Jeri
Jacquin
Coming to
Bluray, DVD and Digital this week from director Jordan Peele and Universal
Pictures Home Entertainment comes the tale of what happens when you look into
the heart of US.
The Wilson family is heading on a little summer R&R at the
beautiful coastal town of Santa Cruz , California . Gabe
(Winston Duke) and wife Adelaide
(Lupita Nyong'o) along with daughter Zora (Shahadi Joseph) and young son Jason
(Evan Alex), each sees this time together in a different way.
Gabe's
first outing is to go to the beach in front of the Santa
Cruz boardwalk but Adelaide
isn't as thrilled about the idea. When she was a child, something mysterious
happened to her but she hasn't shared it with anyone. Talked into it, she tries
her best to make the day good for the family.
Returning
home and evening falls, there are mysterious people in the Wilson driveway and when Gabe confronts them
- the horror knocks down their front door. A family that looks like them has a
mission and it could cost each family member their lives.
Escaping
the house the family tries to get help from friends Kitty (Elisabeth Moss) and
Josh (Tim Heidecker) but it isn't going to turn out as planned. What only one
of the Wilson
family knows is who they are and what they truly want - and they will never
again be the same.
Nyong'o
as Adelaide has
a hidden secret in her character and the film takes its time in telling that
part of the story. This actress invests not only the character of Adelaide number one but the absolutely terrifying version
of Adelaide 2.
She is captivating and has a mission that the Wilson family makes sort of easy for her to
carry out - why? I'm not going to tell you why.
Duke as
Gabe is that Dad who wants to make everyone happy while also having a good time
with a beer in his hand and warm sand between his toes. He is also the Dad that
has a baseball bat and isn't afraid to swing it - the problem is that Dad 2 has
an advantage and that's his refusal to hesitate. Don't let his size fool you as
he is a husband who knows that Adelaide
is strong willed so happy life, happy wife number one.
Joseph as
Zora is a teenager plugged into social media and making it perfectly clear that
she is not happy about the beach or talking about college. When she literally
runs against Zora number 2, trust me when I say the creepy factor is huge and
it’s a look I'll never forget. That being said, don't think Zora 1 doesn't get
hip quick.
Alex as
Jason is definitely a mama's boy and Jason 2 is as well - with a gruesome
exception. This young actor was seriously amazing and once again I don't think
it's a face I am likely to forget anytime soon.
Moss as
Kitty is that woman who just isn't happy with anything and finds any reason to
be a total bitch. Moss has the ability to be very sweet in her character
portrayals but this is her chance to just totally let loose and go insane.
Heidecker as Tim is like Gabe in some ways in that he just wants to sit back
with a beer and relax but Kitty isn't about to let him do that. It takes Tim 2
to at least have a chance to just be as crazy as he wants to be.
Other
cast include Yahya Abdul-Matten II as Russel Thomas, Anna Diop as Rayne Thomas,
Cali Sheldon as Becca Tyler, Noelle Sheldon as Lindsey Tyler and Madison Curry
as young Adelaide Wilson.
Universal Studios Home Entertainment has just added an
amazing film to their library and making it available for us all to experience
and re-experience in our own home theatres. There are films of every genre
available from scary to drama to family films. For more of what they have to
offer please visit www.uphe.com.
MOVIES ANYWHERE gives viewers the ability to download the
Movies Anywhere App. With that you can view films by downloading or streaming
to your favorite device using a Digital Code. For more information on Movies
Anywhere please visit www.MoviesAnywhere.com.
Bonus
Features include Scene Explorations –
The making of three iconic scenes from the film including the Tyler house
massacre, Jason’s abduction and Adelaide’s underground flashback, Seven Second Massacre, It’s a Trap, I Just
Want My Little Girl Back, The Duality of US, The Monsters Within US, Tethered
Together: Making US Twice, Redefining a Genre: Jordan Peele’s Brand of Horror,
Becoming Red, Deleted Scenes: I Am Not Even Near You, Rabbit Season, That’s
Badass, Driftwood, The P is Silent, I Wanna Go Home, We’re All Dying and As Above, So Below: Grand Pas de Deux.
FINAL
WORD: Peele has taken the classic suspense film and given it just enough blood
to keep me invested in the film. I am not a huge fan of gore films which I know
may be a shock to anyone who knows I love thrillers. There is a difference
between a thriller and a slasher film that has no storyline.
US has a
storyline and it doesn't take long before you are whipped through the mental
roller coaster mind of Peele. He doesn't give away much, still adds a little
cheesiness here and there, and picks an unlikely place to make it all work.
The cast
makes this story work and work extremely well. There is a togetherness in the
way these actors played the Wilson
clan that brings you in quickly and keeps you there until the very…last…frame.
I adore Santa Cruz and, of course,
never pictured it as a town where something like this story would take place.
Recognizing every single location in the film from the boardwalk to the
streets, just made it even more fun once I bought into the fact that yes, this
could happen in Santa Cruz!
This is a
fun thriller romp through my favorite stomping grounds and don't let the story
get you all twisted. Go with the flow and let the Wilson family introduce you to the wonderful
world of frights, fights and survival at all costs - and oh my what a high
cost!
This is
what a thriller weekend on Bluray looks and feels like.
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