get out (2017, dir. jordan peele)

if I ever make a horror movie, anytime anyone stops to look at or behind anything, they will be immediately killed, then licked by a passing cat a few beats later

jump scares are a lazy trope but worse are the current crop of Catholic-guilt demons-among-us horror films because basically all it is = invincible malevolent forces shapeshifting into whatever they feel like for 2 hours with no ground rules and no Argento-like visual treatery to make it worthwhile.

Annabelle sucked balls.

That's good to hear, thanks everyone! Definitely gonna check this out soon.

Personally I hate jump scares and I've really started to take more of an interest in horror after realizing that good horror films involve much more than obnoxious surprises, but I will admit that I like a well-done jump scare. a good example = the winkys diner scene in mulholland drive.

Oh man there's so much good horror that has no interest whatsoever in making you jump out of your seat and shriek, so much of it.

I finally watched this as part of my year-end catch-up.

The constant ebb and flow of wondering whether these people are for real, or if they're presenting a veneer over something evil, kept me on the edge of my seat. I think the tension of being a fish out of water, this entire white people country club life that the protagonist is dropped into, was really well done. It's a position I've experienced few times, but every part of the party gathering was hitting my fight-or-flight instinct and it's a testament to Peele's writing and directing that it seems so relatable, but he has Chris keeping his cool because this is how life is for him all the damn time. And that's why he's noticing things but navigating through it until we get to that crucial photo reveal.

Seeing the film nominated for comedy categories initially made me irritated, but it's true: it's a dark satire, a comedic allegory. The film itself is completely horror (phone calls with TSA hero buddy notwithstanding) but outside the context of the film's world we recognize satire as humor, although this is a work that makes me really question that.

And yeah, the police car pulling up had me on the edge of my seat but the door swinging open to reveal it says "Transportation Safety" had me cheering.

kept me on the edge of my seat

my literal experience too, from beginning to end

I did enjoy the ads running in trade press telling me to vote for this movie In All Categories Including Best Picture

that is awesome. i think a best picture nom is a v safe bet, and after last year a win isn't implausible either, which is pretty remarkable

happy to hear that people are having the same edge of the seat experience at home as i had in a packed theater on opening weekend

We liked it in Miami!!

So the first 70 minutes or so of this were pretty good. Unfortunately it then becomes a full-blown conventional horror film, ie the dumbest genre. The Plot of the locals, when revealed, didn't really make any kind of sense to me. And I was not scared for a minute -- the most 'horror' in the general sense was probably all the White People Remarks to Chris, cuz you know they've all been said.

Kaluuya was fine (I can't say the same for the endless tics of Allison Williams). My favorite performances were by the TSA friend and Stephen Root.

And have you watched the original bleak ending on the DVD? Much better.

I've seen the alternate ending. I prefer the one Peele used for how my theatrical audience reacted to it (audible relief)

surprised Peele didn't do anything to wrap up the "Logan King/Andre" character arc in a post-credits sequence

Mike D'Angelo generally OTM:

Kaluuya, who was so quietly impressive in Sicario, turns in one of the most expressively reactive performances I can recall, projecting Chris' true emotions—half-pained, half-amused at self-serving proclamations of allyship; dumbfounded by casual overt racism—through a credible scrim of politeness. (Casting a dramatic actor, rather than Key or himself, was an inspired choice on Peele's part. Kaluuya is already my choice to beat for lead male this year.) The big twist, however, kinda defangs the movie. "Why us? Why black people?" Chris asks, and the answer feels *ad hoc*, because race isn't really intrinsic to the (fairly decent, if familiar) horror-movie idea Peele came up with. Elderly or disabled people wanting to inhabit younger, healthier bodies makes perfect sense in any context; there are potentially pointed and discomfiting reasons to demand African-American vessels, but Get Out, surprisingly (given how consistently sharp the setup is), doesn't dig in. I suspect that's because Peele recognized that it's much creepier for the groundskeeper and the maid to be Stepford-y rather than, say, clumsily "black" (i.e. appropriation as possession, which seems like the obvious thematic choice if you're shrewdly taking aim at "the good ones" rather than deplorables). The satire and the horror mesh so weakly that strengthening one inevitably means diminishing the other. And revealing the ostensibly well-meaning white liberals as pure evil, rather than deluded, lets them (me) off the hook.

Whichever ending doesn't matter because the point of the entire movie is embodied in the viewer putting two and two together when the cop car initially shows up

The big twist, however, kinda defangs the movie. "Why us? Why black people?" Chris asks, and the answer feels *ad hoc*, because race isn't really intrinsic to the (fairly decent, if familiar) horror-movie idea Peele came up with. Elderly or disabled people wanting to inhabit younger, healthier bodies makes perfect sense in any context; there are potentially pointed and discomfiting reasons to demand African-American vessels, but Get Out, surprisingly (given how consistently sharp the setup is), doesn't dig in.

idk i think this is kind of backwards or at least i don't think the movie needed to dig in much more than it did, it's p. obvious that the idea was to take white fascination with/appropriation of blackness when convenient to an extreme conclusion. when listening to black ppl talk about this movie the reaction was more "well of course, they're always taking from us."

also deluded vs. evil does nothing for me when one easily leads to the other. clearly in some wacky sense the whites felt they were doing some best of both worlds shit that yes was also very evil.

But the thing is, white appropriation including *black skin* doesn't make sense, because you suddenly acquire what the Asian party guest in the film would call "disadvantages."

