“THE SUBSTANCE”: BODY HORROR VS. AGEISM AND SEXISM

This article critically analyzes the main features of the latest body horror film “The Substance” (2024) by the famous modern French screenwriter and director Coralie Fargeat in the philosophical and anthropological aspects. The focus is on the manifestation and perception of the phenomenon of horror in all its components: fear, panic, horror, trembling, disgust, ugliness, etc. First, the main stages of the emergence and development of films in the body horror subgenre from the beginnings to the present are briefly indicated. Further, the peculiarities of the development of horror film themes in general (in particular, in the works on the films of David Cronenberg, David Lynch, Ridley Scott, Katsuhiro Otomo) are briefly considered. Particular attention is paid to the study of the phenomenon of horror in the context of body horror films in the latest foreign publications (David Huckvale, Billie Walker, Alison Pierce, Barbara Creed and others). The main part first provides an overview of the storyline of the film “The Substance”, as well as the main technical characteristics of this film. Then individual scenes of the film are analyzed, where first of all, attention is focused on the general manifestations of the horror phenomenon and its constituent parts. The role of corporeality and “corporeal consciousness” / “das leibliche Bewusstsein” (Martin Seel) in viewers' perception of the phenomenon of horror is also emphasized. After that, in a gender context, attention is focused on various manifestations of ageism and sexism, which, in particular, encourages the main character of this film to search for the elixir of youth and acquire a magical “substance”. The conclusions highlight the importance of the feminist view of body horror, which was skillfully embodied by the writer and director and both main female characters of this film, emphasizing the relevance of the contemporary debate on discrimination against women and the objectification of the female body (sexism, ageism, etc.).