“US” (by Jordan Peele) Official Thread

valet

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To me he did his thing as far as deepness, meaning. allegory etc. But entertqinment wise nope. You gotta have memorable kills and to me its nothing classic. Scream series for example had that. Im with hotep as far as the father. Dude was Cliff Huxtable esque and then you had the crazy Black sister. Maybe its been explained in this thread but i totally didnt get how one family was bloodthristy at first. But with other people they was basically playing around. I liked the feel but this just was not a good thrasher. Good film style wise, camera angles. I just wished he made it about racism totally once again. So Im with those who say its a 7 out of 10. Its basically how i felt about Glass. Nice film making but execution could have been better.
 

valet

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As far as bibibically Jeremiah as a prophet was known as the weeping prophet. Israel didnt listen to him/Him at all. The people were totally lost. In fact it was so bad that Jeremiah wanted to quit preaching. So God judged them. One thing I found interesting though is Jeremiah complaint to God was that he said he did not know how to speak and was only a child. Now Peele probably didnt mean that intentionally but that theme is alot in this film (child and speech)
 

Taadow

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If this is really an allegory about capitalism, it occurred to me that
the tethered climbing up from the bottom to only to just stand there and hold hands is akin to climbing the ladder from poverty only to end up working for someone else because someone told you that's what people do. Red told the tethered that they could organize, break free, and then gave them the end goal of holding hands because as a kid she saw the commercial for the hands across America charity as the ultimate challenge and thing to reach for. She doesn't even understand why it's important, just that it looked important. So I see the movie as perhaps saying that when you're in the least privileged class, you receive messages about what you should be doing to get to the top but you don't really ever get the opportunity to self-actualize and be all you can be. An example would be people who go through the motions of attending to college and getting the right job but have no real goals or passions related to any of the things they're doing. They're just doing what they've been told to do to be successful.

Yes! I had a similar thought.

...and if what you describe is the goal...you end up just standing there, not moving, still tethered to people anyway!

After the movie me and this random dude was just standing outside the theater talking about this.

We thought this was the point of the "Golden Scissors" being what cuts the tethered loose.

And, when Abraham was on the boat, he was yelling - communicating with (what I assumed was) the other shadow family. Yep...



There were a whole lot of layers to this chit...
 

High Society

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man that kid was not swapped lol. If he was youd have to be anle to explain how he learned to talk normal in the span of the year and why the other one acted like an animal after having been normal his whole life
his mom, red, knows how to speak and could have taught him, it just wouldnt have been useful until he got up top. i doubt it took untethered adelaide a whole year to start talking to her parents again well. this would also explain why he knows really weird sayings "kiss my anus", like a kid who would have been taught not to say ass but anus as like a joke or something (from the perspective of red teaching him from her limited perspective)

i also think its odd that the boys mouth was melted shut but his grunts seemed hella elaborate like he was trying to talk. i also think the monkey mask hsa a lot to do with why the boy acts the way he does. the story about him being burned after a c-section seems symbolic at best bc where tf would fire even come form down there here during a pregnancy at all times but not to cook that rabbit meat :mjlol: ? i think something happened and adelaide switched him out to hide something. either way something is definitely missing in that whole explanation. they alluded to him going missing before in the closets summer. i could be looking into too much tho

may be super stretch but i think the illusion of fire in a c-section is an allegory trope from shakespeare's caesar play and is an analogy for war. fire is also a promethean trigger. the boy cannot access fire ever with his magic tricks (only humans have access to fire).
 
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Taadow

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Usually, R ratings are given if there is more than one F-word, nudity other than a butt, and blood and gore. This film has a lot of blood, so I’m thinking that’s where the R rating comes from. They didn’t have the “gore”, but the blood is there.

Take for instance, The Dark Knight. That was R level violence, but no blood.

OR

Jordan wanted the R because he really wanted it classified as a horror film, and most people aren’t convinced that PG13 horrors are actually scary.

I for one appreciate that.

I'm not a "horror" movie guy generally because of all the gore. You can do the necessary kills and whoomp whoomp for the story and still be tasteful.
 

