Plot: laid back photographer Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) travels to the country to meet the parents of his girlfriend (Allison Williams). Though the initial meeting is somewhat awkward, thanks to a healthy dose of racism, eventually things settle down. But little does Chris know, racism will be the least of his worries, as a series of disturbing discoveries plunge him into a nightmarish battle for his very survival..

The horror genre has long been a great tool for exploring the many issues that plague humanity. George A. Romero’s classic ‘Dawn Of The Dead’ was viewed as a searing  indictment of the ravenous nature of capitalism, ‘Candyman’ deals with the brutal legacy of slavery & ‘Don’t Look Now’ address the pain of losing a child. ‘Get Out’ brilliantly continues this trend by examining the complexities of racism and relationships, with razor sharp humour and plenty of thrills.

I really don’t want to go into to much about the plot of the film here as spoilers of any kind will really ruin the experience, so I’m going to keep this review short and sweet. There’s been a little controversy (if you can call it that) surrounding the casting of Daniel Kaluuya (from south London) in the lead role, and the subject matter but I urge all of you to cast all of that aside and go to see this film! It’s one of the most inventive psychological horror/comedies that you will see and the performances are superb throughout.  Kaluuya’s Chris is one of the most likeable and believable characters you’ll see in a horror movie. He’s the type of ‘every-man’ character that everybody in the audience can get behind. Allison Williams  is great as supportive girlfriend Rose, Bradley Whitford & Catherine Keener make for excellently creepy parents and Caleb Landry Jones is suitably assholeish as the cocky sibling.

Jordan Peele, making his directorial debut, handles the story characters and the tension with the skill of an old hand, knowing exactly when to step away and let the story breathe and when to crank up the drama. The film never outstays it’s welcome, with a brisk feel that wraps things up in a satisfying way and isn’t fixed on setting up plot threads for future movies as so many horror films seem to do these days. He handles the tricky issue of racism in a deft and humorous way & the use of music is spot on, particularly in the some of the movies dramatic set pieces.  If this is an example of what he can do, then sign me up for more!

My one minor gripe with the movie is that I wasn’t quite as ‘scared’ as I would have hoped there to be. It’s not that the jump scares are effective, it’s just that I wanted more of them, but this really is me just being nit picky.

‘Get Out’ is one of the freshest and most challenging movies you will see this year, it’s also wildly entertaining and will have you debating it’s themes and messages on that long drive home from the Cinema. Look at this face, would you really want to make this woman unhappy?

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Well, do you want to make her unhappy??

No? yeah, I didn’t think so. So go and see this movie, then come back and chat to us on Twitter so we can talk about it!

Final score: 4.5 out of 5.

If you’re still on the fence for some reason, check out the theatrical trailer below:

Jason P.