Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

Nightmare Alley (2021)

This is the best film of 2021! Now I’ve seen a lot of films in 2021 and theirs tons of films that were truly amazing from Spider-Man: No Way Home, King Richard and even Tick, Tick.. BOOM! And those are all fantastic films but what this retelling of Nightmare Alley accomplished is incredible. As this is a gorgeously shot, amazingly  acted and incredibly immersive story that thrusts you into this neo noir nightmare fantasy of a world. Guillermo Del Toro has reimagined a classic story from Hollywood in such a striking way as this is a remake based off the 1947 film and not only is it a faithful retelling of this story but he brings the fantastical and bloody elements he always has in his films and what I mean by that is it had this very mystical pulpy feeling for the frame that was so vibrant and rich in colour. All the while showcasing this hell that this man goes through for his deception and manipulation of the people around him. As way he expresses the story in his telling of it felt almost spellbinding as he captured the environment in such a striking way that you can’t look away from and then over the course of two and a half hours he revels the many layers and lurking darkness of what lies ahead for its characters and the result is amazing. As Nightmare Alley (2021) is not only a fantastic remake but a great call back to the old film noir films that was amazingly shown back in the heyday of Hollywood that really is a dead genre and this type of movie isn’t really made anymore. As it’s a good old fashioned drama noir that Guillermo Del Toro brings to life masterfully and shows people one of the best old genres of the past while retelling a classic story that many people may not of known. 

Firstly, now I want to elaborate more on what I said about noir filmmaking. Guillermo Del Toro is trying to express to people through this film that Noir films are some of the best that Hollywood has ever produced. And they were all over tinsel town back in the 1940’s and 1930’s and overtime it became a forgotten genre and Guillermo Del Toro is trying to show it to todays audiences how engaging that genre is and I think that’s very important because unless your someone like Scorsese, Spielberg or Del Toro we wouldn’t see a film like this because these types of dramas we don’t get anymore as Film Noir films as amazing as they are aren’t made in todays day and age of Hollywood sadly. So to go see him really go at it with full force and embrace such a beautiful genre and show it to audiences of today I love that as not only will it get people to explore that genre of films from the past and how impactful that genre had on Hollywood to this very day and how influential it was. He could of easily done a modern day Nightmare Alley but he didn’t he only knew the one way to do it was as a film noir like how it was done way back when and I respect that. As he explores genres of the past in a lot of his works as he loves making old fashioned Monster films like the creature from the black lagoon those kind of fantasy type creatures and you can see the influence those films have on his style of films and how he loves telling those kinds of stories and so now since he’s done so many films exploring monster movies like Pans Labyrinth, The Shape Of Water and even hellboy he now is showcasing a old fashioned Film Noir and it’s beautifully presented in one of the best remakes I’ve seen in a long time. 

Secondly, this film is incredibly well acted by a top notch cast that all deliver some of their best work of their careers. You have Bradley Cooper giving a tour de force leading  performance that is full of such layered depth and complexity he brings such a darkness to Stanton Carlisle that is impossible to look away from. Then you have Cate Blanchett who gives the most deliciously sinister performances that are in the vein of Barbra Stanwyck from Double Indemnity and she steals every scene she’s in with such unpredictability and devilish delivery. Cate Blanchett gives one of her finest performances of her career with this wicked supporting turn in Nightmare Alley. Everyone else gave fantastic performances another standout was Rooney Mara who plays the soul of the film as she tries to put Stan on the morally right path and she delivers an emotionally shattered performance that is both heartbreaking and layered with fantastic emotion that I felt should of gotten more screen time as she did such a great job here. The rest of the cast all were incredible you had Willem Dafoe, Richard Jenkins and many more all give top notch performances but it was the true force of Bradley Cooper that will captivate you from start to finish. 

Lastly, Nightmare Alley is the best film I’ve seen of 2021 as it’s an amazing callback to the beautiful genre of film noir while Guillermo Del Toro retells this classic Hollywood story in such a stylistic and fantastical way that captivates your attention the moment it starts until the very end anchored by a tour de force performance by Bradley Cooper. Nightmare Alley is a beautiful film that You’ll want to watch again the moment it’s over. I recommend everyone go check out this film. 

This film tells the story of Stanton Carlisle who comes from nothing in hopes of finding work and stumbles upon the circus life and falls in love with it all and he trains to become good at illusions and deception and once he thinks he’s good enough to do it in the big time he starts to become more selfish and thinks he is so powerful until he meets a woman who is as smart as he is. 

