Essentially, the tethered represent the American underclass or disenfranchised who are tied/tethered to those of means in that those of means are in some fashion responsible for, and perpetuate, their oppression. In that way, one could say the higher classes are monsters which is the second thing the tethered represent: the dark side or underside of our nature that enables oppression or other questionable behavior.
In the scene where the families first meet Red's asked what they are and she growls, "We're Americans." She then speaks of her harsh existence in relation to Adelaide's cushy one.
In the same scene the boy looks at them and remarks "It's us." (Which is a clever play on US as is the title.) And we later learn that Adelaide is really Red, that the monster (or Adelaide's dark side) chose to injure and subjugate her good side to become a person of means, to rise.
In an interview Peele says: "I can't make this movie without asking myself that question: what are my demons? And I'd have to say, you know, I've lived a privileged life. I'm an American, grew up middle class, had an education, always been fed, always had shoes. And I've neglected what that privilege means in terms of the people who've suffered and continue to suffer so I can have it. We're connected to other people; somebody made these shoes. That was the part of the message I wanted to apply to the us of it, the United States, the nuclear family. We have an ability to cover-up what's uncomfortable for us to face about ourselves."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbTTfzo9i84
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[deleted]
5 years ago
Very good explanation! Though I personally saw it more like a psychological thing: people living above represent the conscious self and those from the tunnels - the unconscious.
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NVF (851)
5 years ago
The Mashable piece I linked to below addresses your theory though I think Peele alludes to this in terms of the demons we suppress, or even repress, because we don't want to confront them. At the end we see how Red is remembering what she'd done to Adelaide, who she is, something she's suppressed or repressed, is both shocked and aghast, then seems to suppress or repress it again.
Some think "Us" was muddled, what others would call multi-layered, so there are different theories out there as to precisely what Peele was up to. And it can also be the case (which I think is a literary theory) that the author himself may not be fully aware of what his art bespeaks, that his subconscious is at play when he creates.
At base, though, I think the movie is about what I advanced, what Peele explains. But it's also true that denying our "dark side" and how it may be detrimental to others is something that can be applied to all areas of life, not just disenfranchised America. The Vox article I linked to below addresses this.
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billbrown7071 (3193)
5 years ago
thank you ..but thats not what I'm asking...
I completely understand The message/under tone Peele is going for...
Instead I'm asking is....about the film itself and why he chose to make a film with NO ANSWERS...
The reviews and articles I've read said Peele intentionally wrote the movie so we would have NO ANSWERS to questions....
While watching This movie there are so many Questions about the details of what is going on and how any of these events are even remotely possible, and There arent even hints at possible answers....
for me, This makes the movie completely absurd, I cant enjoy it in the least because I feel many of The event and Plot points that take place are actually IMPOSSIBLE.
I could completely go with and understand it if this was nothing more than a Jason Blum Horror movie...But its clear the movie was intended to be More...
I want to believe This is just a terrible movie that the writer/peele Just Let get away from him ...
But before I conclude that, I need to understand How its possibly a good thing or good writing to Intentionally Write A movie with NO ANSWER to damn near every single Plot Point and Events that take place in the movie
again after watching the movie I went to sites completely expecting to read articles from SMARTER people than me explaining all the things I didnt understand.
Instead I got something completely unexpected and frankly IMO Absurd....NO ONE had answers to any of these questions and They then claimed we dont have answers because Peele intentionally wrote the movie so we wouldnt have answer to any questions
could someone please explain how this is good writing or clever writing?
for me Its completely absurd and renders the movie awful...but before I completely conclude that as my opinion...I would like to try to understand why Peele did this and how it could possibly be a good thing
thanks
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NVF (851)
5 years ago
While watching This movie there are so many Questions about the details of what is going on and how any of these events are even remotely possible, and There arent even hints at possible answers....
Well, Adelaide explains at the end how the Tethered came to be: ""It was humans that built this place. I believe they figured out how to make a copy of the body but not the soul. The soul remains one shared by two. They created the Tethered so they could use them to control the ones above like puppets. But they failed and they abandoned the Tethered."
That leaves a lot of questions unanswered but Peele isn't interested in the back story of the Tethered or any plot holes because the Tethered are a metaphor and "Us" an allegory.
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