The French say there is no beauty without pain, and the body horror film The Substance proves this adage correct. When an aging Hollywood fitness maven, played by Demi Moore, embarks on a radical new treatment to regain her lost youth, her life becomes a hell ride in her quest to attain the impossible beauty standards Hollywood demands.
Elizabeth Sparkle is fit and fabulous. Loved for her infectious positivity and fun, easy-to-follow workouts, she has been a celebrity aerobics guru for decades and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. But on her fiftieth birthday, everything changes.
Elizabeth’s manager, played by Dennis Quaid, takes her out to lunch and announces that her services are no longer required. Although the decision to axe her was entirely his own, he claims that the public wants someone new and young to replace her, because at 50 “everything stops.” When Elizabeth asks, “What stops?” he becomes evasive, twirling his finger around in a circular motion, perhaps to suggest her menstrual cycle.
Devastated by the news, Elizabeth has a car accident on the way home and ends up in hospital. Here, a young male doctor introduces her to a radical scientific innovation called The Substance, and while Elizabeth is sceptical at first, she soon succumbs to the lure of creating a more youthful and attractive version of herself.
Using The Substance, Elizabeth creates her “other self” from her own genetic material. For seven days, Elizabeth’s other self, Sue, goes out into the world while Elizabeth remains in a vegetative state, and then the two trade places. This seven-day rotation must be strictly adhered to if both parties are to remain in peak form, and any breaches of the schedule will cause irreversible damage to their health and well-being.
With her youth, beauty, and inside knowledge, Sue, played by Margaret Qualley, applies for the position as Elizabeth’s replacement and gets the gig. At first both are happy about this, however, the symbiotic relationship falters as Sue comes to resent her role as caretaker and breadwinner and Elizebeth becomes jealous of the attention Sue receives.
Enjoying the high life and adulation, Sue starts overstaying her time in the outside world. She is indifferent to the harm this causes Elizabeth, but it is not until her own body fails that she returns to the seven-day schedule.
Elizabeth survives the transgression mostly unscathed and reconnects with an old admirer who thinks she’s “still the most beautiful girl in the whole wide world.” Looking stunning in a mini dress and killer heels, she’s set to enjoy a great night out until she goes to check on Sue.
The sight of Sue lying in youthful perfection like Sleeping Beauty sends Elizabeth into an obsessive mental loop of unhealthy comparison. When Elizabeth returns to the mirror for a last-minute check-up, it is not the beautiful, confident woman she saw only moments earlier, but a lesser version of her cold, lifeless clone. Her efforts to look more attractive become frenzied, as she swipes and scrapes at her hair and makeup, before collapsing on the bedroom floor in despair. Ignoring the concerned text messages from her date, Elizabeth misses out on the chance of true love and connection.
As Sue’s popularity grows, she becomes increasingly reckless and her forays into the outside world grow longer and longer. Elizabeth begins to age at a rapid rate until she becomes a bent and twisted crone, barely recognisable from her former self. Sue doubles down on her efforts to free herself of the burdensome Elizabeth, becoming negligent and even violent, failing to understand that the harm she causes Elizabeth will later be visited on herself.
At first, I thought the relationship between Elizabeth and Sue was an analogy for the mother and daughter relationship. The conflict between them is often reminiscent of the tension that ensues as a daughter grows into her sexuality and her mother must recognise her as an individual in her own rite. However, as the film plays out, it is clear that there is no love lost between Elizabeth and Sue, and that they become competing forces fighting for their own survival.
When Elizabeth complains to the administrators of The Substance that her other self has gone rogue, she is reminded that she herself is the matrix, and as such is responsible for maintaining the balance in the relationship.
It is Elizabeth’s refusal to reject the inequitable beauty standards foisted on her that leads to her demise. Instead of leaning into her natural leadership and reaching out to her community, she continues to seek approval from the patriarchal system that discarded her and misses the opportunity to create a new and better life.
The male gaze is a fickle thing and not a star we can safely hitch our wagons to. It may serve some women for some of the time, but for the most part, it leaves way too much to chance.
As women, we need to look within ourselves and appreciate our worth on our own terms. We need to identify what we need, what we want and claim what is rightfully ours. We need to work together instead of trying to take from each other.
The Substance is a cautionary tale for women about the harm we do ourselves and each other in succumbing to the value judgments mandated by the patriarchy. Rather, we would be better served creating a life that can't be stolen from us, just because some guy changes his mind.
Watch the official trailer here.
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