The Substance
First, the positives: the visual design and rhythm of this film are full of energy, which makes it fun to watch. It goes really over the top with the gore—I watch everything with subtitles, and I’ve never seen the word squelching used as much as this film does when describing its sound effects—but then I found myself desensitizing to the squirmy discomfort, to the point where I was giggling gleefully at the gruesome moments by the end.
Unfortunately, I found the storytelling to be weak otherwise. The Substance in the film causes the main character Elisabeth (Demi Moore) to “birth” a second, younger version of herself named Sue (Margaret Qualley). The rules that come with the Substance state that they “are one,” and that they must switch every seven days.
After watching the film, I couldn’t help but brainstorm about the possible permutations of the idea. In essence, the movie could have explored the concept in three ways, each with differing psychological consequences on the characters.
- two minds, one body: Elisabeth and Sue are distinct personalities, but their body changes appearance, aging and de-aging every seven days. It would be like a twist on Severance, which tends to ask questions like: who’s the real version of this person?
- one mind, two bodies: only Elisabeth exists, and her consciousness jumps between the younger and older bodies. Any damage that she does to the older body while she’s in the younger body is her own choice. She has to wrestle with the trade-off between enjoying youth and prolonging life in her golden years.
- two minds, two bodies: they’re just two separate people. This is what the movie does, and it’s the least interesting version, in my opinion. If Elisabeth doesn’t experience the life that Sue leads, what does she have to gain from the whole thing in the first place? The repeated mantra that they “are one” doesn’t actually apply.
Finally, I felt that the movie undercuts its own message. Ostensibly, it’s about the harms of objectifying women’s bodies, but then it constantly shows those bodies in titillating camera angles. As a heterosexual man, am I not supposed to enjoy seeing the shapely ass that you keep zooming in on?
