Coralie Fargeat’s gripping horror The substance Deals with many topical issues surrounding aging, feminism and the dangers of the beauty industry, but there are some questions that remain unanswered as the credits roll. The film follows the life of Elizabeth Sparkle, a famous aerobics instructor who is subjected to a mysterious substance after losing her job on her fiftieth birthday. The chemical promises to transform you into your best self, but when the truth comes to light, Elizabeth struggles to balance her two identities. The substance is getting great reviews, and for good reason.
While The substance is clearly a standalone movie What does not clearly call for a sequel, there are certain aspects of the story that were not answered by the time the story drew to an end. Whether it’s for dramatic effect or to keep the audience guessing, it’s obvious that Fargeat knows how to exploit the unknown to make her stories even more captivating. The substanceThe ending may be missing some details, but it’s still extremely effective overall, thanks to the director’s keen eye for imagery and metaphorical storytelling.
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Does the substance cost money?
Elizabeth is never seen giving payment
One of the most puzzling aspects of The substance What is not explained by the film is how exactly the situation works. The acquisition of these chemicals is very crypticWith Elizabeth turning up at an abandoned warehouse and never interacting with anyone else while she’s there. In this way, the audience is essentially kept in the dark just like the characters. This is necessary to maintain the mystery of the story, but even when the film reaches its climax, this aspect of the business is not explained. Elizabeth is never shown paying, but she is referred to as a “client”.
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Presumably, it would not make sense for the business to offer this high-end technology to strangers without some kind of payment or deposit. Elizabeth gets her hands on the substance on the recommendation of another client – a doctor who treats her after a dangerous car accident. The unorthodox word-of-mouth approach suggests that The substance may be a kind of pyramid schemeWhere Elizabeth would have later recruited others in the trials – if everything had not gone so wrong in the final act.
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How many people use the substance?
There are many parcels in the depository
There are many capital letters in The substance, But Elizabeth is the only major figure with any knowledge of the substance. It seems to be an incredibly secretive business, kept under the radar to protect the company from any liability if something goes wrong. Elizabeth never has face-to-face contact with the company, and she only talks to their representative over the phone. However, during her trips to collect the chemicals, Multiple other lockers are shown waiting For the other clients.
The substance’s reach may go much further than the movie seems to suggest.
Elizabeth is also referred to by a number instead of her name, suggesting that Many other clients are involved in this program. Given the details of the procedure, it would be extremely difficult to recognize exactly how many people were disguised as their younger selves. It was wrong for Elizabeth only when she decided to break the 7-day rule – for those who can adhere to the strict guidelines, it would be impossible to distinguish them from any other young person. The substance’s reach may go much further than the movie seems to suggest.
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Who is the supplier of the substance?
Their identity is limited to a voice on the phone
Despite all the information that has been revealed about this substance, including the detailed process needed to make it work, Elizabeth never learns anything about the people behind the business. This includes those responsible for placing the chemicals across the city, along with the person who first came up with the idea. Whoever created this substance is notably absent from the story, and while this was almost certainly done to allow the audience to focus on Elizabeth’s journey, this information could definitely have improved the film.
However, keeping the identity of the supplier secret is a great way of giving The substance An extra layer of mystery. It prevents the audience from blaming any specific individual for the film’s events, forcing them instead to examine Fargeat’s themes and how they promote the film’s ideology. There is no clear villain of the storyWhich means audiences have to look deeper and think critically to develop their own stance on the story. It is a clever way to force the audience to engage with the work by withholding certain details that are not strictly necessary.
Was there a mistake on the company’s end?
One small detail that does not play a major role in The substanceBut still raises fascinating questions, is the extra activator liquid that Elizabeth is given when she first accepts the substance. While everything else is carefully measured and split into perfect amounts, the activator liquid is redundant and she doesn’t need it all. This was clearly an intentional choice, but it’s not immediately clear how it serves the film – it does Something that could easily be missed on a first watchBut it subtly suggests something about the mysterious agency.
