A cinema experience that will get under your skin
Never have I seen such a loud, reactive audience at the cinema. Collective gasps filled the room at the grotesque horror, uncontrollable laughter erupted at absurd scenes, and sounds of disgust were made in response to unsettling visuals. I found myself pulling my eyes from the screen, to look at my friend, curious to see if she was feeling the same as I was. When the credits rolled, I wished everyone in the audience could linger a bit, to collectively digest what we had just seen. After leaving, my friend felt dizzy and disoriented, and remained uneasy for the rest of the night, an effect the film left on many.
‘The Substance’, the new feminist body horror, demands to be experienced in a crowded cinema. In fact, the filmmakers have embraced this by using clips of audience reactions to promote the film. Reviewers on Letterboxd joked about being ‘trauma bonded’ with other moviegoers, showing how intensely communal the viewing experience is of for this particular film. The cinema becomes a space for what Émile Durkheim coined “collective effervescence”- a shared emotional energy that bonds people. Watching ‘The Substance’ in a packed cinema highlighted this phenomenon, as everyone experienceds the same extreme “what-the-fuck-is-going-on” feelings, creating a sense of shared experience between audience members.
Without spoiling too much, the film follows an aging star who has taken a black-market drug, The Substance, which transforms her into a “younger, more beautiful, more perfect” version of herself – albeit for merely one week at a time. Predictably, the balance between her old and young self is not preserved, so everything goes askew. This is where the body horror intensifies: the human body is altered to the point of the uncanny, eliciting visceral reactions from the audience. We are made uncomfortable by the confrontation of humanity and monstrosity. The film juxtaposes adoration and repulsion, as the protagonist spirals deeper into self-loathing and desperation as she has felt after experiencing life as a younger, better version of herself again.
T he point of the plot is a simple, all-too obvious one: we live in a sexist society where women feel pressured to go to extremes to preserve their beauty, often at the cost of their sanity and health. While the message is fairly obvious, the execution is far from conventional and definitely worth experiencing. Through its grotesque and satirical lenses, ‘The Substance’ explores ageism, self-hatred and the worth of women. The close-up shots and strange angles amplify the discomfort of the storyline, making it visually captivating. I highly recommend watching ‘The Substance’ at the cinema, for its intriguing plot and the collective energy of the audience. ‘The Substance’ is a film that does not just entertain, it will get under your skin and leave a lasting impression.
Image: Carme Ferrando Soriano
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