Us: The Movie About Everything
Jordan Peele's "Us” is a labyrinthic, multifaceted narrative that leaves the viewer contemplating many, and in part diverging, narratives. In this analysis, I will endeavor to investigate a piece of this complex narrative, attempting to “untether” the intricacies of Adelaide and her counterpart, Red.
But first, a quick spoiler– Adelaide and her Tethered, Red, switch roles during the mirror maze scene. I think about this scene too much for my own good, and some parts of it still don’t make any sense to me.
()The film’s protagonist, Adelaide, theorizes that the Tethered were designed to control their above-ground counterparts but the experiment went haywire (I use the term “theorize” since she Adelaide merely vocalizing her thoughts in this moment– it remains unclear if anyone in the film truly knows why the tethered were made). Instead of the Tethered controlling their human counterparts, the counterparts controlled the Tethered in the sense that their every action was mirrored by the Tethered. Nonetheless, this theory regarding the existence of the Tethered begs the question: were Red and Adelaide, an exception to the rule, a successful outcome of this twisted experiment? If so, it’s possible that Red was the puppeteer all along, guiding Adelaide into the basement, where she pulled off the switch. I find it intriguing that in the final fight between Adelaide and Red, we can see that Adelaide’s movements are more graceful and fluid while Red is struggling, seeming to move more like the Tethered. This contrast in movement is later flipped in the ballet scene, serving here as a kind of foreshadowing that Red (who the viewer assumes is Adelaide throughout the whole movie) is actually the Tether instead.
Peele chooses to use odd angles throughout the film that hide essential parts of the movie, and I thus feel obliged to look at the film’s use of angles as such. The Tethered, at first glance, may seem like mere photocopies of their above-ground counterparts. But as the story continues to unfold, it becomes clear that they're something else entirely. Instead of having a clear purpose, the Tethered embody the extreme and exaggerated aspects of their human counterparts. They embody the human condition. Through the Tethered, the narrative compels the human characters to confront their very own "shadows." Red, Adelaide’s Tethered, harbors resentment towards her husband. He's a bit of a goofball, not always taking things seriously, and he seems emotionally clueless. Her "shadow" or the true Adelaide, on the other hand, is stuck with a husband who, in the kindest words possible, is useless. The shadows of the character’s Tethers are the fufillment of everything they don’t want to confront within themselves.
Peele himself has said that the Tethered display the ignorant nature of privilege and luck, stating in an interview with … that while Americans are lucky to be born where they are, they nonetheless possess their privilege at the expense of others’ sufferings. Explaining how the Tethered connect, Peele says “those who suffer and those who prosper are two sides of the same coin. We can never forget that we have to fight for the less fortunate.” And I do think that Peele depicted this fight for the less fortunate well by showing how the Tethered eat “raw, bloody” rabbits, have virtually no say in who they end up with, and essentially have no souls (Granted, I still do stand by my analysis.) While the contrast between the privileged and the unprivileged is a prevalent theme of the movie, the Tethered serve as the embodiment of a person’s worst qualities. Further, in its exploration of privilege and luck, this movie has largely to do with the American Dream and its failure. When prompted “what are you,” Adelaide replies with “We’re Americans”) but to get into that analysis now would make this article annoyingly long.
As we venture into the heart of the movie, we begin to grasp that "Us" is a commentary on the dual nature of humanity. The Tethered symbolize the aspects of ourselves that we often suppress or keep in the shadows. These are the traits we might not readily acknowledge, the parts of our psyche we're afraid to explore. Adelaide's dance serves as a catalyst, a kind of eerie awakening, forcing these concealed aspects to the surface and revealing a twisted mirror image of herself.
"Us" makes you confront the unsettling idea that your greatest adversary might just be staring back at you in the mirror, just waiting to unleash the untapped potential lurking within. It's a mirror maze of psychological horror and social commentary, leaving you to wonder which side of the reflection you're truly on.