In 2017, a black comedian turned director and made a big splash in Hollywood with his debut feature.
The film is called "Escape from the Dead Town", and at a cost of 4.5 million, it returned a global box office of 250 million.
Not only that, it was nominated for three Oscars: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor , and finally won Best Original Screenplay .
"Escape from the Dead" stills
And this director, called Jordan Peele .
The success of his debut has catapulted Jordan Peele to become a much-watched filmmaker in Hollywood.
Following "Escape from the Dead", he also participated in the production of "BlacKkKlansman", "New Yin and Yang Demon Realm" and other film and television works.
However, for most fans, what is more expected is the second film he directed -
It is not an exaggeration to describe this movie as an annual hit.
As early as March this year, "Us" received rave reviews after its debut at the South by Southwest Film Festival.
The Rotten Tomatoes expert score reached 100% when the ban was lifted, and it still maintains a freshness of 94%.
The IMDb score is 7.2, and even the always strict MTC also gives a high score of 81.
Not bad for a horror/thriller movie.
Not only is the word of mouth quite good, but the box office of "We" is also quite explosive.
In the first weekend after its official release, the box office exceeded 70 million US dollars, making it the third highest-grossing horror film in North American film history .
So, what is so powerful about the first hit horror film "Us" this year?
Next, I'll take it slow for you.
(Note: There are spoilers below, please read with caution)
Like "Get Out", the protagonists in "Us" are still black.
Eddie , a little girl , went to the beach playground with her parents on her birthday.
By accident, she found a mysterious cabin with "Find Yourself" written on it .
Driven by curiosity, Eddie stepped inside.
Unexpectedly, in the mirror house deep in the hut, Eddie saw a person exactly like himself.
Eddie was startled and ran back to his parents quickly.
But she suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and was unable to talk to other people for a long time.
Fortunately, as time passed, Eddie gradually returned to normal.
Years later, she became a dancer, got married and had children, and lived happily ever after.
One summer, Eddie and her husband Gabe , along with son Jason and daughter Zola, came to the beach for a vacation.
Coincidentally, this beach is where Eddie encountered strange things.
On the night of vacation, something strange happened again—
The Eddie family suddenly discovered that four strange people had appeared outside the hut they lived in.
Eddie realizes something is wrong and prepares to call the police.
However, before the police arrived, the four uninvited guests had already rushed into the house.
What's even more surprising is that they are like replicas of the Eddie family , they look exactly the same.
Not only are they the same in appearance, but their physical characteristics, interests and hobbies are also the same as their counterparts.
For example, "Shadow" Zola, like Zola himself, is good at long-distance running.
"Shadow" Jason, like himself, likes to play with fire.
The purpose of these four "shadows" is to eliminate the Eddie family and replace their lives.
So, the two families started a life-and-death battle.
Seeing this, I believe most viewers will be stunned.
What is the origin of these four people? Why do they look the same as Eddie's family?
In fact, through the mouth of "Shadow" Eddie, the mystery can be revealed.
It turned out that in order to control the people's thinking, the US government made a "fetter system" many years ago.
Specifically, it is to use the latest technology to replicate the human body.
Copied people are placed in the vast underground tunnels of the United States, and they share the same soul as those on the ground.
In other words, the underground people are like the "shadows" of the people on the ground.
Whatever the people on earth do, the shadow has to do with it.
The only difference is that people on the ground can enjoy the blue sky, grass, fresh air and food.
And the shadow can only live in the shadows day after day, to maintain life by eating raw rabbits.
Later, the experiment of the "fetter system" failed, and no one cared about the shadows underground.
As a result, they gradually came up with the idea of destroying the people on the ground and replacing them.
Such a truth is terrifying.
In fact, in the first half of the movie, there are many foreshadowings for this -
Eddie's family drove to the beach, and daughter Zola asked a question while chatting.
This paved the way for the later announcement of the "fetter system".
Did you know that there is fluorine in water?
The government used to control our minds?
When they first arrived at the beach, there was an overhead shot, and the shadows of the four were silhouetted against the sun.
This hints that the shadow family is about to debut.
Also, when the shadow appears, the weapon used is scissors.
The symmetry of the scissors also implies that the "shadow" is the replica and mirror image of the people on the ground.
These foreshadowing and foreshadowing in details make the whole script more sophisticated.
But objectively speaking, "Us" still has many logical flaws.
For example, how can a "shadow" in the ground survive by eating only rabbits? Where do they get their water from? How can there be such a large tunnel underground to accommodate millions of people and so on?
These unjustifiable parts are also where the film has been criticized.
Of course, aside from the problems with the setting, "Us" is still an excellent horror and thriller.
Especially, when you have been shocked by the reveal of the "bond system", there is another big reversal at the end——
The heroine Eddie is actually not Eddie, but Eddie's "shadow".
Remember when Eddie was frightened at the playground as a kid?
That night, she had already been dropped by Shadow Eddie.
Shadow Eddie locked her in the underworld, came to the ground himself, replaced Eddie and lived on.
In fact, this huge reversal did not come suddenly, and there were many clues before——
When Eddie was frightened at the playground as a child, the family thought she had PTSD and was unable to speak.
In fact, it is because this Eddie is already Shadow Eddie at this time, and Shadow does not have a sound language function.
In the same way, when the Shadow Family appears, only Eddie "Shadow" can speak normally,
That's because this "shadow" Eddie is actually the real Eddie who was dumped back then.
The title of this film is "US", in addition to being translated as us (Us), it can also be understood as the United States (US).
And this clever metaphor is also mentioned in the film.
When the Shadows first appeared, Eddie asked who they were?
"Shadow" Eddie replied:
we are american
It can be said that only by reading the political metaphors in it can you truly understand the film.
Speaking of which, I have to mention the creative source of director Jordan Peele.
One day, while surfing the Internet, Jordan Peele came across an advertisement for a 1986 American charity campaign— Through the Hand of America .
The event called on 6 million Americans to join hands and form a "string of charity" from coast to coast.
The purpose of this move is to call on everyone to care and help people below the "poverty line".
This ad was placed at the beginning of the film and became a key element of the film.
Because at the end of the movie, the underground "shadow" is really dressed in uniform, holding hands on the ground to form a line.
Have you found it? This is undoubtedly a blatant satire on the charity activities of the year.
Holding hands with 6 million people cannot change the gap between the rich and the poor in reality.
In addition, the ground and the underground in the movie, one heaven and one hell, are like two worlds.
This setting also obviously alludes to the reality of American social stratification.
If we say that in "Escape from the Dead", it simply reveals the racial discrimination in the United States.
Then in "Us", Jordan Peele pointed the finger at the class contradictions throughout the United States .
Such practical significance is also an important reason why "Us" can surpass ordinary horror films, be praised by foreign media, and even be remembered by the times.
As The Playlist commented:
"It's the kind of movie that will be discussed and debated for decades to come.
Suppose for the next three decades, when things continue to descend into chaos.
People will think of a sobering fable called "US" many years ago. "
*The author of this article: Zhang Bucai
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