Get Out (2017)

Directed by: Jordan Peele | 104 minutes | thriller, horror | Actors: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford, Caleb Landry Jones, Marcus Henderson, Betty Gabriel, Lakeith Stanfield, Stephen Root, LilRel Howery, Ashley LeConte Campbell, John Wilmot, Caren L. Larkey, Julie Ann Doan, Rutherford Cravens

‘Get Out’ (2017), the directorial debut of comedian and actor Jordan Peele, is an unexpected hit in the United States. The horror comedy, about a black man who first meets his girlfriend’s white family, was made for the minimum amount of $ 4.5 million by Hollywood standards, but has so far yielded more than $ 200 million at the Box Office. Moreover, not only do the public walk away with the film, but almost all critics are also enthusiastic about ‘Get Out’. Peele gives his own twist to today’s racial themes and plays with the expectations of his viewers. The film also knows how to put a mirror in front of its audience; even the most liberal white people, who will never be racist, view someone of a different skin color differently than they view someone their own skin color. Even the white person who firmly opposes racism is (unconsciously) guilty of ‘racial profiling’. Peele – himself the child of a white mother and a black father – worked out his story with this approach. ‘Get Out’ is therefore very personal, but – according to Peele – quickly lets go of everything that can be seen as an autobiographical element.

The film opens with a young black man who walks through an American suburb in the evening, while he is on the phone with his girlfriend. It soon becomes clear that he is going to meet her parents for the first time, that her family is white and that he is nervous and uncomfortable in this white neighborhood. Then a car stops next to him. The boy tries to turn around, but the driver – made unrecognizable with a black motorcycle helmet – gets out and kidnaps him. Then we meet Chris Washington (Daniel Kaluuya), a promising photographer who is preparing to meet the parents of his friend Rose Armitage (Allison Williams) for the first time. “Do they know I’m black?” he asks, somewhat concerned. But he needn’t worry, she says. Her parents are not racists. In fact; if it had been possible her father would have voted for Obama a third time, he is so crazy about that man. And so the two get in the car, on their way to a stately mansion in the woods. “Would you do that?” Chris asks his best friend Rod (LilRel Howery, who can provide the comic relief) on the phone on the way, making Chris even more nervous than he already was. And then they hit a deer. All those alarms should warn him anyway, you’d think. But Chris goes with Rose anyway.

The Armitage family home is as remote as it gets. Father Dean (Bradley Whitford) is a tad too amicable with Chris; Psychotherapist mother Missy (Catherine Keener) is eager to hypnotize him. And then there’s Jeremy (Caleb Landry Jones), Rose’s brother, who, half-drunk, expresses his admiration for Chris’ physique. Strangely enough, it’s not their pushy behavior, but that of black housekeeper Georgina (Betty Gabriel) and gardener Walter (Marcus Henderson) that terrifies Chris. They exhibit strange behavior and seem totally insensitive to the ‘black chats’ he tries to have with them. It turns out that the Armitages are having their annual party just that weekend, with dozens of friends coming over. Everyone is very excited to see Chris. He is plucked and pulled, his muscles are felt, and one woman asks Rose, “Is it true? Are they really better?’. However, Chris is most surprised to see a black boy, Logan (LaKeith Stanfield), who looks familiar, but walks around in a colonial suit, talks strangely and is with a white woman twice his age. What the hell is going on here anyway?

Exactly how the story is put together does not deviate that much from the standard storylines in horror and thriller films. Certainly the ending isn’t as original as you’d like (Peele reportedly actually had a different ending in mind, but deviated from it due to current racial tensions in the US and the resulting #BlackLivesMatter movement). Where ‘Get Out’ differs is the audacity with which the film was made and the way in which prejudices are played with. The big fat nod to the era of slavery (the house of the Armitages, the dark servants, Logan’s clothes and the role that cotton plays in a crucial scene), but also the refutation of the fact that it is always Rednecks and Hillbillies are those who racially treat black people; those are the elements that give this film a deeper layer. Thanks to his confident direction and clever camera work, Peele knows how to make his audience feel how Chris must feel in this remarkable company. Moreover, he brings out the best in his actors, Kaluuya first. With some well-timed scares and skilful use of music, he keeps his viewers on their toes. The fact that the film becomes more predictable towards the end and therefore loses some originality and decisiveness should not spoil the fun.

‘Get Out’ is a daring directorial debut that plays with the expectations of its viewers. Debuting director Jordan Peele manages to achieve maximum effect with minimal means, and holds up a mirror to his viewer when it comes to racism, racial profiling and prejudice, but does so with an original approach. This may be too mild for the true horror fan, but for fans of oppressive thrillers with a message (and there are not many) a must see.