Is the movie bad? You bet! Do i love it? HELL YEAH.
Made on an estimated budget of $30,000, we can assume that $29,000 was spent on fake blood and $1,000 was spent on buying sexy lingerie for the ladies.
In terms of form, this is almost a complete failure, like in the scene where the characters claim they can't see, but the scene is bright as fuck. The performances are what you would expect from a b-movie with scream queen Bobby Bresee giving a performance that reminds me of Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard and then the rest of the cast looking like they are being held at gunpoint. Apart from these there's nothing even noteworthy about this film, yet somehow it works.
It's super sleazy and exactly what i look for in my 80s horror film, because if it tried to take itself seriously with all those things i listed earlier it would just be a flop for me. Because the film is basically a mixture of Sunset Boulevard and Street Trash, there is some unintentional (?) thematic weight as the film discusses topics like fame obsession and the discrimination of older women in hollywood. If you think that wasn't The Substance enough, the main narrative of the film revolves around a woman who constantly injects herself with a substance in order to be the best version of herself, which ensues some body horror. Of course, the substance is still a much better film.
However, the horror is non-existent until the final 10 minutes.
If you're a fan of low-brow horror i couldn't recommend this enough. There's lots to chew on.
Is the movie bad? You bet! Do i love it? HELL YEAH.
Made on an estimated budget of $30,000, we can assume that $29,000 was spent on fake blood and $1,000 was spent on buying sexy lingerie for the ladies.
In terms of form, this is almost a complete failure, like in the scene where the characters claim they can't see, but the scene is bright as fuck. The performances are what you would expect from a b-movie with scream queen Bobby Bresee giving a performance that reminds me of Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard and then the rest of the cast looking like they are being held at gunpoint. Apart from these there's nothing even noteworthy about this film, yet somehow it works.
It's super sleazy and exactly what i look for in my 80s horror film, because if it tried to take itself seriously with all those things i listed earlier it would just be a flop for me. Because the film is basically a mixture of Sunset Boulevard and Street Trash, there is some unintentional (?) thematic weight as the film discusses topics like fame obsession and the discrimination of older women in hollywood. If you think that wasn't The Substance enough, the main narrative of the film revolves around a woman who constantly injects herself with a substance in order to be the best version of herself, which ensues some body horror. Of course, the substance is still a much better film.
However, the horror is non-existent until the final 10 minutes.
If you're a fan of low-brow horror i couldn't recommend this enough. There's lots to chew on.
