Why ‘Us’ is Better than ‘Get Out’

It seems only fair to look back on Jordan Peele’s films Get Out and Us to best attest how the movies compare with each other. This is only in preparation for Peele’s newest film Nope.

Given that enough time has passed since the first two films were released, many critics will do reappraisals of the films.

As it turns out, the latter, Us, proves to be better.

Jordan Peele has been known to create some terrifying and thought-provoking art for fans and audiences to share. His work has consistently been acclaimed by critics and has been successful at the box office with a lot more shekels drenching in from fans.

Although Peele's films are universally acclaimed by the general public, enough time has passed to see that the latter is superior to the former, with the help of his new take on horror.

Here’s what makes the 2019 horror film better than 2017's Get Out. Spoilers are ahead.

Disclaimer: This article reflects the views of the author.

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Why Us is the better film

Get Out is confusing

Daniel Kaluuya in 'Get Out' (Image via Universal Pictures)

Whether people like the 2017 horror movie or not, it’s very obvious that they would have to watch Get Out a few times before they understood what it all really meant.

In the film, Chris Washington goes with his girlfriend Rose to visit her parents, but when he gets there, he realizes they seem over-enthusiastic to meet him. Moreover, their friends seem to be trying too hard to make Chris feel welcome and end up creeping him out.

The film later reveals that Rose and her family abducted black people and reanimate their loved ones using the bodies of said abducted black people.

What seems like a plot taken right out of Invasion of the Bodysnatchers comes across as strange and weird. The 2017 movie has the potential, but it doesn't seem to know what it really wants to say. Knowing that it requires a lot of exposition and many plot points go unsolved, the film leaves people scratching their heads more than anything.

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Us is more thrilling

A still from the film Us (Image via Universal Pictures)

Peele’s latter movie treats fans with more thrills and chills. The 2019 film sees a family on vacation traveling to their summer home, but are stalked by evil doppelgangers who prey upon them.

The dopplegangers explain that they are called the 'tethered' and are seen terrorizing others. It is later explained that they were made by the government and left to rot underground for several years, surviving off of scraps.

The film's unpredictable plot and thrills are more viable than Get Out's, partly due to an imminent threat that is unknown to the main parties of the family. The thrills are effective as they don't come from regular people that the audience is aware of are inside the house. The thrills, instead, come from an imaginary realm that people have never heard of or seen.

Thus, the film has elements of horror that rival The Shining.

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It has a better twist

Lupita Nyong'o in the 2019 film (Image via Universal Pictures)

For those that have yet to see either movie, spoilers are ahead.

Get Out has a ruthless ending where Chris’ girlfriend attempts to kill him with the help of Walter, the groundskeeper possessed by Rose’s grandfather. They pursue Chris but Walter turns on Rose and shoots her in the stomach and kills himself. Later, Chris’ friend Rod picks him up and abandons Rose in the middle of the street to die.

The ending leaves much to be desired for the 2017 film and could have been handled to a better degree given Jordan Peele’s level of talent.

Peele's next film, on the other hand, sees Adelaide (Lupita Nyong’o) killing her tethered counterpart Red. However, it is revealed in a flashback sequence that Red switched places with Adelaide as a child and drove the real Adelaide into the underground. Thus, proving that the tethered character is still roaming the above grounds.

The ending is a twist that stands on the shoulders of M. Night Shymalan’s The Sixth Sense. Nobody expected it and it was marvelous when it happened.

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Better Cast

Nyong'o as Red/Adelaide in Us(Image via Universal Pictures)

Saying that Peele's latter film has a better cast is not an insult to the cast of Get Out.

The first Jordan Peele feature has a powerful performance from Daniel Kaluuya. However, Lupita Nyong’o with a supporting cast anchored by Elisabeth Moss is phenomenal and almost drenched in a seemingly seamless painting for the actors.

Get Out seems like Kaluuya was carrying the bulk of the film by himself. Peele's 2019 masterpiece has the cast members more evenly distributed throughout the story.

Surprisingly, Get Out was nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars and the 2019 film received zero nominations from the Academy.