Green Goblin Reviews: Get Out
There’s a common misconception that a lot of people have with regards to racism in thinking that it’s a binary toggle switch (like a light switch; either on or off). Racism is more like a gradient (or dimmer switch, if you will) in that there is often a lot of low-level mannerisms, remarks, imagery or actions that are nearly indistinguishable to the naked eye, unless you’ve had experience with them. And in fact that plausible deniability is often what keeps marginalized demographics from often calling out what they see to be minor instances, at best. As a result, most of it just gets ignored as one learns to cope with it as background radiation in their day-to-day life. It is in that background radiation where Jordan Peele’s directorial debut truly shines. Get Out takes those microaggressions and brings them to the forefront, cranks them to 11 and doesn’t let off. It is honestly one of the most intentionally uncomfortable times I’ve experienced in a theater. And I love this film for every minute of it.
The film starts off in a Brooklyn apartment with an interracial couple — Chris Washington and Rose Armitage (Daniel Kaluuya and Allison Williams) — packing for a trip upstate to Rose’s old-money plutocratic parents for the weekend. Chris is more than a little apprehensive at the thought of venturing outside of familiar territory to a wealthy white suburb to meet people who don’t know that their daughter is dating a black man, but Rose assures him that things will be fine (if not, a little awkward maybe). When they arrive, we’re introduced to Rose’s family: neurosurgeon Dean (Bradley Whitford), psychiatrist Missy (Catherine Kreener) as well as her…..eccentric little brother Jeremy (Caleb Landry Jones). The film does its best to convey an overall sense of unease around the family as Chris tries his best to remain calm around all the red flags popping up that Rose seems oblivious to, including the fact that the only black people around are the eerily perky and genuinely off-putting maid and groundskeeper. There’s enough to gather that something is off but things start to get surreal when the concept of hypnotherapy comes into play (though not in the way you’d imagine) and Chris begins to connect the dots that there’s more than just a little awkwardness happening at the Armitage household. The film does an excellent job in making Chris second-guess himself, while delivering not only a steady flow of suspense, but also some very well-earned comedy to cut the tension.
I won’t go that much into details because like any other horror film, the thrill is in waiting for the axe to drop and Jordan Peele has aced the building up of tension on his first attempt, by basing it around racial microaggressions. The awkwardness takes shape in ways that many black people (myself included) can attest to: Bringing up black celebrities in order to relate (“I knew Tiger Woods, you know”), taking on mannerisms that they associate with black culture (In the case of Dean, it comes in the form of not-so-subtle 70’s era slang) and of course, praising President Barack Obama. Being the only black person in certain rooms can leave you feeling both invisible and put on a pedestal at the same time. You’re expected to not only represent your race as a whole, but also wave away any perceived slights from those around you as nothing more than a slip of the tongue. It’s exhausting, but when you’re in the moment it is beyond nerve-wracking. This film just wouldn’t work if it were the Hollywood standard portrayal of racism in America (Confederate Flag, Klan Hood, Trump hat, etc.), because that would be enough for any reasonable human being to make like the title and “get out”. But when the setup calls for liberal-leaning people you’d assume are just delightfully oblivious, there’s a desire to want to maintain that friendly (yet flawed) back-and-forth rather than addressing the problem head-on (which is also brought up in the film, in the form of a support character). At it’s core, this lends itself perfectly to the genre of horror, with its “what big teeth you have, Grandma” setup of presumptive innocence, as you wait for the protagonist to understand just how deep of a hole he’s actually gotten into.
There’s honestly not really anything to nitpick on either. The acting is across-the-board amazing, the use of wide-angle close-ups and off-putting imagery flow at a steady pace, the score is exactly what you’d expect if I were to tell you “Stepford Wives, but with racism” and the finale was met with applause from the audience. This is without a doubt the strongest horror film I’ve seen in a long time and the strongest film of the year so far.
10/10 Bravo, Mr. Peele and company. I look forward to seeing more of your work
Excellent review