The Substance's Most Harrowing Scene Isn't Found in Its Intense Body Horror

Capturing the Terror of Meeting Expectations

So, I saw The Substance last night. Holy shit. That’s some of the most fun I’ve had in a theater in a while. Between this, Civil War, and Furiosa, the few times I’ve been able to get myself to the theater this year have all succeeded in igniting a sense of awe in seeing incredible stories through the eyes of wonderfully written complex female characters.

I could go through all of the obvious things that make The Substance such an effective horror film. The stomach-churning body horror (a tit-shaped tumor is literally pushed from a monster’s orifice) and the stellar performances from Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, and Dennis Quaid are enough to make this a classic in the genre. However, none of the actual horror made me squirm in the way I thought it would. I have a high tolerance for some grisly shit. I’ve seen A Serbian Film. Martyrs. Terrifier. The essential annoying film buff lists that you see on movie nerd subreddits.

For the record, I don’t associate myself with the “film buff” label. There’s a pretentiousness to it. I enjoy American Pie as much as I like Interstellar (seriously). I’ve adopted the same philosophy for music, too. As long as it makes me feel something special, I like it. I knew going in that I would probably really like The Substance. From the fast-paced editing to the ultra-bright candy-colored motif, I was hooked. It feels like watching a techno song. But most importantly, I was looking forward to the body horror.

I’m a huge fan of seeing what grotesque nightmares can be brought to life by a practical effects team, and The Substance did not disappoint for one second. What I didn’t expect, though, was one particular scene that brought a gut punch. It doesn’t involve anything horror-related at all, but it’s stuck with me. I’ve thought about it a lot today, and I’m amazed at how all of the horrors featured in the movie (spinal fluid, Dennis Quaid violently eating shrimp, etc.) that this is the scene that made me feel sick to my stomach.

Spoilers ahead for The Substance

Elisabeth’s Date

Early on in the movie, Elisabeth (Demi Moore) runs into an old high school classmate, Fred. Although she doesn’t recognize him, he gushes over her, stating, “you’re still the most beautiful girl in the world.” They share pleasantries, he gives her his number, and that seems to be the end of it. That is, until Sue starts stealing Elisabeth’s life force and she begins to age more rapidly (manifesting in a rotten, old finger).

In an attempt to help her self confidence, Elisabeth calls Fred to set up a date. Fred is “in shock”, but the two plan to meet at a restaurant at 8PM. This brings us to the scene of Elisabeth getting ready for her date. She puts on a beautiful red dress, black silky gloves to mask her decaying finger, and applies her makeup. Checking the clock, she has plenty of time left. As she begins to leave the apartment, she see Sue’s naked body lying on the ground. She returns to the mirror, looking herself over. Once she’s satisfied, she stomps off to the door, only to be greeted by the massive billboard displaying Sue’s perfect body right in front of her window. She opens the door to her apartment to leave for the date, but she sees her features warped and twisted in the reflection of the doorknob. Once more, she stomps to the bathroom, fixing and editing bits of her makeup as the clock begins ticking, ticking, ticking, with time quickly running out.

The rage bubbles up, and Elisabeth furiously wipes at her face, smearing lipstick, mascara, and blush across her cheeks and eyes. She gives up. As she sits defeated in the bathroom, 8PM rolls around, and Fred sends a barrage of texts that go unanswered as his declarations of excitement quickly turn to concern. In The Substance’s heavy-handed critique on the world’s view of beauty, the most effective scene at capturing the terror of being unhappy with one’s looks was one of its simplest.

Elisabeth has nothing to prove to Fred. In his eyes, she’s still the most beautiful girl in the world. But the world around her has told her she’s aged out of being worthy of attention, and that holds more weight to her than someone blatantly expressing their admiration right to her face. It’s such a hard scene to watch, because it hits so close to home for many women and men.

More often than not, when I’m going out, I change multiple times, worry about if my skin looks okay, or occasionally resort to thinking my clothes would fit me better if I could afford a boob job. In this scene, Elisabeth may be looking in the mirror, but ultimately, the entire audience is looking at themselves in the mirror in this moment, too.