The extra activator liquid can serve one of two purposes: first, it can prove that the agency behind the substance is wrong and capable of making mistakes. By proving this early in the film with the miscalculated liquids, The substance Drops a small Easter egg that immediately distorts the trust of the audience in the company. Second, the extra liquid may be a subtle suggestion that what is to come (Su using the activator liquid on himself) has happened before, and the company is aware of this danger. This once again Paints the company as corrupt and untrustworthy.
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How did Elizabeth survive the birth of Sue?
The procedure should have killed her of course
Although Sue and Elizabeth do not look alike The substanceThe two letters are actually born from the same DNA. As soon as Elizabeth uses the activator serum on herself, Sue is created and forced from her body through a bloody gash in her back. The unconventional birth process is one of The substances most creative scenesAnd it immediately cements the two characters as separate parts of the same whole. However, the physical pain and lingering injuries that Elizabeth sustains during the birth would almost certainly result in death – but she manages to emerge relatively unscathed.
There would be no story if Elizabeth died here, and it is her co-existence with Sue that propels much of the narrative forward.
The simple answer to Elizabeth’s survival is that it is necessary for the film. There would be no story if Elizabeth died here, and it is her co-existence with Sue that propels much of the narrative forward. However, to give a universal explanation to her immunity, it is likely that The substance has healing properties. It is a high-end drug that is not available to the public, and it must have more than those that are declared. For it to work at all, it would need to ensure that the subject could survive activation – so Elizabeth’s survival was almost certainly a result of the serum.
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How was Elizabeth selected for the substance?
Can anyone have been chosen?
Demi Moore’s Elizabeth is a fascinating protagonist of The substanceBut the explanation of the film for which she was selected is largely implied rather than expressly stated. She hears about the program for the first time from the doctor after suffering from a serious motor accident, but she is not immediately interested. It takes a while for her to come around to the idea, and eventually, she’s sold. But in order for the substance to work as a company, they must certainly target specific people who are both suitable for the procedure and unlikely to reveal the existence of the serum to the public.
In this regard, Elizabeth is the perfect candidate for the substance – she is unhappy with her daily life, she needs to be younger to climb the ranks of her career, and no one would ask questions if she disappeared for a long time. She is already disregarded at work, so it is likely that no one would believe her if she tried to spill the company’s secrets or break the rules. The supplier is clearly very organized and knowledgeableAs shown by the smooth-running distribution process, so it is no wonder that they were able to find a suitable candidate.
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Has the substance ever gone wrong before?
It is unbelievable that no one has made Elizabeth’s mistake before
This question is largely speculative, but there are some details throughout the film that suggest it The substances end could have happened earlier. The extra activator serum is the first clue, but the biggest contributor to this theory can be found in Elisabeth’s phone conversation with the call representative. They don’t seem particularly surprised to hear the main character’s problemsHowever, it indicates that she did not follow the instructions. It’s possible they encountered the side effects in testing, but his tone suggests an annoyance he’s suspiciously familiar with.
In addition, one of the US The substanceIts main theme is the universal experience of wanting to look younger and more attractive. It would go a bit against the central premise of the film if Elizabeth was the first client to break the guidelines and spend more time than she does.”perfect“Self. Instead, This story can be like a kind of modern fairy tale Where Elizabeth represents all of humanity and her actions serve as a warning against this kind of behavior. The film is extremely allegorical at times, so the reading makes a lot of sense.
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Why does Elizabeth’s face appear at the end?
This decision completely changes the ending
In the last moments of The substanceAfter Elizabeth and Sue merge into a mutated version of both of them and wreak havoc at the New Year’s Eve party, Elizabeth’s face appears in what remains of the creature. Since the character died just a few minutes earlier, this moment comes as a huge surprise and builds on what is already a very bold and ambitious ending. However, the emotional weight of this colorful finale manages to pull everything together, vi Elizabeth’s storyline comes out in the most fitting and depressing way imaginable.
The face of the celebrity appeared in the creature’s remains as a final statement that she is irrevocably destroyed by her own selfishness, torn to pieces by the beauty standards and self-competition that was slowly eating away at her throughout the film. Despite Sue’s prominence in the final act, the emergence of Elizabeth’s face cements her as the film’s true protagonist—it is her actions that The substance is warning against, and her tragic fate that audiences will be left with long after the credits roll.