The Substance
February 28, 2025 at 7:00 PM
@Babcock Theatre
$9
We are beyond excited to announce that we will be bringing back Coralie Fargeat's insane Oscar-nominated body horror powerhouse, THE SUBSTANCE, for special ONE NIGHT ONLY screening at the historic Babcock Theatre, Friday, February 28th! A hyperbolic allegory for the unhealthy effects of modern beauty standards and objectification, THE SUBSTANCE is an all-gas-no-brakes voyage into the horrors of identity, sexuality, commodification, and consumerism, loaded up with some of the most shocking and grotesque effects put on screen so far this century! Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley give some career-defining performances in this incredible film that is equal parts absurd, poignant, scary, brutal, and hilarious, and proceeds to take all those feelings, rolls them up into a ball, and smashes them against the wall into a sloppy, kaleidoscopic wonder that truly must be seen to be believed!
Elisabeth Sparkle is an aging actress who now stars in a cable broadcast exercise series for older women. Upon her 50th birthday, her managers decide to can her show, citing her waning relevance and the public's demand for younger, more attractive women in their media. At a doctors appointment following a car accident, Elisabeth is told of a black market drug known as THE SUBSTANCE- a cell replicating compound that temporarily creates a younger, better version of herself. Using her new identity under the name of Sue, she quickly regains major status as a television personality, leading her to abuse the Substance's rules, resulting in horrifying side effects.