Apollo Creed

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his mom, red, knows how to speak and could have taught him, it just wouldnt have been useful until he got up top. i doubt it took untethered adelaide a whole year to start talking to her parents again well. this would also explain why he knows really weird sayings "kiss my anus", like a kid who would have been taught not to say ass but anus as like a joke or something (from the perspective of red teaching him sayings to prepare him)

i also think its odd that the boys mouth was melted shut but his grunts seemed hella elaborate like he was trying to talk. i also think the monkey mask hsa a lot to do with why the boy acts the way he does. the story about him being burned after a c-section seems symbolic at best bc where tf would fire even come form down there here during a pregnancy at all times but not to cook that rabbit meat :mjlol: ? i think something happened and adelaide switched him out to hide something. either way something is definitely missing in that whole explanation. they alluded to him going missing before in the closets the last summer. he is always hiding is closets/cupboards/dark spaces to surprise people

may be super stretch but i think the illusion of fire in a c-section is an allegory trope from shakespeare's caesar play and is an analogy for war. fire is also a promethean trigger. the boy cannot access fire ever with his magic tricks (fire is a pure gift from the gods to humans only).

i still dont see it. Unless the kid was swapped at birth nothing explains how the thethered kid yall are saying is the real boys mouth was burned up or why he acted like an animal. The burned boy could have never existed above ground and acted the way he did. It seems people keep reaching because they want that to be a true plot point lol. If anything the kid had a strong relationship with his mom because he too is different yet doesnt have the excuse of growing up in the tunnels thus it plays into the plot point of how we are all “the same, yet different”. The people in the tunnels are presented as being “different” because of their upbringing yet Red explains how they suffer and feel everything and are just “Americans” in the same manner that the family are yet they dont get to enjoy the fruits of being “American” and suffer and feel pain just trying to be american (i.e the child birth suffering) while the family above ground got to do the same things theorectically and it was all seen as joyful events (once again the child birth as example. In a nut shell the people in the tunnels lived life doing what “Americans are supposed to be doing” yet it brings them nothing but pain and suffering in their attempt of living, while the people above ground recieve joy and pleasure.
 

High Society

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i still dont see it. Unless the kid was swapped at birth nothing explains how the thethered kid yall are saying is the real boys mouth was burned up or why he acted like an animal. The burned boy could have never existed above ground and acted the way he did. It seems people keep reaching because they want that to be a true plot point lol. If anything the kid had a strong relationship with his mom because he too is different yet doesnt have the excuse of growing up in the tunnels thus it plays into the plot point of how we are all “the same, yet different”. The people in the tunnels are presented as being “different” because of their upbringing yet Red explains how they suffer and feel everything and are just “Americans” in the same manner that the family are yet they dont get to enjoy the fruits of being “American” and suffer and feel pain just trying to be american (i.e the child birth suffering) while the family above ground got to do the same things theorectically and it was all seen as joyful events (once again the child birth as example. In a nut shell the people in the tunnels lived life doing what “Americans are supposed to be doing” yet it brings them nothing but pain and suffering in their attempt of living, while the people above ground recieve joy and pleasure.
ok breh i get all that but a face burn at birth in a place with no fire having that much of effect 9 years later also makes no sense as well lol that story seems allegorical at best on a place like your face where you shed a lot of skin + theres no fire down there

also the name jason has a lot of mythological, historical and biblical symbolism to it thats interesting (along with the name zora) when you consider the movies themes, especially related to fire and the protection of a mother.

regardless, i think peele left so many contradictions/loopholes just for discussions like this
 
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EARFQUAKE

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Warning, this review is long. First it's a breakdown and explanation of all the film's important aspects, and then I critique it.

I thought I was going to have a hard time following the symbolisms, imagery, and more to understand the film but it was pretty straight forward. Sure, it was obvious at times but I think they were executed well.

First, the very beginning talks about hundreds and thousands of miles of tunnels, some that serve unknown purposes. That's our first "hint" but really, Peele is telling us right away that these tunnels are used for secret government projects, ie the clones to control people. This is somewhat supported and foreshadowed by the daughter talking about the conspiracy theory that "the government puts fluoride in our water to control our minds...oh that's right, I forgot, no one cares about the world ending :comeon:"

Next, the behavior of our MC which I'll call Ade (pre Red) because I don't feel like dealing with my phone's autocorrect on that. First, Ade is watching a series of TV commercials which she barely reacts to. It could be a hint at mindless TV rotting our brains or just a testament to Ade's personality. I feel like she's an unhappy child because she's in an unhappy environment. Her parents love her but are clearly on the brink of separation. She pays close attention to their behavior and notices the lack of love between the two. I think that she may feel a bit bad for her dad who is somewhat lousy but does what he thinks is best for her. Her mother is tired of his shyt and can barely tolerate him.

