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Nope Movie Review: When dealing with anything otherworldly related in films, you either go the Predator or Alien route, or you go the Signs way. The first bunch features a rather straightforward view on their alien subjects while Signs features a more metaphorical approach towards them. Nope somehow is able to blend both of those as it raises some questions, but still providing the alien mayhem that you would expect from a film like this. She-Hulk Review: Tatiana Maslany’s Marvel Series Is Chaotic Fun, But Embraces the Worst Aspects of MCU (LatestLY Exclusive).
Written and directed by Jordan Peele, Nope is a sci-fi horror film that sees siblings Otis Jr Haywood (Daniel Kaluuya) and Emerald Haywood (Keke Palmer) attempt to capture some footage of a UFO after their father dies under mysterious circumstances. So begins the witch hunt for this unidentified object as they take all the help they can get.
Peele’s 'Scorsese' seems to have found his 'De Niro' in Kaluuya as the director-actor duo work over here even better than they did in Get Out. Kaluuya is in complete control of his character and has a clear sense of Peele’s direction, and it’s showcased very well within his performance. The sibling dynamic that his Otis has with Keke’s Emerald is another highlight of the cast.
Keke does amazingly well. While Otis is calmer and more collected, Emerald is more like a loose cannon ready to erupt with excitement. It creates for a great brother-sister dynamic with the actors making you feel like they are actual siblings. Their shared sense of wanting to capture this larger-than-life thing, or them selling their ranch horses so that they can make some money – the internal conflict is what makes their relationship so believable.
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On the supporting side, we see Brandon Perea’s Angel Torres who makes for the comedic relief of the film and he is a fun addition. Michael Wincott’s Antlers Holst, a renowned cinematographer, makes for an impressive screen presence while Keith David’s short cameo is an effective one. Where my main problem lies, though, is with Steven Yeun’s Ricky Park. While Yeun portrays this charming cowboy pretty well, there is something more to him that Nope tries to explore but doesn't much.
Being a renowned theme park owner, Ricky has a history to him that the film cuts back to from time-to-time. However, that history isn’t particularly well explained. There is a metaphorical discourse under there about how animals are controlled in parks and media, which does later tie in with the plot when you put two-and-two together, but it just feels like unnecessary development that unfortunately goes nowhere.
That’s an issue with some really major parts of Nope. Trying to build intrigue and mystery, it spends so much time in doing so that some parts of it end up falling flat. Nope takes its sweet time in building up to things, but it’s a minute too long and you’re wondering when the punchline will hit. This is very apparent in the first act where the pacing feels like it moves at a snail pace. Nope is also not as thematically relevant as Get Out or Us which does dampen its overall impact.
Nope still somehow manages to pick itself back up again as the cinematography and the handling of the UFO itself are done extremely well. With Hoyte van Hoytema’s hand at the camera painting images that are etched into my brain now, his use of space in Nope is well appreciated. It just makes the looming figure seem so large that the scale of it is felt. I Am Groot Review: Baby Groot's Mischievous Antics Leave Us Wanting for More! (LatestLY Exclusive).
Peele has a very clear view of how he wants to portray this otherworldly figure, and he creates the atmosphere for it. Silent, foggy, rainy – these are environments that we are treated to, and Nope is extremely atmospheric in that matter. The comparison to Jaws is bound to happen, but there were some scenes that reminded me of the crying bear from Annihilation. If you have watched it, you’ll get an idea of what I am talking about. These all make for an immersive viewing that’s then further bolstered into one of the most exciting third acts I have seen this year.
Yay!
Immersive
Atmospheric
The Cinematography
Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer
Nay!
Not as Thematically Relevant
Pacing
Final Thoughts
While Nope might not be as thematically relevant and impactful as Peele’s other works, it still packs for an immersive and atmospheric viewing with some really threatening images that left me in awe. A slick UFO story with great performances from Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer, Nope had me going yep by the time its third act came around. Nope releases in theatres on August 19, 2022.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 18, 2022 01:43 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
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