Monday, February 27, 2017

Get Out (2017) Movie Review

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I was watching the Oscars last night with a group of people as I do every year. One of the women there, a white woman, couldn't stop talking about how horrible Halle Berry's hair was. It bothered me and became increasingly difficult for me to let it go as the night wore on. Sitting here a day later after the smoke has cleared, I can't help but wonder how differently my reaction would have been to that comment if I too was white. Or better yet, if the woman was black.

To those of you that think we live in this melting pot of a society where every race and sex thinks exactly the same way, I have a secret to tell you: You're delusional. Get Out puts that myth to bed choosing rather to tackle this concept head on in a way that's extremely creative in scope. The film isn't just about a black man getting introduced to his white girlfriend's family only to find they are secretly enslaving black people, although it is that too. It's more, layers more. What you see on the surface and the subtext make this an important film for our current generation.

Rotten Tomatoes lists the movie as both comedy and horror which I think is a fair assessment. Director/Writer Jordan Peele walks the tightrope seamlessly between funny and suspenseful, much like Shyamalan did in Split. The film's realness is what makes it hilarious and scary at the same time. It's a realistic portrayal of what someone might do when put in these uncomfortable situations. Main character Chris Washington (Daniel Kaluuya) can sense there's something wrong with this situation and, deep down, he knows he's right. He just doesn't want to be. He ignores how strangely the other black people in the community act and turns a blind ear when his girlfriend's father mentions voting for Obama for a third term as he tries to relate. He can tell by their actions and words that something is going on, but he's a guest and doesn't want to be the conspiracy theorist. 

Some of the most uncomfortable moments come during a community gathering where people in the neighborhood are meeting Chris for the first time. One woman defies boundaries and feels Chris' biceps, not in an endearing way but rather in the same way one might inspect an animal. Another man remarks on Chris' predisposition to being stronger because of his genetic makeup. I imagine that Chris has probably heard about these type of people before but never experienced it in such close proximity, and all at once for that matter. It has to be overwhelming and unsettling for him and Daniel does an excellent job of expressing those sentiments.

The social commentary doesn't fall flat and it makes you put on your thinking cap. It plays with your mind as you start to look for little subtext, which is not unusual in real life either. When the father tells Chris not to go down in the basement because there's black mold, I'm thinking, "Why does it have to be black mold? All mold is dangerous!" Was it meant to be racist? I don't know. Does it matter? Another great question.

My only gripe was that the resolution came extremely quick, almost jarring to a certain extent. It doesn't destroy an otherwise great movie however. It's a movie that ultimately says, "You ARE different. And that's ok." We aren't meant to think the same things or act the same way. At the end of the day, coexistence and tolerance will help us unify.

I consider Get Out a must-see. I give it a 95.

P,S.--She was right, by the way. Halle Berry's hair was atrocious. I'll never tell her, though.

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