According to "Red", clones (shadows) are supposed to be used to control people on the surface, but this clearly isn't always the case, nor has it been. So we're not sure if the clones were still an experiment or an actual imperfect and incomplete project. The latter could be the case because Red mentioned that the people who created copies couldn't grasp the idea of two separate souls instead of sharing one, and constantly working in the environment of shadows drove them insane, which would explain why the clones were able to leave the tunnels and do what they wanted under no authority (rabbits being out of their cages is another indicator).
Red mentioned that it was God that brought the two together, because one does not simply meet their doppelganger. It has to be a coincidence that it happens.The whole purpose, or rather, the way the world is set up is that the shadows live in a parallel life of their original, replicating their lives in a fashion either intended by the government or by the original's free will.
With that being said, shadows do not have free will, or rather they are not as free as they'd like, because they are shadows created to replicate their copies. The lightening and the escalator are two essential factors that draw both OG Ade and shadow Ade to the same location. It's a coincidence like the frisbee perfectly landing on the same sized circle or noticing the time at 11:11. Things have to line up in order to meet. Shadow Ade would have not gone up the escalator had OG Ade not decided to, and this is left a bit abstract because shadow Ade, who maliciously switched out with OG, told her husband that she didn't know why she decided to wander off, but that's when we didn't know that she was speaking about wandering off from the tunnels as a shadow. This could either be a hint that shadows are aimlessly living the life of their originals, reinforcing the theory that shadows have no free will, or shadow Ade was just omitting the truth because she's a fukking liar like that.

Next, I'd like to talk about [shadow] Ade's fear of OG. She doesn't want to go to the beach, she's clearly traumatized and the movie likes to lead us to believe it's because of her going missing as a child. In reality, Ade knows she's a ain't shyt bytch who left behind a person who had lived on the surface. She knows that when things line up perfectly, coincidences, her doppelganger is likely to show up under the same circumstances or similar circumstances from when they were little. This is why she tells her husband that she's always felt she'd come back for her. Ade knows that OG has every right to be mad. And boy is she :banderas:

Ade already knows the deal from the moment the shadows arrive. This is why she tries to tell her husband to STFU when talking to the OG, Red, because Ade knows this woman is out to seek vengeance, they just don't know in what manner. Ade cuffs herself to the table because this is exactly what she did to Red.

I think it's safe to leave out explaining why Red's voice sounds the way it does and why she's the only "shadow" capable of speaking.

Moving on, Red's mannerisms are that of someone who is trying to get back control, from the way she walks, moves and remains calm while her shadow family are being mollywhopped.

The scissors are pretty straightforward, cut the ties that bind you. In this case, the clones are killing their originals because their lives had been controlled by them. Also the double symbolism mentioned in a tweet about two of the same on opposite sides created to divide or some shyt like that.

Caged rabbits represent experiments and mankind's ability and almost obsession to clone. Cloning is a capability getting closer and closer to success. In the introduction the shot focuses on the bunny in the center which begins to behave oddly the more you look at it. During Red's monolog about souls not being able to be replicated, it pans to the caged rabbit we saw in the beginning, indicating that this rabbit was a clone and it was soulless. It would make sense that rabbits are cloned as well in order to sustain food provisions for all the shadows. This is the ONLY thing they ate their entire lives.

On second thought I'll finish this review later. I'm tired af.

TBC...

OK, going to try to start again where I left off but man, as I keep thinking about this film I start to realize how a lot of scenes were very important.

To re-touch on the coincidence element, how things have to line up in order for the shadows and originals paths to cross, I realized more of those patterns as the family was getting ready to go to the beach. First the real spider crawling on the coffee table next to the toy spider. Then the twins at the beach saying things in sync to the point where they got a triple jinx. It also reminds me of the fact that as kid Ade was walking off she noticed the 11:11 guy and two people getting a tie playing rock, paper, scissors. Also, I think they may have mentioned that it was impossible that they kept tying.

A lot of people are bothered by the fact that Red took her time with Ade's family. You have to realize that Red is scorned and suffered because of Ade. And Red is an original. She has a lot of control over her shadow family. Other shadows, like the white family, wasted no time. Shadows are commencing a plan initiated by Red.

With that being said, how was Red able to plan and prepare, essentially becoming an individual? I think dancing plays a big part in this. Dancing is the art of expression. If you noticed towards the end, Red somewhat thanks Ade for getting into ballet. She says something along the lines of, "if it weren't for you I wouldn't have ever got the chance to dance at all."
Her dance is what made her "special" and thus she was able to plan her revolution until the right time, when things lined up, in other words. Red could never simply go back and switch out places with shadow Ade.

