Us: Rise of the Doppelgangers

Horror is not my favorite movie genre. But I am always up for prestige horror, i.e. something that stars good people, is written and directed by good people, and most importantly, has an element of humor to it. I don't like being scared, but if the scares comes with enough laughs in between, I can handle it. Therefore, Us is exactly my kind of horror film. If writer-director Jordan Peele keeps up with this quality of filmmaking, I might become a horror buff after all.

The movie stars Lupito Nyong'o and Winston Duke (I mean, with that cast, I'm in already) as Adelaide and Gabe Wilson, who are off to vacation in the family's beach house in Santa Cruz with their two children, Zora and Jason (Shahadi Wright Joseph and Evan Alex). Adelaide experienced a traumatic incident when she was a child at this beach, so she is already on edge as this vacation commences. She is then increasingly spooked by a series of coincidences that suggest something terrible is about to happen. Which, of course, it does.

If you've seen the trailer, you know that the family are confronted by their doppelgangers - four creepy people who look just like them, but attired in jumpsuits and not capable of speech apart from the mother. Who has the most terrifying voice and speech pattern - while I was fine with all the jump scares and general horror tropes of this movie, I think the one thing designed to truly give me eerie nightmares is the way Adelaide's doppelganger talks in this film. Kudos to Lupita Nyong'o for destroying my psyche.

The movie is bloody but fun - let us not forget Jordan Peele's comedy background. The man knows exactly how to terrify you and then cut the tension with a hilarious music cue or a bit of physical comedy on a boat. You will scream and laugh in equal measure, and by the end of the film, my heart wasn't racing, just pleasantly buzzed. Winston Duke is responsible for most of the comedy, while Nyong'o carries most of the terror, and it's a perfect balancing act as they fight a rising tide of horror to save their children from these scissor-wielding doppelgangers who are out for blood.

This movie starts out slow and then keeps building to a terrifying climax. What seems like small stakes restricted to this one unfortunate family quickly grows into a manic national crisis, and that's where Peele gives us a broader mythology to give this crazy story an even grander perspective. As we find out where these doppelgangers came from, there are more connections and intricate Easter eggs to look out for, all of which mean that like Get Out, this is yet another movie that bears repeated viewings. Even though the doppelgangers aren't all named in the movie, they all have names in the end credits, which has already become a source of theorizing to deconstruct Peele's witty name play and what it means for the underlying motivations of these characters.

You can enjoy Us as a straight-up horror film, and then re-enjoy it as you delve into its many layers and break apart the intricate construction to look for deeper meaning and even more questions. The movie has a classic ending that has spawned many more theories, so it's a gift that keeps on giving. This is a glorious piece of cinema, with excellent cinematography, interesting and creepy shots that are designed to warp your worldview and skew your perspective, meticulously detailed costume and set design, and a soundtrack that is both haunting and delightful. Us is an instant classic that will frighten you a little but delight you a lot. If horror isn't your thing, this might be the movie to convince you otherwise.