Jordan Peele: Horror by the African-American Way

It goes without showing that what characterizes Jordan Peele's horror, is in its poignant themes of racism and inequality. This can be seen from every aspect, from the casting contrasts of white and black people to its not so obscure commentary on racial conflict. However, that is not what I want to focus on today. And to be fair, I doubt I would be able to capture the nuances of this American tragedy, seeing that I live comfortably in the far East of Asia. What I do think is much more within my paygrade though, is to dive into the compelling techniques that make Peele's horror so intense. And one of those techniques is in how Peele utilizes body and speech.

The uncanny

Let's take a look at this scene (video).

This is without a doubt one of the creepiest scenes in "Get out" for me. At the dead of night, where no humans should be, you see a man hurl after you faster than you can run. That is one of the most genius horror concepts ever. The sudden silhouette of a man in the dead of night is enough to make us tense up, but it is truly the act of a man running at you at breakneck speed, does it create palpable danger. The camera being locked into Chris' POV and not shying an inch away further enforces the sense of inescapability; Just like how Chris did not have enough time to run, so does the audience fail to escape from the dread in front of their screen. Truly a thrilling scene. But upon further thought, I found myself still unsatisfied. Though its tension can be attributed to the smart cinematography, I couldn't figure out what makes this scene creepy.

For me, creepy and terror are two very different sensations. Terror is a great sense of danger; It's what makes your butt-cheeks clench tight. However, creepiness is a profound sense of discomfort from the uncertain. Let's reframe the scene above for example. Imagine the same setting, where in the dead of night, you see a man start running at you at breakneck speed. However, this time, the man is carrying a pair of scissors. He has that weapon cocked back over his head, and you see him ready to slash that buzzer down at you. Admittedly, that is still a terrifying ordeal, but the feeling is a little different now. The sense of danger is now much more obvious -- He is running at you with the intention to hurt you and your options are to fight or to flight. However, creepiness is the scene above, where the sense of danger is not readily apparent. We see a man running straight towards us, but he isn't wielding a weapon. Is he trying to tackle us then? That may be the case, but look at how he is just swinging his arms like any athlete would do in a 100m race. When you want to tackle someone, you will bend forward, open up your arms and slow down just slightly to brace for impact. But we see none of those signals; He appears to be "running", but with no intentions of stopping, even if he may end up smashing his skull against a brick wall. So what gives? 

Those questions of "what is this man doing?" and "does he want to hurt me?" is what makes this scene truly uncanny. He is capable of enacting a "run", but he fails to carry the human nuances like slowing down before contact; He appears to be trying to tackle us, but his face remained stoned, almost unhostile. These thin lines between alien and human, between danger and safety, is the area in which creepiness is created -- The uncanny valley. It is with this same idea does the next scene with the maid invoke creepiness as well. We aren't horrified at her appearance and the well-lit room defuses any immediate sense of danger. But creepiness still remains as we neither understands what she is possibly staring at nor what feelings she possesses as she stares on.

The African-American way

Uncanniness is something truly off-putting, but it is worth pointing out that it cannot exist if we didn't have an image of human mannerisms. For example, when we first meet someone, human mannerisms dictate that we greet each other by saying "hi" and introducing ourselves. Not doing so may lead to a situation where you are considered rude or awkward. In extension, if you proceed to just grin from ear-to-ear and stare on silently, you'll probably seem like a total creep. Uncanniness isn't something new to the horror genre. One of the most intense scenes of uncanny dread can be seen from a Japanese horror movie, Kairo. If you have heard of that movie, then you must know the hallway scene that plays our ideas of human mannerisms like a fiddle. Horror movies often imbue these little acts of uncanny behavior to spice up what would otherwise be dull jump scares. So why is it worth bringing it up for Peele then? Well for one, I believe that Peele utilizes these uncanny mannerisms with a unique twist -- And that is imbuing it with the African-American way. Let us look at this next video, which I edited to provide contrast.

I think it goes without saying that African-Americans have a pretty unique way of speaking. Their accents, their emphasis, their choice of words, all are easily identifiable and might I add, fun to listen to. When placed in contrast to how regular white Americans speak, their unique colloquialism becomes even more pronounced. But the true creepiness comes in when we see that contrast take place in between African-Americans themselves. Let us contrast Rod (Chris's friend) and Andre's (weird guy) way of speech. Rod uses a lot of familiar slang, like "kicker", "no shit", "mothafucka"; His overall accent is hard to describe, but extremely familiar to how African-Americans speak. Andre, in contrast, speaks not like how his own "brothers" usually do, but how an upper-class white American does. Ain't nobody would respond to "nice to see another brother around here" with a "ah, yes, of course it is" -- Which is why Chris was immediately off-put by his mannerisms. Him returning a fist bump with a handshake was just the icing on top of the cake.

Rod for me, acted as a much needed reference point -- The "normal". He carries himself with a familiar and pronounced way of slang, so that when we see all the weird shit that goes down with the brainwashed, the uncanniness becomes palpable. In extension, it is in that familiarity, does there lie comfort. Every time we see Rod on screen being himself, we heave a sigh of relieve. Tension is suppressed and we are allowed to breath, saying to ourselves, "finally, a normal human being!" It is in this comfort did that ending scene work wonders as well. Between the fear of the police car approaching and very real knowledge of black prejudice in American policing, the familiar face of Rod felt profoundly cathartic. In a strange way, the unique colloquialism of African-Americans acted like a saving grace -- A tool of empowerment in a stark film about racism.

However, what is more impressive for me, is in how Jordan Peele uses faces.

Consider how Peele utilizes the unique facial features of the African-Americans in his movies. Their big eyes, their slightly protruding forehead, their big lips and button noses. These features may seem normal to us nowadays if we have African-American friends, or we have seen them many times on TV. However what we do not realize is that these big features are one of the greatest assets in the horror genre. Consider the expression of shock; You would have a gaping mouth with your eyes wide open -- For African Americans who possess such larger-than-life features, an expression can transform from just shock, to one where your soul is seemingly popping out of your eyes. We can also see how good framing and lighting can further heighten this tension. Once again consider that shot above; In a nearly pitch-black background, with only a small ceiling light illuminating their dark skin, it is the white of the eyes that allows the greatest contrast -- A contrast of visual-prominence and pure terror. Just a little more fine-tuning and you can see how these large features will create a horrifying "villain" as well.

Can we say that these striking faces may just be a by-product of Peele's African-American cast? Maybe. But regardless, I cannot get it out of my head just how expressive their faces are and can potentially be. Differing facial features, dark skin color, unique colloquialism; In the past (and of the present), these are all some of the biggest roots to racism. We see in Peele's commentary itself that just the color of your skin can land you in racial inequality, even slavery. But perhaps in karmic justice, we see those very same features now accentuate the quality of a film, pushing the limits of expression to a new ceiling. I may just be a by-stander, away from the racial conflict in America. But honestly, I find Peele's use of the African-American way, to be hugely inspiring. He has somehow managed to use the very same features that used to oppress him, and now wield it as his own -- A weapon of empowerment in a film about racism, in a world plagued with racism.

Jordan Peele should be considered to not only be revolutionizing a new way to horror, but revolutionizing a new path for the African-American way.