New horror movie hailed gory “batsh*tf*king insane” masterpiece

The Substance has die-hard fans floored and is getting praise at Cannes as the movie looks to be the next smash horror hit.

Starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley, the body horror movie The Substance received a 13-minute standing ovation at this year’s Cannes, according to Deadline. By French director Coralie Fargeat, the movie is described as being horribly bloody with a feminist edge that takes body modification to the extreme.

Moore stars as Elizabeth Sparkle who was once a top actor and now works as an exercise host. When she’s fired for being “too old,” she calls a mysterious number that was handed to her. She then falls into the world of sci-fi body enhancement that takes a dark turn.

Using provided medications and tools, her back splits open like Invasion of the Body Snatchers and hatches a younger version of herself. But there’s a catch as only one version goes out and about for a week while the other hibernates.

It becomes a Jekyll and Hyde scenario that creates envy, jealousy, and horror. The Substance is set to join the list of 2024’s horror movies that are downright nightmarish.

It’s so far received an almost perfect score from Rotten Tomatoes with a 92% rating. The BBC gave the movie a glowing review writing, “Fargeat’s twisted tale is good fun, especially if you like to hear squelching, cracking and crunching noises as gruesome things are done to human flesh.”

On X/Twitter, Beyond Fest commented, “Cannes just got splattered. THE SUBSTANCE is the most batsh*tf*ckinginsane movie of the last 20 years. It is on such a freakish level that it’s impossible to believe it exists. Demi Moore goes there and @coraliefargeat has carved a contemporary horror unlike anything you’ve seen.”

The Substance hasn’t released an official trailer for the movie. Only a teaser and a harrowing still image. “I hate when tweets like this come out of festivals & I can’t find a trailer or anything other than 1 still image. Grrr,” said one fan on X/Twitter.

Based on the reception of the movie so far, fans are eager to watch it for themselves. “I don’t know anything about this but I need to see it,” commented one fan.

Moore has broken into her first Cannes success story, with Variety calling her on-screen nothing short of “fearless.”

The Substance was released at Cannes on May 19, 2024, with no set global release date yet. But it’s reported to premiere in mid-to-late 2024 alongside other new movies.