US by Jordan Peele

The Plot: When she was a child, Adelaide got lost on a beach fair and, in a mirror maze, she met a girl that look exactly like her and that encounter forever traumatised her. Now, a married woman with two kids of her own, she returns to that beach fair and soon they all have to fight for their lives as a family of doppelgängers try to kill them.

The Movie: I was one of those horror fans who wasn’t very impressed with Jordan Peele’s previous movie, GET OUT. But this time he gets my applause. US is a dark horror family movie, intense and creepy, with suspense and credible characters. I really enjoyed the ride, but I think that the humor could have been toned down, making this is stronger. I just wish Peele had gone further with the horror, but he does a fine job directing this nightmare.

I loved the sounds the doppelgängers make and the way they move, in particular the kid Pluto. Without revealing too much, the strange scenes of the past that take place under the mirror maze, are the ones they gave me a strong sense of unease. 

While I was seeing it, I recalled an old episode of HAMMER’S HOUSE OF HORROR, the scary “The Two Faces of Evil”, where a family is terrorized by their doppelgängers. Have you seen that? I’m sure Peele must have.

The cast is very good, specially the ladies. Lupita Nyong’ couldn’t be better on the double role of Adelaide and her double; she has our empathy and we really root for her. As her friend Kitty, Elisabeth Moss is also great. As the little Adelaide, Madison Curry is very convincing and so is Shahadi Wright Joseph as Adelaide’s daughter.

Horror fans, like me, are in for a treat, with good scares and lots of creepiness.

My Rate: 8 (from 1 to 10)