The Movie: Get Out
The Director: Jordan Peele
The Cast: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Bradley Whitford, Catherine Keener, Marcus Henderson, Betty Gabriel, Lakeith Stanfield, Stephen Root, and LilRel Howery
The Story: A young African-American man visits his white girlfriend’s family estate, he becomes ensnared in a more sinister real reason for the invitation.
The Review:
After a very successful career as an actor both on television and in movies, Jordan Peele has decided to go behind the lens to direct this film which he also wrote the screenplay for. While there are comedic elements to the story, it also features a heavy dose of social commentary along with a fair amount of creepiness and a few scares thrown in to help ramp up the intensity. There are a ton of twists, turns, and what the f--- moments that will keep you on the edge of your seat and asking what you've got yourself into. The social commentary portion of the film explores some of the underlying nuances of what it's like to be a black man within a culture that does everything it can to exploit and discard you. Peele does a fantastic job with this subject matter and adds a layer of depth to the story that is actually quite thought provoking to go along with the thrills and laughs.
Daniel Kaluuya (Sicario), who plays Chris Washington, headlines a cast that has been perfectly selected to get the most out of each role. He does a great job of being the vehicle for the audience to live through and to share in taking in all the crazy stuff that happens on his journey through some seriously messed up stuff. Chris' best friend Rod, who is a sometimes overzealous TSA agent, ends up being the voice of reason, albeit a very funny voice, brought to life in a very energetic way by LilRel Howery. While you may recognize Bradley Whitford from one or more of the many, many film and TV projects he has worked on over the years, genre fans will most likely identify him as Hadley from The Cabin in the Woods and he brings to this role the same swagger and style that made him so fun to watch in that classic film.
Oh, and before I forget. Betty Gabriel, who plays a housekeeper named Georgina, has one of the all time creepiest, scariest, and emotionally affecting scenes you will ever see in a movie like this. Part of it can be seen in the film's trailer, but when you see the whole moment play out in full context...holy wow!
The Verdict:
Get Out is a fantastic film that works on so many levels. As a horror mystery, it is a solid effort, but once you throw in the elements of comedy and social commentary, which is really what this movie is all about, it gets elevated to an entirely different level of greatness. For so many different reasons, you need to see this movie. Just keep in mind that the next time, and every time, you see someone stirring the tea in their cup, the only thought in your head will be..."Get out!!"
No comments:
Post a Comment