Us Is a Must!

For me, the movie Us is a must!  I’d been wanting to see Us since the trailer dropped way back when. It took me a couple of weeks to finally get to the theater to see it but I’m so glad I did. I was actively avoiding looking at ANYTHING about it on social media or reading any think pieces breaking down the contents. I wanted to go to the movie, take it in, and form my own opinion about it.  With that said, I am aware that there seems to be very few middle of the road reactions to this movie. Most people either love it or hate it. Add me to the love camp all the way.

Eleven Eleven

My first attempt at seeing the movie failed miserably as when we got there it was all sold out. So we decided to catch a show the next day and go ahead and pay for our tickets. I immediately had a reaction to my ticket when it printed as 11, 11 was printed on it boldly. Theater 11, seat 11! I noticed and have been noticing this number and other repeating numbers since my awakening began nearly a year ago. So imagine my surprise when this number became a running theme throughout this movie, and I noticed nearly every, if not all, instances of it.

My Reaction

Frankly, I thought this movie was funny as hell and it had layers. I rarely find horror movies truly scary and usually end up laughing my head off. This film was no different and perhaps it was apart of the reason I enjoyed it so much. But what I love, so far, about Jordan Peele’s movies is that there are indeed layers to his storytelling. And even though I was able to catch the symbolism in some things, I’m sure there is still a whole lot I missed and won’t pick up on until I have the opportunity to rewatch this film several times. I’m also writing this still without having read any think pieces or opinions and musings because I wanted to give you my organic and uninfluenced thoughts and reactions of the film.

Let’s Start at the Beginning

The movie begins with information about abandoned Subway tunnels and how many exist with no record of its purpose.  This information is followed by a scene of an older television set advertising the 1986 Hands Across America Event. Off the bat, I noticed the VHS tapes to the side, one of which is The Goonies. Also other 80’s memorabilia like a Rubik’s cube in the basket. Then you just see cages and cages of rabbits while some creepy ass music plays on in the background.

Young Adelaide is at the beach in Santa Cruz with her parents. Her father is playing a carnival game and asks her if he should keep going for a prize on the third tier. Addie decides she wants prize ELEVEN which is a t-shirt of Michael Jackson’s Thriller. They stroll on and Dad decides to play whack a mole while Mom uses the bathroom. Addie wanders off and passes a man holding a sign that reads, Jeremiah 11:11! I looked it up in the theater and the Bible passage reads:

“Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘I will bring on them disaster they cannot escape. Although they cry out to me, I will not listen to them.”

Addie continues on and enters a House of Mirrors on the beach that says Vision Quest: Find Yourself. It is in this place that Addie has a traumatic experience that changes her forever. She has a hard time readjusting to life and her parents are encouraged to make her participate in creative activities to draw her back out and back to herself.

All Grown Up

Now Addie is all grown up with a family of her own. They go to the Beach House in Santa Cruz for a little family vacation. Soon little events begin to occur, and Addie begins to see and hear the many instances of 11:11. She feels things are aligning in such a way that her past will catch up to her and wreak havoc all over again. By the time she convinces her husband to leave, it is too late. There is a family in their driveway and all manner of danger and shenanigans ensue.

Plot Twist!

In true Peele fashion, this film has a major plot twist in the end. I’m not going to reveal what it is as I’m trying to keep this mostly spoiler-free. I absolutely LOVED this movie but I know for sure there are things about it that I have yet to truly grasp and understand. But I look forward to figuring it out. That is another thing I enjoy about Peele’s films. They are a puzzle and sparks endless theories, conversations, and debates.

Observations and Thoughts

Obviously, it was not lost on me that Eleven Eleven is a major theme throughout this movie. Eleven Eleven is the number many people begin seeing and noticing everywhere once they begin their awakening. Though other repeating numbers appear, 11:11 is the most common one people see first.  There is definitely a sort of mass awakening within this film, but I wonder what Peele’s explicit purpose is in using the number.

Also, Young Addie picks a shirt featuring Thriller by Michael Jackson. A song about evil entities lurking in the dark, and a video featuring the dead rising from their death beds, from underground.  I could see how this shirt was a small foreshadowing of events to unfold in the movie.

For some reason, Addie seems to be exceptionally more concerned and connected to her son than her daughter.  She makes a point to look after him and promises to keep him safe.  Also out of the rest of her family, her son seems to be the only one to also be seeing things and noting the signs.  I wonder what it is about the son that marks him as different, and why the relationship between these two seems so unique in comparison to Addie’s relationship to the rest of the family.

There is an event that occurs in the movie that in all consideration is a sort of ‘success’ in comparison to its counterpart mentioned earlier in the film.  I’m being cagey because I don’t want to spoil anything.  It made me think how in society we discount and discard certain people as being worthless and unworthy, and they just may be the people who can and will pull off something great that the rest of us couldn’t get our heads out of our asses long enough to accomplish.

Conclusion

Overall I absolutely loved this movie!  Though it has definitely left me with more questions than answers, I look forward to unraveling the mysteries about this film for years to come.  As I’ve stated before, Us is a must!

Did any of you see this movie? If so I’d love to know your opinions and observations! Please leave me a comment letting me know what you thought!