The Cannes Film Festival erupted into a frenzy of applause on Sunday night, as the audience was left in awe, nauseated, and hilariously defiant by the groundbreaking horror thriller "The Substance." Directed by French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat, the film stars Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley and received an astonishing 11-minute standing ovation.
The narrative centers on a once-renowned actress (Moore), whose advancing age has relegated her to a Jane Fonda-esque fitness show. When she's unexpectedly fired, she's offered a trial of a medical treatment named after the film itself. Promising a younger, enhanced version of herself through a cell replication process, Moore takes a leap of faith and soon finds herself sprawled on the bathroom floor, her spine split open like a Christmas ham. Out of her back emerges a new version of herself, played by Qualley, young, supple, and full of potential.
The two characters coexist with a crucial caveat: they must alternate weeks in each body. The film is a rich tapestry of metaphors exploring women's roles in Hollywood, the cruelty of aging, and the consequences of self-loathing. Despite its often grotesque and disturbing imagery, the Cannes audience eagerly devoured the film, laughing hysterically at the absurdity of limbs falling off and recoiling in disgust at the more brutal scenes.
Covered in blood, with ripped-out teeth, peeled-off fingernails, and some of the most horrifying prosthetics in recent memory, "The Substance" is not for the faint of heart. Yet, the audience danced and clapped in unison to the film's dark and EDM-heavy soundtrack, fully embracing the madness onscreen.
The excitement wasn't just on the screen, however. "The Substance" was scheduled to start at 10:15 p.m. in Cannes, but the screening began almost half an hour late. The cast and filmmakers, who typically arrive at least 20 minutes before the start of a screening, were nowhere to be seen at the appointed time. The movie finally began around 10:45 p.m., a testament to the French belief that bad manners can be as terrifying as any genre film.
"It's been a wild ride," Fargeat exclaimed once the audience had finished its rapturous applause, beating the record set by "Emilia Pérez's" nine-minute standing ovation on the previous night. Moore added, "This is my first time having a film premiere in Cannes. I'm so thrilled to be here. I'm a little exhausted—that was intense."
The cast of "The Substance" also includes Dennis Quaid, Hugo Diego Garcia, Phillip Schurer, and Joseph Balderrama. In an interview with Variety, Fargeat discussed the film's feminist themes, stating that body horror is "the perfect vehicle to express the violence inherent in all these women's issues."
With the undertones of the #MeToo movement growing stronger in France during this year's festival, Fargeat hopes that her film will shine a brighter light on the issue. "It's a small stone in the vast wall we still have to build regarding this matter, and to be honest, I hope my film will be one of the stones in that wall. That's truly what I intended to accomplish with it."
"The Substance" marks Fargeat's debut at the Cannes Film Festival. Her first feature film, "Revenge" (2017), premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and went on to receive critical acclaim at festivals worldwide. Surprisingly, Moore is also making her first appearance in the festival's official selection. For Qualley, "The Substance" is one of two films she has competing in the festival—the 29-year-old actress also stars in Yorgos Lanthimos' "Kinds of Kindness," which premiered at Cannes on Friday night.
