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Though Jordan Peele is probably best known as one half of the comic duo Key and Peele, there’s much more to him than sketch comedy and movies about gangster cats. And with his directorial debut, Get Out, he shows that not only does he know to be funny; he knows how to be scary, too.
Get Out follows photographer Chris Washington (Daniel Kaluuya) as he packs his bags for an important weekend with his girlfriend’s family. Despite their racial difference, Rose (Allison Williams) assures him that her parents aren’t racist. They might be embarrassing, but they’ll welcome him with open arms. But the weekend quickly goes from awkward to just plain creepy. And after a late-night run-in with Rose’s psychiatrist mother (Catherine Keener), Chris begins to fear that this may not be just an innocent visit with the family.
With Get Out, Peele takes an already tense situation and builds on it. As if meeting someone’s family for the first time weren’t nerve-wracking enough, the racial issues add some extra tension. The eerie servants and Rose’s drunken brother (Caleb Landry Jones) make it even more uncomfortable. And with each new scene, the tension grows. Thing like Rose’s mother’s unnerving offers to help Chris quit smoking through hypnosis and the family’s big party full of strange white friends are just the beginning. It gets more and more disturbing until it explodes into something that’s so much bigger and crazier than you may be expecting.
Like many classic horror movies, Get Out also explores social issues as it builds its suspense. Chris is faced with various forms of racism throughout the film—from blatant disrespect to sheer ignorance to what sometimes seems to be simply well-meaning awkwardness. The characters’ behavior ranges from uncomfortable to downright maddening—but it’s all presented in a way that’s laughable, too.
After all, this is a movie by Jordan Peele—so don’t expect it to be a super-serious, preachy thriller. It’s creepy but with a solid sense of humor, too—with comical characters and outrageous situations to help break up the tension. It may be chilling and suspenseful, but it’s also playful. And the film’s shifting tones work well—because those outrageous situations and comical characters actually have a purpose in the film, too.
Get Out is definitely an interactive horror flick—the kind where audiences will roar with laughter, shout with surprise, and attempt to guide poor Chris through this nightmarish weekend. And that’s all a part of the fun of this smart yet silly and totally outrageous thriller from a talented first-time director.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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