Nope Spoiler-Free Review

After making a splash with his sketch comedy series, Key & Peele, Jordan Peele made an even bigger splash by foraying into the horror genre with Get Out. Now comes his newest film, Nope, which combines his typical horror and comedy with a much larger scale and more of a sci-fi twist. Surprisingly for an original IP, it’s getting a lot of press and is one of the most talked-about movies of the summer. So how does it hold up?

Synopsis: The residents of a lonely gulch in inland California bear witness to an uncanny and chilling discovery. (Author’s note: I rip these synopses from imdb. With that in mind, this is an atrocious synopsis to try to get you hooked on the movie. This can’t seriously be the film’s logline, can it?!)

THE GOOD

The Leads Have Great Chemistry

I don’t think anyone is really expecting the acting to be bad in this movie, and it goes without saying that it’s pretty good, but this is still worth mentioning. The relationship between Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer (and later on Brandon Perea as their sidekick) is spot-on perfect. I genuinely believe that their characters are brother and sister who are trying to patch things up after so many years. They seem like the kind of siblings who definitely didn’t get along growing up and wound up choosing different life paths but are still able to reminisce and tease each other in the way that only siblings can do. It’s not overwrought either; it feels very natural.

These are two performances that could very easily have gone awry. Kaluuya’s character, OJ Haywood, is much more serious and grounded with a dry sense of humor while Palmer’s character, Emerald Haywood, is a bit more bubbly and loud. Both characters could very easily have been annoying if written or acted differently but they find just the right level. While the movie isn’t laugh-out-loud funny, Nope has a good sense of comic relief that stops at just the right level where it doesn’t suck the drama out of the film.

Clever Usage of Music

I haven’t seen a movie with this good of a soundtrack and clever usage of music since last year’s Last Night in Soho. I can’t really gush about it without giving major spoilers but it's not just ominous ringing noises to try to build up dread (though the movie still does that too). Nope has a very excellent soundtrack that it plays with in creative ways to actually creep you out. Particular mention goes to the “I Wear My Sunglasses at Night” scene. You’ll know what I’m talking about when you get there (hint: it’s during the scene when they play “I Wear My Sunglasses at Night” by Corey Hart).

It Is Scary… And Gory

There was a certain point while watching Nope that I started wondering if the film might’ve been better off as an adventure or a comedy romp instead of a horror. The first half of the movie is a bit of a slow burn and whatever scary moments there are tend to be weak fakeouts. I found myself thinking that maybe the story would’ve been stronger with a different tone. Thankfully, I was 100% wrong. You might have to wait a bit (though no longer than some other horror films) but when the scares come, they come and they deliver. This is the first good movie I’ve seen in a while to deal with cosmic horror and it’s genuinely disturbing to watch. Plus the monster is actually scary.

Now, that’s the horror as it goes for casual film fans. For long-time horror junkies who’ve developed high standards for what they find scary, the question is if the horror scares are enjoyable even if you’ve been desensitized to scary moments. And the answer is yes. Not only are the scary moments frightening, they’re gorey as all Hell. There’s one scene in particular that is one of the most metal things I’ve seen and it is awesome to watch. Give it a few years and I think it could be on the same level as the bloody elevator from The Shining.

Smart (and Subtle) Commentary

Ever since Get Out, Jordan Peele has gotten a reputation for being a filmmaker who enjoys making satires of contemporary American society through the lens of horror. What sets him apart from many other modern-day filmmakers, however, is that he isn’t nearly as preachy. Nope comfortably falls into this pattern as well. I’m starting to realize that Peele has a lot more in common with John Carpenter in that while his movies are supposed to be scary and fun first and foremost, the stories are structured in such an elegant manner that they leave you thinking afterwards. Even if you don’t want to seriously dissect the film, Nope is still an enjoyable watch.

Not only that but the theme isn’t what I think most people were thinking. The trailers in particular seemed to emphasize a completely different moral than I think the movie is going after. I realize I’m spinning in circles by not talking about it but I think you could have serious conversations about what exactly Nope is symbolic of and different viewers could reach entirely different conclusions. It’s very excellent filmmaking in that regard.

