The substance may not be for everyone, but I want to talk about the visceral message of self-love that still gives me chills

A few SPOILERS ahead for Substance.

I’m perfectly happy walking out of a movie theater with a smug smile on my face after enjoying a fun little escape from the corners of my reality into a dark room with a group of strangers. But every now and then a movie like Substance comes along (one of the best horror movies I’ve seen for a while) and I leave a movie theater feeling like the projected images I spent my time with have left my skin severely sunburned, and I head to my car in quiet contemplation of what I’ve just witnessed. I don’t want every trip to the movies to feel like this, but when it does, I definitely remember and appreciate the power of movies more.

The body horror film received a perfect five-star score on CinemaBlend’s Substance reviewand has been praised by tons of criticsbut, it is much in the stomach. It’s not one I’d recommend lightly given its intense nature. Heck, I even considered walking out at moments and definitely covered my face in fear. I can only compare my viewing experience Substance to another intensity found in crazy twist ending in Midsummer or the many feelings I had about Bones and all. But at the same time, it’s much more than blood and guts, or the nudity for which it went viral. It has a very powerful message to say about self-love that I will truly carry with me for a long time. I still get chills thinking about it, and now that I’m no longer in the movie’s vicious embrace, I can say I’m glad I went to see it for what I took away about self-love.

Margaret Qualley does a split in front of a poster of Demi Moore in The Substance — (Image credit: Mubi)

The substance tackles the fear of aging with a powerful concept

Substance immediately caught my attention as follows Demi MooreElisabeth Sparkle, a famous Hollywood star and host of a long-running aerobics show. In a very literal move of the film, Moore is fired from her job at age 50 and learns that she will be replaced by younger talent. But then she learns about a black market drug called “The Substance” that will allow her to be young in two weeks. She orders the mysterious drug and transforms into Margaret Qualley’s Sue every two weeks, switching to being conscious in her own body and giving it up for Sue’s perfect young body. Sue is given the job to fill in for Elisabeth, while the newly retired star becomes a side character in her own life, spending the week in her body drooling in front of the TV and eating a ridiculous amount of food. It only gets worse from there.

I found this set-up to be very powerful in its own right, as it illustrates through its concept how easy it can be for someone like Moore’s Elisabeth to put their energy into who they were in their younger years rather than living in the present . We place so much emphasis and value on young women and their bodies, and I’ve seen firsthand women in Elisabeth’s age range subtly denigrate their present selves and glorify their 20s. It almost feels like human nature that we will mourn what is believed to be the most beautiful version of ourselves that we can be. But wow, I watched Substance make me very aware of how this mentality comes at the expense of betraying ourselves, especially through its visual concept.

Margaret Qualley as Sue in the foreground in The Substance

(Image credit: Mubi)

But at no point in the substance did I prefer Sue

As writer/director Coralie Fargeat powerfully accomplished Substanceat no point in the movie did I want Elisabeth Sparkle to be Sue instead of herself. While I could understand Elisabeth being uncomfortable with her body and feeling like a throwaway figure of yesterday’s Hollywood, I wanted to see her move forward with her next chapter in her original body much more — to i see going to the date he gets. guest at the beginning of the film and to see her embrace the beauty I saw in her.

Of course, in horror movies, Elisabeth Sparkle doesn’t get the happy middle-aged adulthood arc I wanted to see. We instead saw her give up time and her body for a younger version of herself. I kept saying to myself… Why does he want to relive those early years? Why does she care so much about being perfect when she’s already magnificently beautiful now? This is one really intense way to treat you. Sure, being younger meant fewer worries, but earning them is such a privilege.

It’s Demi Moore…she’s gorgeous and iconic, obviously. Why not it do you see this This element of the film made me look further into my own inner monologue and how I can have empathy and appreciation for the beauty of others and find myself being more critical of my own. It’s easy when we look in the mirror every day, but God, I did it Substance communicates the violence of not treating your self-image with care with a sharp syringe full of green stuff as it moves through its body in its gruesome second half.

Demi Moore in The Substance

(Image credit: Mubi)

The substance reminded me how vital self-love is

I was also intrigued by my reaction to Substance because I’m in my twenties now and I could relate to Demi Moore’s character a lot more than I expected. It made me step back and realize that I honestly think I would have related to her earlier in my twenties and teenage years as well. All women will probably relate to Elisabeth Sparkle, because regardless of one’s age or beauty, we are constantly fed that we will never be enough. Margaret Qualley’s Sue is ideal – not real or sustainable. She is a perfect social network, a photoshopped magazine concept that is convened through Elisabeth hating herself as she is. And, that was heartbreaking for me, because it’s so easy for women to look past their own beauty and aspire to this broken ideal. Pretty early on in the movie, I wanted to embrace my beautiful body and retract any mean words I ever had about it, because the ideal is not as beautiful as what is real and true.

That Substance looks so beautiful and visceral, the ideal that is Sue is also created and upheld at the expense of Elisabeth’s self-love. As the film intensely and literally shows its concept as the plot progresses into body horror madness, Sue begins to take from Elizabeth’s beauty in order to exist and survive, and I shudder at the results. (This is when the movie really go there!) I won’t go into details about the final act, but I was intrigued that by the end Substance Elisabeth ended up wishing she had her own face, but in the most depressing and nightmarish way possible.

Oddly enough, I will look in the mirror with more kindness afterwards Substanceand it’s rare that a film that’s also this campy, gory, and ridiculous inspires this. I’m not sure how upcoming horror movies they will reach the latter for these reasons.