Well, I think that's an aspect of the satire, pushed to the extreme. They want to be as black as can be, short of actually *being* black, because to their mind (no pun intended) they're *not* black because they are still themselves.

well, that's not overtly indicated at any point.

Maybe not. But it can be perhaps inferred, and it's an extension of reducing black people down to less than people, just vessels for their attributes or talents.

I agree, though, from a logical standpoint, talking your way out of a ticket by saying you're not *really* black seems unlikely. I think I got the vibe they were starting an isolated community/commune upstate, a la the werewolf commune in The Howling.

well, that's not overtly indicated at any point.

― ice cream social justice (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, January 3, 2018 10:29 AM (six minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

does it need to be? really?

xpost Yeah, it's noteworthy that they weren't, like, moving to the city or something after taking possession of a black body. They remained where they knew they'd continue to be accepted as 'one of the good ones'.

seems like a dubious transaction; I don't ask much of horror scenarios, but the mechanics needed to be a little more, um, fleshed out.

Also once Chris started kicking ass, I anticipated each of the beats perfectly. It was too rote.

I liked this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBvcngHRTFg

Yeah, it's noteworthy that they weren't, like, moving to the city or something after taking possession of a black body. They remained where they knew they'd continue to be accepted as 'one of the good ones'.

It's not even that--everyone in the community knows the truth, they are accepted because they are literally the same person in a different body. And also staying within the community prevents them from accidental exposure to flashes and stuff without having Keener there to bring them back. What price immortality?

but why would they yearn to be groundskeepers and maids?

I thought maybe they were only groundskeepers and maids and whatnot when outsiders were around?

XP They're not always groundskeepers and maids? Remember, alot of what we see is putting on airs in reverse because of the guest.

Haven't seen this since it came out, but isn't the implication behind Root's character picking Chris that he will continue on in Chris's career as a photographer? Likewise Rose looking at basketball players. The groundskeeper and maid were just who was at hand when they did the switch and they're only performing those jobs while Chris is around

many xps - yea that video was great! thanks for sharing

I didn't see that as them only playing those roles, but actually relishing the ability to do so. Grandmother get's to serve and dote on her kids and grandkids and serve them lemonade? Grandpa gets to do yardwork? Sounds like an ideal retirements scenario for any number of seniors.

also raises less suspicions

I need to rewatch this for sure, but I got the sense that part of the strain that they're under, which allows their real personalities to surface, is in having to act out uncomfortable/unwanted roles. I'd have to agree with Morbz otherwise: why would rich white people used to having servants want to retire as those servants?

Surprised to see Dr Morbz on the side of The Plausibles.

the other part of the equation is that black people who go missing simply don't get as much media attention as white people who go missing - i think that was explained in the film?

why would rich white people used to having servants want to retire as those servants?

Because they weren't actually servants! They were only acting that way for the benefit of Chris, literally the only person there who did not know the truth.

I didn't see that as them only playing those roles, but actually relishing the ability to do so. Grandmother get's to serve and dote on her kids and grandkids and serve them lemonade? Grandpa gets to do yardwork? Sounds like an ideal retirements scenario for any number of seniors.

― dan selzer, Wednesday, January 3, 2018 1:07 PM (two hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

yeah this

xp
yeah i know I said that in my prev post. in this one I was responding to dan selzer saying that they likely "relish" the opportunity to serve lemonade and do yardwork. I don't think that's an egregiously wrong interpretation or anything and I like that the movie doesn't spell everything out, but I think it more likely that when Chris isn't there they're not serving lemonade or doing yardwork at all.

Anyway, I think Morbius asked an interesting question (why would privileged white people want to give up that privilege in order to be black?), and I think the answer is that the form of liberal white racism that Peele is exploring here covets, fetishizes, envies black struggle, which is something they, as white people, cannot ever possess

I thought maybe they were only groundskeepers and maids and whatnot when outsiders were around?

That seems a good intuitive guess, but dammit again, we need to see that, somehow.

Ward, there's a difference between being a Plausible and noting details that seem thematically and narratively sloppy.

idk I thought that was pretty obvious. and rob is otm about this particular set of upper middle class centrist liberals and how they fetishize blackness - "I would've voted for Obama a third time" is a great joke but it also tells us a lot about the kind of people they are.

When Rod the TSA Guy says that something's wrong because dandified Logan King/Andre is "from Brooklyn," that strikes me as a subtle joke about the New Brooklyn, bcz there are plenty of A-A guys in Fort Greene who dress like that.

alison williams drinking milk through a straw, eating dry froot loops & listening to Dirty Dancing .... perfect, hilarious & almost horrifyingly TOO REAL lol, like i felt kinda paranoid/embarrassed at how familiar it was

xp haha yeah that line made me do a double take

This was good

I kinda think that herself might have come up as a known person of interest in the ten or w/ever missing persons cases though.

But this was good

Jordan Peele tells the Hollywood Reporter’s Stephen Galloway that he’s currently writing and plans to direct his next film later this year. “One thing I know is that this is genre; and playing around with the thriller, horror, action, fun genre of intrigue is my favorite. That’s my sweet spot. So I think tonally it should resemble Get Out. That said, I want to make a completely different movie. I want to address something different than race in the next one.”

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/rambling-reporter/jordan-peele-reveals-plans-shoot-next-movie-year-1085424

Can't fucking wait

(taking a wild guess here) excited for Peele's gun-culture movie

I hope he's better at other genre mechanics than he was in Act III of GO.

no you don't