NOPE (2022)
Nope is a weird movie. In a complementary sense; a long forgotten review of Get Out on this blog suggested that it should have been more unnerving and also funnier. Which is an oddly specific complaint that has been addressed here. The characters are more eccentric, the tone is more peculiar, and the horror moments are much stranger. Which is saying something when the overall vibe of the movie is a sci-fi adventure borrowing from UFO films as well as Jaws and other influences. But with all this going on does the film as a whole manage to be compelling beyond the sum of its parts?
The unusual nature of the movie is obvious from the start which shows a clip from doomed sitcom 'Gordy's Home', which was cancelled following an incident with a chimpanzee on set. But the premise, beyond all the alien spaceship stuff, stems from this disaster and others like it. All the characters are connected by a slow desperation to make money; either by exploiting the past or through strange new situations. Things seem random at first but the pieces slowly coalesce as the story goes on.
The next tragedy comes in the form of ranch owner Otis (Keith David) being hit by a piece of falling metal while he's training horses. The business just needed to turn a corner and their problems would be over. Of course this isn't the case and his son Otis Jr. (Daniel Kaluuya) is left with more problems, no thanks to his absent sister Emerald (Keke Palmer). They should be making plenty of money using the horses in the movie industry, but are being forced to sell them off to a local tourist attraction.
Nearby 'Jupiter's Claim', a Wild West themed park for families, also seems to have money problems. However, 'Jupe' himself (Stephen Yuen) has a new show called the 'Star Lasso Experience' which he hopes will mean his problems will soon be over. But his issues go beyond money when it turns out that he was a child actor during the 'Gordy' incident, which has shaped his adult mind in an unexpected way. Beyond some of the typical problems former child stars can have he's become obsessed with the idea that he has a connection with animals...
Which brings us back to the UFO and the desperate times everyone is in. OJ and Emerald don't know it yet but they are soon on the trail of a mystery in the skies above the ranch; the same thing the Jupe is trying to exploit for his show. In a way they're all living a lie, kidding themselves about their chances and their ideals, which feeds into a story about what people will pay to see. They're all weird losers trying to find a paying audience, although Jupe is going about it in a much more deranged fashion.
Trying to get the money shot and prove aliens exist, the siblings join with obnoxious tech retailer Angel (Brandon Perea). He's also living a similar sad existence at (now shuttered) store Fry's which seems to be mostly an empty warehouse with two or three employees. They also need the help of seemingly normal cinematographer Holst (Michael Wincott). Who... claims to be cooking for a party of ten but sits in the dark all day watching clips of wildlife footage. It's all probably fine and besides; soon their problems will be over.
It's a film with a lot going on whether it's the commentary on the entertainment business, or the Grizzly Man style delusion that people and animals can get along. But it's also a fully entertaining yarn involving sinister late night encounters in the horse corral, huge Wild West meets outer-space set pieces, and one of the most unusual and most distressing death scenes in recent sci-fi history. It's got a strange unpredictable quality as it moves from jokes about reality TV to an eerie and ever changing threat.
Some elements do feel like a missed opportunity; particularly when Keith David's always magnetic screen presence might have been used more. Perhaps his gravelly tones, and those of Michael Wincott, were just too powerful to have together for too long. But maybe they can team up on a future project with these film-makers. Still, the rest of the cast are a good mixture of sullen and extroverted as OJ and Emerald deal with loss in their own way. The added layer of dealing with trauma (or profiting from it) gives the movie another dimension.
But of course it's a film that will also be memorable thanks to a great finale and its own version of the 'three yellow barrels' scene. Add to this some last minute twists and turns, as well as a fresh take on the classic airship denouement, and you've got an exciting third act that goes beyond a fun visual effects sequence. Like a lot of great monster movies it's an enjoyable creature feature but it's also got other facets, and a lot of personality, to consider. It's a weird concoction, odd and charming yet gruesome and mean, but in the end this adds up to a familiar but fresh genre melding experience.
4/5
