5 Essential Films That Echo The Body Horror & Societal Critique of The Substance (Ranked)

Brandon Cronenberg continues his father's legacy with a truly unsettling experience in Infinity Pool. Much like The Substance, this film masterfully blends grotesque body horror with a biting critique of privilege and identity. Here, a vacationing couple stumbles into a world where cloning allows the wealthy to escape consequences, leading to an extreme exploration of self, doppelgangers, and the darkest recesses of human depravity. The visceral visuals and psychological torment mirror The Substance's unflinching look at self-destruction and transformation, pushing boundaries with its disturbing, satirical edge and leaving an indelible mark.

A landmark in female-centric body horror, Ginger Snaps perfectly captures the terrifying metamorphosis inherent in The Substance. The film ingeniously uses lycanthropy as a metaphor for puberty, sisterly bonds, and social alienation, turning the body into a site of both power and revulsion. Brigitte and Ginger's horrifying physical and psychological transformations resonate deeply with The Substance's exploration of identity fracturing under extreme pressures. Its raw, intelligent approach to the monstrous feminine, combined with its lasting cultural impact, makes it a vital companion piece for anyone drawn to Fargeat's work.

Yannick Dahan's Heartless explores a man's desperate desire to escape a life defined by physical imperfection, making a Faustian pact that leads to a grotesque, body-altering nightmare. Much like the protagonist in The Substance, Jamie's pursuit of an ideal, unblemished self spirals into horrific disfigurement and a profound loss of identity. The film delves deeply into the psychological toll of such a transformation, presenting a chilling narrative about the true cost of vanity and the insidious nature of dark desires. Its bleak atmosphere, focus on self-inflicted horror, and the unsettling question of what truly defines humanity resonate strongly with Fargeat's critique of superficiality and the sacrifices made for an unattainable ideal.

While leaning into sci-fi action, Repo Men shares a crucial thematic link with The Substance: the commodification and exploitation of the human body. In a grim future where artificial organs can be repossessed if payments are missed, the film explores the terrifying concept of the body as property, and the lengths people go to sustain an artificial life. This bleak vision of medical technology gone awry and the desperate struggle for physical integrity echoes The Substance's critique of systems that reduce human worth to external, purchasable attributes, albeit with a more overtly violent and dystopian flair. It's a dark mirror to societal pressures.

H.P. Lovecraft's "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward" gets a visceral adaptation in The Resurrected, which delves into a chilling obsession with immortality through grotesque body manipulation. This film shares The Substance's willingness to explore physical horror resulting from an extreme, unnatural desire to defy natural limits. The horrifying experiments and the protagonist's descent into a monstrous pursuit of perpetual life create a dark, unsettling atmosphere where the body becomes a canvas for unholy ambition, mirroring the destructive self-experimentation seen in Fargeat's film. It's a journey into forbidden knowledge with tangible, horrific costs.