Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Nope’

Written by Zeke Perez Jr.

OJ Haywood (Daniel Kaluuya), Emerald Haywood (Keke Palmer) & Angel Torres (Brandon Perea) in ‘Nope’, written, produced & directed by Jordan Peele. © 2022 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

​If you had me watch the trailer for Nope a million times and made me, take a million guesses about what exactly the movie would be, I would have never guessed it would be THAT.
 
Jordan Peele is back with another brain-teasing, genre-bending, edge-of-your-seat thriller, adding to his growing repertoire of modern horror classics. His directorial debut Get Out was a commercial and critical success, lauded for fusing together elements of psychological horror, satire, comedy, and racial and social commentary into one of the best films in recent history. He returned with his take on a home invasion horror, doppelganger, supernatural thriller with Us.
Nope is, again, in a genre of its own. Here, Peele explores cosmic horror with a premise built around extraterrestrials and UFOs, but transforms that into a combination of sci-fi, horror, adventure, action, and so much more. 
 
The mixed genres and big twists within both Get Out and Us lent themselves to buzz and fan theories for Nope. With those first two movies, you found yourself looking back to see all of the clues you missed in the trailer or during your first watch. Audiences went into this newest adventure playing detective and trying to get ahead of the story, but Nope doesn’t allow much room for that and is all the better for it. 
 
Some movies are best to go into knowing as little about them as possible and Nope takes that philosophy to heart. The lead-up to the movie contributed strongly to that: the teaser trailer was truly just a teaser; the full-length trailer started to reveal the plot but in no way gives away any of the twists or special moments; only a very limited synopsis has been put out in advance of the movie’s release; and the cast and crew have been especially tight-lipped in interviews and promotions. 
 
All of those efforts pay off with an end result that’s puzzling at first, travels in an unexpected direction, and ties together neatly, while still leaving room to reflect and piece things together. It’s the least linear of Peele’s movies, broken down into chapters and flashbacks that intertwine to reveal each of the film’s secrets. It is a slow burn in the most hauntingly strategic way. 
 
The movie begins with a bible quote that is especially eerie when shrouded by the unknown mystery of the movie: "I will cast abominable filth at you, make you vile, and make you a spectacle.” Early on, we get a snippet from a flashback scene that is threaded throughout the rest of the film. Then, we join brother and sister OJ (Daniel Kaluuya) and Emerald Haywood (Keke Palmer), as they work to keep their father’s ranch and business afloat after his death. The family provides horses for movies and TV shows, while neighboring an Old West amusement attraction run by former child star Ricky Park (Steven Yeun). When the neighboring ranches become the site of bizarre UFO sightings, the Haywoods look to capture the extraterrestrial object on film, ultimately joined by local tech store expert Angel Torres (Brandon Perea) and filmmaker Antlers Holst (Michael Wincott). 

---

​The story is brought to life by the small but outstanding core cast, with Kaluuya, Palmer, and Perea centered in most of the on-screen action. Kaluuya, back from Peele’s Get Out, plays a tough and reserved hero with a lot of unspoken emotion. Palmer is dynamic and adventurous, Yeun is mysterious and empathetic, and Perea is eccentric and eager to help. The various combinations of these actors all work very well, carrying the story through the tonal shifts of the film. Peele has become a master of balancing horror and comedy, creating tension while sprinkling in levity at just the right moments. This cast excels in turning on a dime for that back and forth, as well. 
 
Much like the sights and settings within the movie, Nope is meant to be a spectacle. Its cinematography is beautiful, loaded with stunning upward shots of the sky and sweeping visuals of the wide-open spaces on the ranch. Opposite of that, the horror moments feel very dark and claustrophobic. Again, it’s not quite a horror movie the whole way through, but it has plenty of jump scares and unsettling moments, including a truly haunting scene that is one of the creepiest I’ve seen in a while (thanks to its point of view framing and its unexpected source). 
 
It is less social-commentary forward and more of a blockbuster than its predecessors, but that’s not to say it’s without meaning. On the contrary, it’s about quite a lot. Peele often presents a story that leaves things up to the viewer to interpret its many layers. Nope provided commentary on family dynamics and legacy, on recovering from (or doubling down on) past trauma, on a nostalgia for film and fame (writing a love letter to Hollywood, while still damning its more malicious aspects), about race and overlooked history, and about unexpected external forces that can change your life in an instant. Ultimately, people will be able to unearth even more meaning behind it, as Peele has a knack for making movies that grow clearer yet more complex with each rewatch and every new realization.
 
One of the best marks of Nope is that it’s evident it is a culmination of Jordan Peele’s vision. In an interview with Today, Peele shared that he felt much of his career’s ascent to becoming a Black director in Hollywood was “marred with this internalized sense that… no one would ever trust [him] with money… enough money to do [his] vision the way they would trust other people.” With Nope, we see Peele and his Monkeypaw Productions studio continue to thrive alongside Universal Studios and the freedom to make distinctive and unique horror movies.

While we are in an era full of reboots, remakes, and humongous franchises, we’ve also been lucky to get plenty of unique and refreshing movies this year, too. Movies like Everything Everywhere All at Once have subverted our expectations and created engrossing experiences that are less formulaic. Nope joins those ranks with a fresh merger of styles and thoughts. It may end up being Peele’s most polarizing, as it is more ambitious and widespread than his first two films, but it certainly cements Peele as a fantastic director and writer who makes movies that not only draw you into the theater, but leave you thinking about and discussing them for days on end.

---