Rated R : Nudity|Language|Some Sexual Content|Strong/Bloody Violence

Bradley Cooper : This is easily one of the best performances of his entire career! Now I still stand by that his best work of his career is his take on a Star is Born as that to me is his finest work of his career so far. Now his work in Nightmare Alley is a close second as he blew me away at the many levels and layers that the character Stanton Carlisle has as at first you see him as this humble man that’s willing to learn about magic tricks and have fun with it but when he learns more he and sees the satisfaction of a trick pay off in a very big way he thrives off that thrill. So he starts asking for more and more tricks to learn and eventually he becomes consumed in the element of illusion and deception and that part is very important as when he was a humble person he treated everyone nicely and always made time to acknowledge the people who taught him those tricks the more he learned the more rude he became and he thought he was so powerful that when he became so popular with he act he didn’t feel the need to treat those that helped him get to where he is now nice anymore. Which is horrible as you see him essentially drunk with power and it’s not until he meets Cate Blanchett’s character where he’s brought down a peg with his element of power and deception as he underestimated her power for weakness which was a fatal flaw and he pays that price later on and all of that complexity that Stanton required Bradley Cooper delivered in spades as he has a very quiet performance in the first hour of the film where his emotional lid is contained and by the second act and final act of the film he’s firing his emotions on all calibers. As Bradley channels such a raw authentic truth to the performance of Stanton as it never feels acted but so real in his line delivery with every word he speaks you feel the impact of it ripple in waves of emotion. He also can be so expressive with his eyes and showing that pain and anger behind his eyes and into his soul in some Times terrifying ways. He disappeared into this role entirely as when he becomes more and more famous and drunk with power you see Cooper show that arrogant side of the character in such a fantastic way that you want him to be brought down a peg but then by the final act you still are invested into his character but some small part of you wants him to succeed and you see the fall of his empire by the last hour of the film in such a heartbreaking and dark final last act. Bradley is able to get you to love and hate the character all the while keeping engaged into his performance as he has some of the most emotionally real moments I’ve ever seen him show in any film in the last hour of this film as you see the broken hollowed out heart he has become he emotionally dug that hole for himself and theirs no getting out of it and you see it lay bare onscreen in such a sad and honest truth that Cooper shows and it’s gut wrenching and it’s phenomenally presented by Bradley in what I think is easily one of the best performance of his entire career. He is able to show this man who goes from being curious about the art of illusion to becoming drunk with the power of it to then loosing it all due to his arrogance and it’s so layered in complex emotional depth and Bradley Cooper knocks it out of the park in such raw emotional truth  this is one of Bradley coopers darkest and most emotionally raw performances I’ve ever seen but it’s also one of his finest. 

Cate Blanchett : Blanchett delivers one of her most deliciously sinister performance I’ve ever seen! Now Cate Blanchett is one of my all time favourite actors as whatever she’s in she delivers her 100% and the body of work she’s crafted over the years is incredible. To see Blanchett in a film noir with Bradley Cooper directed by Del Toro yes I was excited to see that for sure and my god did she deliver a incredible performance. Now Cate Blanchett isn’t in the film until the second act of the film and for sure takes a supporting turn in the story but whenever she’s onscreen she is electric. The way she moves and Spits out her dialogue in such a sharp way it cuts right through your heart. She gave this old fashioned fem fatale feel to her and the moment she comes onscreen you know she’s not to be taken lightly. As Bradley Cooper’s character underestimates her straight away and that was his biggest mistake as Cate’s character is always two steps ahead of him and she knows what he is going to do but let’s him make the mistake first to prove her point to him. She’s sly, manipulative but so is he and she proves to him he is not as smart as he makes people think. Cate Blanchett you can tell is having so much fun with this character as she chews up the scenery with her low tone voice making each line linger in mystery and darkness. Cate brings a sinister side to her she channels that is truly terrifying to witness and incredibly chilling but you can’t look away as she soaks up every moment she’s onscreen. She delivers a truly outstanding performance in this film that truly will send chills down your spine and captivate you the moment she shows up to her final scene. 

Guillermo Del Toro : Guillermo Directed the hell out of this film! Now I have been a fan of Del Toro for years and I remember when he won the Oscar for The Shape Of Water a couple years back and being totally blown away with what he was able to achieve with that. He loves films about creatures and characters that are misunderstood which I love now here he goes into the depths of emotional he’ll with Nightmare Alley as he could of easily of done a modern day look on this old Hollywood tale but he didn’t he executed it the only way he knew which was a film noir. He explores that genre in stunning beauty while staying faithful to the story all the while making it his own take on it with fantasy and horror elements that really do work in the story’s favour. He shows the element of illusion and deception in the most brutally honest way as well as showing what it’s like when someone is drunk with power and how carried away they can get with it. The result is very dark at times and heartbreaking as well and Del Toro dose not sugarcoat it he shows it for how it is and I respect that as he shows the moments of success for Bradley Cooper’s character but when the lows are low my god are they heartbreakingly low. He also is able to get amazing performances from his whole cast and a spellbinding leading performance by Bradley Cooper who gives an incredible turn in the film. The look and feel of the frame was rich with colour but their was a uneasy dark tone lurking under the surface that explodes in the third act which I love Del Toro was able to deliver such richness but also balance it with the darker elements of the story too he did a incredible job retelling this story in a film noir and it’s truly one of the best directed films of 2021 and one of Del Toro’s best directed films of his entire career.