Demi Moore’s latest film, The Substance, received a 13-minute standing ovation and has been called one of the goriest and craziest horror movies in years.
The gruesome horror flick stars Demi, 61, as Elisabeth Sparkle, a TV host who begins using the titular Substance to quell the effects of ageing, but it comes with a chilling twist.
Margaret Qualley and Dennis Quaid star in supporting roles, and it’s directed by French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat, known for her 2017 debut Revenge and an episode of the Netflix series The Sandman.
The Substance has received the longest ovation at the prestigious film festival so far.
Demi was overwhelmed by the response to the film, which is her first to play Cannes, and said “It has been an incredible ride”, per Deadline.
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Critics have released rapturous responses to the upcoming thriller, which horrorheads should be sure not to miss when it’s released on Mubi later this year.
@BeyondFest posted on X (formerly Twitter): “Cannes just got splattered. THE SUBSTANCE is the most bats**tf***inginsane 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.”
@JRParham said: “THE SUBSTANCE is like David Cronenberg made Death Becomes Her, a dark and twisted fable regarding Hollywood’s obsession with youth and beauty.
“Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley are both superb in this excessively gory spectacle of body horror. This one is for the sickos.”
@SamuelAAdams wrote: “Not sure I have seen a midnight movie connect with its intended audience as squarely as THE SUBSTANCE does since walking out of GREEN ROOM.
“Hilarious, unsettling, and gory as hell, a feminist parable for splatter junkies.”
And @Damiansport1 posted: “The Substance is one of the wildest, bloodiest and shocking films to ever screen at Cannes.
“Satire on showbiz and critic of beauty standards that are impossible to meet by women. Aronofsky x Cronenberg.”
Though they had some issues with the flick, adding: “Liked the story, but i found to be heavy-handed and over-the-top.” (sic)
An official synopsis for the film reads: “It generates another you. A new, younger, more beautiful, more perfect you. And there’s only one rule: You share time.
“One week for you. One week for the new you. Seven days each. A perfect balance. Easy. Right? If you respect the balance… what could possibly go wrong?”