Nightmare Alley - Remake of a Movie Which You Probably Never Knew Existed

[Steelbook Indy]

Guillermo del Toro's Nightmare Alley is a marvelously delivered Film Noir.  My wife asked a couple of times: what's the plot? What's the point?  I told her to be patient as it comes in at 2 hours and 30 minutes.  It's very much a rise and fall story of Stanton Carlisle - which Bradley Cooper plays flawlessly.  Stanton is a man with a past that haunts him.  He runs away from it to the circus/carnival.  He's young and easy on the eyes according to Toni Collette's Zeena the Seer.  He establishes himself as useful early by helping to catch an escaped, dangerous geek.  He learns quickly and demonstrates his usefulness to nearly everyone in the circus.  He aspires to move beyond the backroads of the Midwest.  He recognizes quickly that Zeena and Pete's act of being a clairvoyant/medium is where he could excel.  He spend his time with them learning all he can to become part of the act and eventually (in his mind) become an act of his own.  Stanton has eyes for Rooney Mara's Molly and sees the two of them running away from the circus to take their act to ballrooms of the big cities.  Once established as a popular act, Stanton draws the attention of a respected psychiatrist, Dr. Lilith Ritter.  As his attention turns to her, and they partner to manipulate wealthy elite of the city for wealth and status, the plot turns and Stanton finds his fate to come ironically full circle.

 

This movie is a star-studded cast of Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Wilem Dafoe, Richard Jenkins, Rooney Mara, Mary Steenburgen, David Strathairn - all actors nominated for Oscars in the past.  It's a mix of del Toro's usual players and a few new faces.  del Toro paints a visually stunning canvas as the cinematography of John Lausten is gorgeous.  The two of them pluck us from modern day and transplant us into the dustbowl and Midwest of late 1930s/early 1940s America.  From what I understand, audiences may have the opportunity to see this film in black and white which I'm sure would look amazing as well.  The acting is top notch (how could it not be with a cast like that).  Cooper and Blanchett are particularly great.  Cooper demonstrates his ability to play both a stoic and animated character in the same role.  He also plays the type of character that you want to like, but know something is dark and awful seething beneath the surface - and that perhaps his charm would eventually be your undoing.  Cate Blanchett's Dr. Lilith Ritter is a particularly splendid femme fatale and steals every scene she's in - including those with Cooper, which are a majority of her scenes.

 

I can't say enough of how much I enjoyed this film.  The original, which I'd never heard of, was not received well critically or commercially.  However, it seems to me that this was a passion project of the cast and crew.  It feels like perhaps the original movie stood the test of time better than expected and the remake is glorious.  I give this movie 8/10 stars (though I'd bump to 8.5 if I could).  Where the movie falls a bit short for me is that with the final devastating scene, the movie almost come off like one of Aesop's fables, and the medium and parts are greater than the final work.  The movie is still a breath-taking ride between the stellar performances and the visuals/cinematography.  You can watch this right now on Hulu or HBO Max - though if you're able to get to a theater, the black and white version might be fun and give you a modernized sense of what the original was like.

 

The original

[Ryan]

I couldnt finish the remake I felt the characters weren't as developed as the original idk I just found it slightly boring. I do plan on finishing it but I so far much prefer the original. Molly's character is the worst, I just dont feel anything for her and in this one she didnt have a connection with Pete like in the original and is it me or did no one seem to care Pete died. After he died the movie just moved on lol.