Get Out

Directed by Jordan Pele

Starring Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Bradley Whitford, Catherine Keener

[rating: 4/5]

Reviewed by Michael Dalton

It is no stretch to called Jordan Peele’s provocative debut, Get Out, the blackest comedy of the year. He surely meant it to be thought of that way.  He also wanted to ensure you’ve never seen anything quite like it. It’s a spectacle. Not in a slam bang superhero way. Its strength lies in the way he slides hypocrisy under the microscope and makes the truth blisteringly clear. His story of an African American man who accompanies his white girlfriend to meet her parents at their remote estate doesn’t just shamelessly draw on thriller conventions (every one of them), it draws on racial conventions too. Its played out with remarkable ease, effortlessly conceived to have us not only laughing quietly at the potential for offense (the early scenes flirt with it shamelessly) but to leave us short of breath at the possible fate that awaits the hero. Peele pulls off a hat trick. We’ll laugh but he sets us thinking about the implications of the humour. Dare we?

Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) is quietly nervous about the impending journey. His girlfriend Rose (Allison Williams) assures him he has nothing to fear although she tells Chris to expect her father (Bradley Whitford) to reference Obama; its an obviously set up joke but it hits home anyway. Chris is barely out of the car before he’s wrapped in an affectionate embrace. “We’re huggers” coos Rose’s father as his wife Missy (Catherine Keener) stands by gleaming. But the African American staff, Walter the groundskeeper (Marcus Henderson), and the housekeeper Georgina (Betty Gabriel), eye him curiously. Chris attempts conversation but they’re standoffish. Get Out is set in the now yet there’s clearly a bridge to be gapped. Why? Guess Who’s Coming for The Weekend? Walter and Georgina seem like ghosts, perfect at their jobs, yet it’s as if they’re standing on the outside, waiting.

There’s so much here to explore and unearth and only the most reckless critic would reveal the secret. But more than just the comic thriller its presented as, Peele is taking a distinctive jab at all those white people who declare themselves cool with race relations. He gets down to the specifics and sneakily explores the mechanics. The centrepiece of the film is the party thrown to welcome Chris. The guest list is whiter than white, almost Stepford-like, except for one black guest who seems awfully familiar, and as curiously off-kilter as the help. Those familiar with the terrains, thriller, comedy, and political correctness, will thrill to the way Peele flirts with danger, but it’s the oddness that gives the film its charge. From the trippy camera angles to the enigmatic dialogue, the prickly atmosphere is thrillingly sustained. Even the 1970s television set and the deer head perched on the wall cast are creepy. Get Out is to be admired. Peele keeps us on edge, always teasing us with possibilities (avoid social media where it is being endlessly debated) as he litters the estate with breadcrumbs. Follow them at your own peril.

Get Out opens in Australian Cinemas on May 04.