Us: 7 Ways Jordan Peele Defies Modern Horror Conventions
Jordan Peele's excellent sophomore horror film doesn't lean too hard on genre conventions.
Jordan Peele's Us achieved great success this past weekend, raking in $70 million across North America. This more than doubles the opening weekend box office results for Peele's last cinematic undertaking, Get Out. While Variety reports that Us has now surpassed John Krasinski's A Quiet Place to claim the largest opening weekend box office for an original horror film, these numbers are far from the film's only crowning achievement.
With 94% on Rotten Tomatoes, Us shows that Jordan Peele's sophomore effort still has what it takes to dazzle critics. True, the film scores lower with casual viewers. Its 70% audience rating, compared with the 86% audience rating earned by Get Out, is indicative of the many viewers who felt that Us failed to deliver an experience as uniquely genre-bending as Peele's last outing.
Us may not blow viewers away with the same intensity as Get Out, but the ups certainly outweigh the downs. Us demonstrates that Peele can attempt a more straightforward horror film without entirely succumbing to genre conventions. The following 7 attributes of Jordan Peele's Us may not amount to the sum of a film like Get Out, but they definitely allow Us to shine in comparison to most other modern horror films.
Warning: Some of the following entries are intensely spoiler-laden. If you've not seen the film, proceed with caution.
7. The Silent Opening
While plenty of modern horror films understand the concept of "less is more" as it applies to gore and monsters, Us applies this maxim to the sound design in its opening scenes. The first sequence does not lean heavily on high-pitched string music to signify an oncoming jump scare or to let audiences know that they're supposed to feel uneasy.
Instead, the first sequence practically does away with non-diegetic music altogether. Just about the only music heard prior to the opening credits comes from Adelaide's TV, the automated sound system in the hall of mirrors, or the sound of Adelaide and Red whistling to one another. When Us finally reaches the first true horror beat of the film, it occurs in absolute silence.
This doesn't mean that audiences won't feel any sense of unease prior to the first scare. As Adelaide follows her parents around the Santa Cruz Boardwalk, the camera depicts the scene from a child's perspective. Her parents look like giants, standing at twice her size. A carnie running games nearby looks strangely obscured to the viewer, as Adelaide is not tall enough to completely see over his booth.
Without any music whatsoever, this simple visual tool causes the familiar to appear imposing. If Us succeeds in putting any of Jordan Peele's abilities on full display, it's his ability to draw discomfort from the mundane. The choice to do this while forgoing traditional audio cues is what makes the opening particularly strong.