The Substance: Review & Summary

“The Substance” pushes the need to question whether its potential message is lost in the pursuit of gore and its desire to show and critique the exploitation of a women.

Plot Summary

Elisabeth Sparkle has been famous for decades, and it seems on her 50^th birthday, one of the producers, Harvey, at the network she hosts an aerobics show desires to pull the plug on her program. Naturally, Elisabeth is distraught and after getting into an accident, she is presented with an offer to get “The Substance.”

What the substance does is seemingly turn you into what you see as beautiful and for Elisabeth, that is Sue. Sue is a 20 something, perky, slim, blue eyes and dark hair, type that men see, speak kindly to, and would bend over backwards for just to have their attention. But, with the rules of the substance requiring trading consciousness every seven days, there comes a point Elisabeth struggles to not live the life she dearly misses, and she slowly but surely pays the price.

Noted Cast and Characters Of “The Substance”

Demi Moore As Elisabeth Sparkle

Elisabeth Sparkle is a famous aerobic fitness guru, whose career is reminiscent of Jane Fonda if Fonda never returned to acting after the success of her workout tapes.

The actor is also known for their role in “Wild Oats.”

Dennis Quaid As Harvey

Harvey is an executive at the network which broadcasts Elisabeth’s aerobics show who is as much sexist as he is someone who cares about money and status.

The actor is also known for their role in “A Dog’s Purpose.”

Margaret Qualley As Sue

Sue is Elisabeth’s idea of what men like Harvey want to see, or who Elisabeth wishes she could be, or was once again.

The actor is also known for their role in “Drive-Away Dolls.”

Review

Our Rating: Mixed (Divisive)

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Highlights

The Body Horror

“The Substance” does well in gross out body horror. From Sue’s birth, open wounds leaking fluids, the violence we see as Elisabeth comes to fight herself, and Elisabeth eventually becoming what she sees herself as, this film is disgusting. Mind you, is it so nasty that it would make eating it a challenge? Depending on your tolerance.

I would say “The Front Room” was more disgusting, even though it exclusively focused on bodily fluids that normally would come out of anyone’s orifices. But, “The Substance” does include the use of needles, vomiting, things oozing out, and the depiction of an entity that looks like something out of a Frank Miller graphic novel.

On The Fence

The Message Could Be Lost Due To How Gratuitous The Violence & The Ogling Of The Camera

In interviews, you can find the lead actresses pushing the narrative that the film is about sexism, objectification, aging as a woman, and a lot of topics dealing with how the industry treats older female entertainers vs. the new ones. You will receive this message, but I think there are far more interesting ones at play. For example, Elisabeth is someone whose backstory isn’t given, so as for how she got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame or the origins of her decades long career in fitness, that isn’t gone into.

But, what could be of interest is that she doesn’t do as we often see in films nowadays and gets back up when she is knocked down. Instead, she obsesses with the concept and pursuit of youth. Now, can this be pushed as something the men in her life drove her to? Yes. However, with meeting an old friend who knew her in high school and still thinks she is the most beautiful woman in the world, one could say as much as men are an influence, ultimately it is Elisabeth who is controlling the narrative and subjecting herself to unrealistic standards.

I mean, don’t get me wrong, it is understood that aging or lack of romantic or sexual availability shifts how a woman is treated in society. Margaret Qualley recently did a interview about life pre and post-marriage in “The Times” and the shift in how men do, or don’t, approach her. You see this happen when it comes to Sue vs. Elisabeth. But, with “The Substance” not giving us men with layers at all, just guys who are either outright bad, like Harvey, creepy like Elisabeth’s neighbor, or too good to be true like Elisabeth’s former classmate, it is much more interesting to look at Elisabeth’s own self-hatred and her inability to give herself grace than to put any focus on the male gaze.

Yet, rather than really dig into that subject matter, it feels the film would rather you get close up shots of someone’s mouth as they eat, to see the naked bodies of Demi Moore or Margaret Qualley, and seemingly sexualize them in ways worth critiquing as much as the film perhaps wants to critique what women go through. That is, when it doesn’t pursue what could be seen as Cronenberg-styled horror.

The Gist

The TLDR Recap/ Review

Margaret Qualley and Demi Moore star in a body horror film which feigns some criticism and commentary on women aging, especially within the entertainment industry.
Things begin with Demi Moore as Elisabeth, a network fitness star whose producer, or network executive, Harvey, believes the now 50 year old should be replaced, and decides to fire her unceremoniously.
Distraught and in a downward spiral, Elisabeth’s desperation leads her to take “The Substance,” which is a three part drug that she is introduced to which allows her to become Sue, a youthful woman who inherits most of Elisabeth’s life.
But, the more obsessed and insecure Elisabeth becomes, the more Sue is able to draw from Elisabeth until it becomes unsustainable for both to exist, and Elisabeth has to pay the consequences for both her own and society’s part in her destruction.
With the kind of gore which could make the stomach churn of some, “The Substance” is not afraid to show the pain and extents people will go through for validation.
In some ways, like too many films, there is a guided blame placed on men, especially older men, but there is also a push for Elisabeth to not strictly be seen as a victim, but also accountable for her own undoing.
However, a lot of the themes and messages of the film could easily be lost to some due to the extensive body horror and long run time which may feel unnecessary at times.
Overall, however, “The Substance” pushes the feeling of a cult classic that will both bring Demi Moore’s name back to actively being used in the zeitgeist as, perhaps similar to Sue, Margaret Qualley benefits the most from what Moore has built up to now.

General Information

Film Length	2 Hours 20 Minutes
Date Released (In Theaters)	September 18, 2024
Genre(s)	Drama, Horror, Thriller
Content Rating	Rated R
Character	Actor
Elisabeth Sparkle	Demi Moore
Harvey	Dennis Quaid
Sue	Margaret Qualley

Distributor

MUBI

Director(s)

Coralie Fargeat

Writer(s)