing Elisabeth to take her place again.

Elisabeth wakes up to find Sue thriving in the role she once had, living the glamorous life she now misses. She remains confined to her home—eating, watching TV, and embracing her quiet existence.

Good things do not last too long, as Sue wants more than a week, a little more at first and then much more and almost all of it, which has a debilitating impact on Elisabeth's condition - because after all - they are BOTH parts of a whole, anything more for Sue is something less for  Elisabeth!.  Eventually it is a situation of one trying to out live the other, hurtling to a conclusion.

Writer, Director Coralie Fargeat creates a fantastic premise, tackling the highly relevant themes of aging and beauty standards in the entertainment industry.. The screenplay is terrific and the movie really sets up very well. 

I wish there was a more emotional way to have ended the movie, instead Fargeat choses to put the last 30 minutes right into  David Cronenberg territory (the master of visceral movies), with homage to Cronenberg's "The Fly" or  even the B grade horror "classic", "Basket Case". 

One would expect the physical nudity owing to the "transformation" sequences, but the last bit is definitely not for the weak hearted. The imagery while maybe playing out to a comic effect, can be quite grisly. 

I was rooting for Demi Moore for her best actor Oscar. A 62-year-old icon playing a 50-year-old who gets the chance to surpass her former 25-year-old self—what a fairytale that would have been. Alas.