Jordan Peelehas been taking the horror genre by storm in recent years, with his 2017 directorial debutGet Outreleasing to rave reviews and even scoring the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay — a rarity in the horror genre.He specializes in psychological horror and never fails to deliver an intricate and frightening masterpiece, such was the case with his second filmUsin 2019. StarringLupita Nyong’oin the lead role,Uswas yet another hit for Peele and solidified him as a prominent creator in horror,but it also has an ending that still leaves audiences shocked, stunned, and mildly confused.Usjust hit Netflix, so, whether you’re only catching it for the first time now or rewatching it for the dozenth time, let’s break down its finale.
A family’s serene beach vacation turns to chaos when their doppelgängers appear and begin to terrorize them.
What Is ‘Us’ About?
Usbegins in 1986 when a young girl is on vacation with her parents and begins to wander around the Santa Cruz Beach boardwalk. Splitting from her parents, she enters a funhouse full of mirrors, and as she navigates her way through the tricky maze she comes across a doppelgänger of herself. This encounter frightens her so much thatshestops speaking and becomes seemingly detached from her family.
Cut to 2019 and that young girl, who we learn is named Adelaide (Nyong’o), is now married with a family of her own, and the four of them are going on vacation to the same place she went as a kid — albeit, reluctantly. Later that night, as the family is getting ready for bed, Adelaide’s young son Jason (Evan Alex) tells his parents that “there’s a family in our driveway,” in a line that never fails to give me chills.This isn’t just any family though, as Adelaide’s husband Gabe (Winston Duke) quickly learns. This family is them… or rather, their doppelgängers. They look like them, act like them, have the same thoughts as them, but their movements are stiffer, their appearance is rougher, and they don’t speak. The only one who does speak is Adelaide’s doppelgänger, whose name is Red, and when she does it’s with a strangled, raspy voicethat is the stuff of nightmares.
Who Are the Tethered?
Red explains to the family that they are calledthe “Tethered,”they share a soul and always have, butthey’ve now come to untether themselves, and the only way to do that is by killing their counterparts.Each family member faces off against their respective twin, and after managing to escape them for a short period of time, they discover thatthe “Tethered” are taking over the country, joining hands to create a human chain, an idea inspired by and formed from Hands Across America. The family decides that, to avoid the Tethered chain, they’ll drive to the coast, where they plan to flee to Mexico.
13 Great Horror Movies Recommended by Jordan Peele
Add these to the checklist!
However, their plans are almost thwarted by Zora’s (Shahadi Wright Joseph) Tether, Umbrae, as well as Jason’s, Pluto. The latter results in the death of Pluto, asJason learned earlier that he mirrors his movements, and uses it to his advantage here, making Pluto walk backward into a fire. Butthe heroic act by the young boy doesn’t go unpunishedas he’s quickly snatched up by Red, forcing Adelaide to spring into action. And this, my friends, is when the ending ofUskicks into high gear.
What Happens at the End of ‘Us’?
Adelaide chases Red into the same funhouse from her childhood, only this timeshe discovers an entrance that leads to a basement overrun by a bunch of rabbits.She finds Red inside a classroom and Red finally explains what we’ve all been dying to know:Who are the Tethered, and where do they come from?
Red tells Adelaide that the Tethered were created by “them,” which is presumably the government, as an experiment.However, the experiment was abandoned, and left behind were the thousands of Tethered below ground.As previously mentioned,the Tethered share a soul with their above-ground counterpart, so everything they did, so did the Tethered, just a little differently and a lot more sad. We see things like the above-ground people riding rollercoasters, and the Tethered below ground, simulating the movements of a rollercoaster while not actually being in one. We also see a recital Adelaide did as a child in a large auditorium, and then see a much more twisted version done by Red in the dimly lit, cold-looking halls of the tunnel below.The Tethered have no free will, simply living the same lives as their counterpartswithout actually experiencing them properly. This was something they were rather content with, as they knew of nothing else. That isuntil Adelaide saw her doppelgänger in the funhouse.
The doppelgänger she saw that night was indeed Red,which in itself isn’t the big reveal, but we do go back to that scene and see how the rest of it played out, and it’s a little mind-blowing. After the two see each other in the funhouse,the version Adelaide sees in the mirror suddenly reaches out and strangles her until she passes out.The mirror-Adelaide then proceeds to drag her twin down to the basement where she chains her and swaps her clothes before walking back upstairs,leaving the original Adelaide behind andtaking over her life.
Which Lupita Nyong’o Should We Root For?
This reveal is quite good, especially sincethe seed is planted at the very start of the film, but it can be a little confusing. As it turns out,Red is actually the original non-Tethered Adelaide.In reality, the Adelaide we’ve been following the entire movie, and thought was the hero, is actually the Tether. It’s solidified by the fact that Red now talks with a raspy, strangled voice,which is a direct result of Adelaide choking her unconsciousall those years ago.
This is further pushed when “Adelaide” manages to overpower “Red” and strangles her to death. The Adelaide we’ve been following all the movie kills her doppelgänger while grunting and huffingalmost like an animal, going back to her roots of when she was a Tether.Red, technically, is the one we saw in the very beginning of the movie, and thus the original protagonist, whereasthe Adelaide we’ve been following all the movie is the real Tether, having stolen the life and identity of her doppelgänger.This is why she doesn’t speak after the funhouse experience.Her parents just think something traumatizing happened to her.
What Is the Meaning Behind ‘Us’?
As the film comes to a close, the final shot sees the family driving away in search of safety, andJason staring strangely at his mom, as if he knows her true identity. This is left rather to interpretation, butitis quite heavily implied by the strange look Jason gives his mom.A lot ofUsis left to interpretation.There’s also the deeper meaning behind the film, the blatant social commentary, which is often left up for discussion and debate among fans and critics alike.The deeper message inUsis that of class divide.You see these two groups of people — the Tethered, and their above-ground counterparts. Those above ground get to live free lives and do what they please. They have luxuries, they have homes, and they get to have genuine experiences. Whereasthe Tethered are subjected to doing whatever their counterparts do,just in a much colder and duller way.
They don’t have any free will, the only food they get is rabbits, and they live their lives wandering through underground tunnels. It’s an analogyof rich vs. poor, of non-minorities vs. minorities, the haves vs. the have-nots, and the way their lives are similar in structure but so different in execution.The reveal that the Adelaide is actually a Tethered doubles down on this.She’s the minority in this situation, but she rose up and took the life she felt she deserved for herself. Whereas Red, who was the original Adelaide, gathers the rest of the Tethered and plans to rise up and take back her life, while simultaneously giving the Tethered the life she once had.
It can get a little confusing when it comes to balancing which of the two Adelaide’s is the good vs. the bad, asboth have their morally questionable moments.Is the Adelaide we’ve been following the bad one because she stole the original Adelaide’s life for herself, thus subjecting her to a worse one? Or is the original Adelaide the bad one because she rose up to take her life back, bringing with her immeasurable destruction in the form of the rest of the Tethered?This is whyUsis such a fantastic movie.Not only is it scary, but it opens up some debate and conversation that adds a deeper level to the film.
