50 Essential Sci-Fi Films of the 21st Century (So Far)

In the late 20th century, mainstream body horror was the realm of David Cronenberg, with little room - or appetite - for new talent. But this century, with David away making taut dramas like A History of Violence and There Will Be Blood, a gap in the market opened up and several new directors saw fit to fill it. One such director is Coralie Fargeat. who first dabbled in elements of the genre back in 2017 with her assault-revenge movie Revenge, before plunging headfirst into the deep end with her second feature, sci-fi body horror extraordinaire The Substance.

Working in English this time around (no doubt to score a larger audience than last time), Fargeat prepared a thoroughly American tale of fame and ageing, bringing Demi Moore back from obscurity as aged, fading celebrity Elisabeth Sparkle. After being fired by her producer, Elisabeth starts taking an experimental drug that promises to rejuvenate and revitalise her life by creating a second, young version of herself - the newly minted Sue (Margaret Qualley) - who can go out there for a week at a time and allow Elisabeth to once again live her life to the full.

Needless to say, there are some grim side effects as Elisabeth’s dependency takes hold, and Sue develops some ideas of her own. It’s messy, it’s manic, and it’s the American condition through and through - the kind of insight that only an outsider could offer.