Get Out, film review: No escape from nightmarish parent trap

Kaluuya is perfect as Brooklyn photographer Chris, says Charlotte O'Sullivan
Family fear: Daniel Kaluuya as Chris, whose girlfriend’s relatives are not what they seem
Charlotte O'Sullivan21 November 2017

Let's talk about sex (and racism). Samuel L Jackson feels Jordan Peele’s horror movie — in which a white girl takes her black boyfriend home to meet the folks — might have been better if the male lead, Daniel Kaluuya, had been African-American. Jackson said: “Daniel grew up in a country where they’ve been interracial dating for a hundred years.” As far as he is concerned, Kaluuya’s British identity makes him the equivalent of a weekend punk.

He’s right, Kaluuya isn’t the real thing. Luckily, great actors don’t have to be. Talent trumps location every time.

Kaluuya is perfect as Brooklyn photographer Chris. Baby-faced and sophisticated, he yawns when he’s tense and has a right eye that closes slightly when he smiles. He yawns and smiles a lot when his girlfriend, Rose (Allison Williams) introduces him to her apparently liberal parents, Dean and Missy (Bradley Whitford and Catherine Keener).

In my favourite scene Chris (ostensibly being cured of his nicotine habit by amateur hypnotist Missy) finds himself on his knees, whirling through the cosmos. Watching Missy grill Chris about his childhood is hilarious but Kaluuya’s face means we never mistake the waking nightmare for farce. The 27-year-old Londoner is a natural-born tragi-comedian.

Latest film reviews

1/99

Not to boast, or anything, but this paper recognised his potential seven years ago (he won Best Newcomer at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards).

True, Peele makes a few illogical and/or clumsy moves (Chris’s best friend is a stock type — the tell-it-like-it-is clown). But mostly he creates a lovely, off-kilter mood, riffing with tremendous visual poise on all sorts of classics, including Seconds, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner and The Stepford Wives.

Get Out offers yet more proof that the horror genre is a gift for young, financially challenged film-makers. As in last year’s provocative gem The Witch, an outsider’s survival depends on their willingness to spill blood. Rivers of blood. Just before they leave for their weekend from hell Rose asks Chris if he has his “cosy clothes”. In the mood for cosy? You need to get out more.

Cert 15, 104 mins

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in