Get Out sees Chris (Daniel Kaluuya, Sicario) heading to his girlfriend Rose’s (Allison Williams, Girls) parent’s upstate home for what he is sure will be an awkward first meeting. At first, Chris finds Rose’s family’s behavior a little strange but doesn’t think much of it and just assumes that they are unsure of how to deal with the fact that he and Rose are in an interracial relationship. However, when bizarre, horrifying, and inexplicable events begin to occur, Chris starts to realize that something sinister is most certainly afoot.
Jordan Peele’s Get Out is every bit as good as you’ve heard. Perhaps, even better. It is brimming with insightful commentary on what it means to be black in America. But it also works equally well at simply being entertaining. Some of the tribulations Chris faces could be ripped from the headlines (white police officers targeting black citizens solely on the basis of their skin color). And I couldn’t help but grimace at sequences like the one where Rose’s Dad tells Chris that he would have voted for President Obama for a third term if given the option. As if to say that because Chris is a black man, he must have automatically been an Obama voter and Chris now has Rose’s father’s blessing for being black.
Peele’s writing and direction does a brilliant job of conveying a message without beating viewers over the head. He has laced his feature film with sequences that convey how much more progress we need to make as a nation but it isn’t condescending and never lectures viewers. Peele combines horror, comedy, and social commentary in perfect proportion.
Jordan Peele’s poignant direction and well-crafted screenplay are only further enhanced by terrific performances from the entire cast. Among the most noteworthy is LilRel Howery as Chris’s best friend Rod. Howery steals ever scene in which he appears as he provides some much needed comic relief to break up the tension.
Get Out might be a little heavier on laughs than it is on scares but that’s not to say that it does not take time to build a profound sense of tension and keep the viewer on the edge of his or her seat. The violence is fairly subdued but that is in no way to the film’s detriment. In this case, focusing more on character development and allowing us to walk in Chris’s shoes turned out to be a highly effective storytelling method.
If you missed Get Out during its theatrical run, you need to check it out now. The film is available on DVD, Blu-Ray, and Digital HD beginning May 23, 2017.
The home video release includes a director’s commentary track, an alternate ending with director’s commentary, deleted Scenes with commentary, a behind-the-scenes featurette, a Q&A with Jordan Peele and the Cast, and more!
WICKED RATING: 10/10
Director(s): Jordan Peele
Writer(s): Jordan Peele
Stars: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, and Bradley Whitford
Release: May 23, 2017 DVD and Blu-ray
Studio/ Production Co: Blumhouse
Language: English
Length: 1 Hour and 44-minutes
