Just like with the film’s title, you’ll find many elements of symbolism or metaphor hidden in plain sight. In addition to the obvious, like multiple references to 11:11 including a pivotal biblical one, seemingly small or inconsequential details — like VHS tapes of The Goonies and C.H.U.D., Jaws and Thriller shirts, toy ambulances and masks — are buried throughout, all of which service the plot in some way, foreshadowing events before they unfold. The good news here is that this gives the film high replay value, as all theses hidden details won’t likely be spied on the first watch. The bad news is that Us is so loaded with ideas that we hardly get the kind of answers that we received in Get Out.

Struggling to grapple with the many ideas crammed within, Peele writes himself into a corner that he can only dig himself out of with loads of third-act exposition. Though it’s overall message is as sharp and poignant as you’d expect, the film lacks the focus and coherence of Get Out, ultimately creating a jumble of ideas that don’t exactly coalesce. The cerebrally placed dominoes that Peele sets up wind up toppling in on themselves, leaving a whole lot of logistics that don’t exactly add up after the dust settles.

The story feels somewhat incomplete, filled with lingering plot holes — like why it was so easy for Adelaide’s double to escape the tunnel, or why the doubles’ movements are sometimes but not always mirrored by their other, or who the hell gave them red coveralls and gold scissors?! Peele’s execution and direction are all on target though, but with Us, Peele continues his trend of harvesting organs from better films — like Jaws, Funny Games, The Shining, Nightmare on Elm Street, Invasion of the Body Snatchers — to service his own Frankenstein’s monster. He continues to show a lot of promise, but still has yet to fully step out on his own, which is somewhat discouraging.