Title – The Substance (2024) 

Director – Coralie Fargeat (Revenge)

Cast – Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, Dennis Quaid

Plot – Aging Hollywood celebrity Elizabeth Sparkle (Moore) turns to an off-market drug known as The Substance to return her to her beautiful youthful looks that creates her new model of herself Sue (Qualley). Having to share their time together, managing the new drug creates a world of problems for both Elizabeth and Sue as they look to go about their daily lives.  

“Pretty girls should always smile!”

Review by Eddie on 23/10/2024

For her first film since her underrated debut in 2017 with Revenge, French director Coralie Fargeat has hit the big time with her much talked about body-horror hit The Substance. 

Winner of this years Cannes Film Festival Best Screenplay award and sure to be a major player in the soon too arrive awards season that will take over the industry for the foreseeable future, it’s not hard too see why Fargeat’s confronting and unrelenting experience has managed to find itself as a key player of the 2024 feature film crop. 

Clocking in at close to two and a half hours in length, The Substance explores the life of Demi Moore’s aging starlet Elizabeth Sparkle, who has turned to an off-market and highly dubious product that will see her magically age backwards with a whole other version of herself that she must share her time with on a one week on and one week off basis. 

It’s a fairly wild concept that does shares DNA with other body horror/body swap films in the horror cannon but thanks to a large swathe of reasons Fargeat is able to ensure that The Substance’s visceral representations of all the ideas and concepts at play here are unlike anything you’ve seen before with the film loaded with a range of things you’d never think you were going to see, creating a viewing experience that is tailor made for the shared cinema option if you can so arrange. 

Unafraid to get seriously demented and twisted (who would’ve thought the mere act of eating some seafood could be so disgusting?), The Substance may not have something entirely new to say and is arguably fairly self-indulgent to give itself such a large runtime to say what it wants to but there’s a lot here to enjoy from Fargeat’s colourful direction, composer Raffertie’s moody score, wickedly good practical effects and most importantly two awards worthy turns from its leads who have never been better. 

At one time one of Hollywood’s biggest stars, Moore in particular has come out of nowhere to deliver what should be a lead turn that is in the conversation for Oscar recognition with her iteration of Sparkle a sad, confronting and realistic examination of ones quest to remain relevant and youthful. 

A grounded presence in a film that increasingly becomes less and less grounded as it goes along its way, steamrolling to a divisive final act that will alienate some viewers and enrapture others, Moore should be heading into what’s hopefully another successful era of her otherwise recently quiet career while her co-star Margaret Qualley only grows in stature with her work here as the captivating Sue, a ball of energy who starts to resent the fact she has to give herself up on regular intervals to a much more weathered and fragile older self. 

Unquestionably not for everyone with some frantic swings here that don’t always hit, The Substance is a quality new addition to the body-horror subgenre and a fantastic Hollywood calling card for its director and timely reminder to all of the talents of its leading lady. 

Final Say – 

Prepare to be shocked, The Substance is a trip unlike any other. An unashamedly bonkers exploration of human beings and their quest to remain relevant and youthful, Coralie Fargeat’s sophomore feature is sure to be a film to watch out for come awards season. 

3 1/2 shrimp out of 5