I consider this quote from Fargeat, “People often ask if my characters are caricatures, and my first instinct is to say ‘yes.’ Then I think, ‘no, no, they're not caricatures.’ Unfortunately, they are behaviors that have existed and continue to exist.” She is correct. And originally, I made the same mistake as her.

But only The Substance directly confronts the overlooked issue of how women's bodies are treated—and the disdain they face as a result. Greed and selfishness are universal, familiar flaws, and they can be explored with subtlety. Female self-hatred cannot; subtlety risks undercutting its gravity.

I keep reading, one last time.