The son didn't get switched out. I think people that believe in this theory are reaching really hard. He simply notices that his mother was a shadow all along who more than likely switched places with Red, which is why Red was mad and would provide context to her monologs. The son isn't a dummy. He was saying a lot of profound shyt throughout the film. Hell, he's the one who considered the idea that there were more shadows out there before his family realized it on some :ohhh:

About to eat.

TBC..
 

Knowledge

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i still dont see it. Unless the kid was swapped at birth nothing explains how the thethered kid yall are saying is the real boys mouth was burned up or why he acted like an animal. The burned boy could have never existed above ground and acted the way he did. It seems people keep reaching because they want that to be a true plot point lol. If anything the kid had a strong relationship with his mom because he too is different yet doesnt have the excuse of growing up in the tunnels thus it plays into the plot point of how we are all “the same, yet different”. The people in the tunnels are presented as being “different” because of their upbringing yet Red explains how they suffer and feel everything and are just “Americans” in the same manner that the family are yet they dont get to enjoy the fruits of being “American” and suffer and feel pain just trying to be american (i.e the child birth suffering) while the family above ground got to do the same things theorectically and it was all seen as joyful events (once again the child birth as example. In a nut shell the people in the tunnels lived life doing what “Americans are supposed to be doing” yet it brings them nothing but pain and suffering in their attempt of living, while the people above ground recieve joy and pleasure.
lol people really really want that to be a part of the story. Its almost like watching those twitter outrage threads where people are like ,"man this is probably what happened" or listening to nikkas like this

where they be like. The letter D is the 4th letter of the alphabet, which is also known as Initial D the 4TH stage which originates from japan........
And you just sitting there listening to these nikkas like :beli: Stop reaching for shyt. lol

This is how people in this thread look to me trying to look for shyt that aint there
 

BillBanneker

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Just got back from seeing it.


Honestly I kind of knew where the plot was going during the opening sequence, that was a big telegraph imo and felt like a good number of the story beats were kinda predictable, but I feel like this has a shyt ton of symbolism and during the twist, it felt a bit rushed that I didn't get a chance to digest it.:patrice: I do feel like this could be cut down from 2 hours though. Maybe because I somewhat saw the twist coming, I just spent time waiting like "hurry up":damn: Liked it overall though.


IF YOU NOTICE ADEL WAS THE ONE WHO WAS OUT FOR BLOOD THROUGHOUT THE MOVIE.
(jumping out the truck to get the girl in the tree)
(Jumping out the truck to get the boy on the beach)
WHILE RED DIDNT KILL ANYONE.
:devil:
:evil:


:ehh:

I also noticed that she grunted and had some weird body language similar to a tethered during some of those scenes.
 

High Society

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lol people really really want that to be a part of the story. Its almost like watching those twitter outrage threads where people are like ,"man this is probably what happened" or listening to nikkas like this

where they be like. The letter D is the 4th letter of the alphabet, which is also known as Initial D the 4TH stage which originates from japan........
And you just sitting there listening to these nikkas like :beli: Stop reaching for shyt. lol

This is how people in this thread look to me trying to look for shyt that aint there

Its a movie mf, let people have fun and stop exaggerating :russ: thats the purpose of movies.

directors and writers inject hella specifics that seem regular af to the viewers all the time. one of the first things they teach you in film school is to be specific as hell, even if the audience doesnt get it bc that helps provide the writer a firm foundation for the story and keeps them consistent.

he is probably not switched but all those clues were not included into the film just to be shrugged off as happenstance. the artists intention is meant for it to be a discussion and influence our outlook on it. if you dont like discussion/different opinions why even read the thread lol
 

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Its a movie mf, let people have fun and stop exaggerating :russ: thats the purpose of movies.

directors and writers inject hella specifics that seem regular af to the viewers all the time. one of the first things they teach you in film school is to be specific as hell, even if the audience doesnt get it bc that helps provide the writer a firm foundation for the story and keeps them consistent.

he is probably not switched but all those clues were not included into the film just to be shrugged off as happenstance. the artists intention is meant for it to be a discussion and influence our outlook on it. if you dont like discussion/different opinions why even read the thread lol
I didn't say I dont like the discussion. Yall nikkas is entertaining and funny as hell. I know peele probably aint the type, but it would be comedy if he just came out in the future and was like ,"nah" to most of these reaching theories. Like
how can the son not be the original when the tethered mom cant even talk correctly herself? We expect a swapped son to speak perfect english?
 
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