Well, I’m not really sure how to approach this one. It’s definitely unlike any movie I’ve seen, and for that I have to give it a lot of credit. The choices the director and cinematographer made in how to shoot these scenes are very obvious and intentional, almost cartoon-y sometimes. This isn’t a criticism at all, the whole film leans into controlling your emotional reactions to what’s happening and it’s real good at it. The whole film is very minimal, so you’re left with nothing to focus on besides what you’re supposed to.
What’s weird about this whole experience of watching The Substance, is that I’m still not sure I LIKED it. The story was fine but a little predictable, the actors were really good (especially Demi Moore, who probably should have won an Oscar), and the effects were definitely top notch, but I don’t know if I enjoyed myself at all while watching it. It was mostly me uncomfortably squirming, not just at the Cronenberg of it all, but at everything else as well. Ultimately, I think it’s a really masterfully done piece of art that I personally didn’t like. For that, it gets:
4 out of 5