They Use Real Horses

This is probably the most minor of praises I could give but it’s something I still greatly appreciate. For the past decade, it’s become pretty common to swap any and all animal effects with CG. The CG bear in The Revenant, the CG dog in The Call of the Wild, the list is damn near limitless. Not only is this taking away jobs from animal trainers but they usually make for horrifically bad special effects that completely break the sense of immersion. Considering that a large chunk of Nope revolves around horses and characters horseback riding, it would’ve been so easy for them to go that route. Thankfully, they do not. And you want to know something? The movie is so much better for it.

THE BAD

Jupe’s Sub-Plot Adds Very Little to the Film Narratively

If you’ve been paying attention to the film’s marketing, Steven Yeun has gotten third billing after the leads as Jupe, a local showman that the Haywood siblings contract their ranch out to. There’s a pretty meaty subplot dedicated to the character and his past as a child actor on a failed sitcom with a monkey named Gordy. While this sequence is creepy and adds a lot to the film on a thematic level, it adds very little on a narrative level.

What do I mean by this? If you completely removed the character of Jupe from the film, really nothing would change. He has no relevance to the plot, does nothing to aid or threaten the main characters and feels like he exists to go off on a tangent. While you could argue that if the character is adding to the film’s theme, he’s not actually useless, I don’t know about that. If you compare this to truly great horror films such as the original Halloween and Texas Chain Saw Massacre, those films are very tightly-written while still having a lot to say about then-contemporary America. This character could’ve been written in a way to actually impact the plot while still adding to the movie.

Holst the Cinematographer is a Weird Goddamned Character

Holst is a veteran cinematographer/Director of Photography who eventually joins the Haywood siblings’ colorful posse of characters and he is one of the weirdest creations in recent cinema. He’s played by Michael Wincott, a veteran character actor that played a lot of villains back in the 90s (his most famous one probably being The Crow) and is most famous for his low gravelly voice. While he does well with some very blunt one-liners, the character’s motivations during the climax seem to whiplash depending on the plot convenience and sometimes feels like he walked in from a completely different movie. He also has a scene where he sings “One Eyed One Horned Flying Purple People Eater” that I think was supposed to be ominous but just comes off as bizarre.

Why Do Horror Movies Still Have Fake-Out Jump Scares?

I’m seriously thinking about starting a social movement about this. Fake-out jump scares are the bane of any horror movie-going audience and I have never met a single person in my life who actually enjoys them. Who honestly likes watching a scene that builds up tension with loud music only for it to turn out to be kids playing a prank or someone just putting their hands on someone’s shoulder from off-camera (instead of saying ‘hi’ like a normal person)? This is the equivalent of a comedy film manipulating you into laughing at something that’s not even remotely funny. I haven’t seen it work once and it doesn’t start in this movie.

Why Does the Monster’s Design Change Halfway Through the Climax?

Mild spoilers I guess but during the climactic chase, the monster completely transforms into a whole new creature off-camera. Both designs are really cool but it was a weird little whiplash. I guess Peele was trying to put us in the main characters’ shoes by making us confused at this new monster but, honestly, I just felt like I missed something.

Nope Is A Terrible Title

Another nitpick but I’m just going to say it: Nope is a terrible title for this movie. There really is no thematic undertones to calling the film Nope. It’s literally called “nope” as in slang for “no, I’m definitely not doing that.” The filmmakers could’ve come up with probably a dozen other good titles for the movie.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Nope is a very, very good movie. I personally wasn’t a big fan of Jordan Peele’s recent projects after Get Out but Nope is easily back on that level. Most of my problems are relatively minor and the film is genuinely engaging to watch. On a most basic level, it’s scary with genuinely likable characters. Plus, it’s one of the best examples in recent years of cosmic horror. The scale is incredibly huge and it manages to pull it off without pushing the boundaries too deep into becoming ridiculous.

Throw in some great commentary to go with it and this is definitely one of the best movies of the summer. If you haven’t seen it yet, and you’re looking for a good horror movie, this one is worth your time.