52 Films by Women Vol 8. 43. The Substance (Director: Coralie Fargeat)
Pictured : Better days behind her. Elizabeth Sparkle ( Demi Moore ) contemplates life in her luxury apartment in a scene from the body horror film and Cannes Palme D'Or competitor, ' The Substance ', written and directed by Coralie Fargeat . Still courtesy of Mubi (UK, US) Caution: Spoilers At its second screening in Cannes, writer-director Coralie Fargeat’s ‘living your best life’ body horror flick The Substance had patrons heading for the exit early. It is extreme – and none too subtle – about the extent to which one should sacrifice oneself for the cause of reinvention, or more particularly, to have a younger body to use as one shouldn’t. In her first leading role in a horror film, the 1990s-star Demi Moore ‘puts her back’ – and pretty much everything else - to enable a younger doppelganger, played by Margaret Qualley, to be born. Expect this to be on Quentin Tarantino’s top ten list for the year – but not Barack Obama’s. Fargeat’s titles are in block capitals and s...