Written by Cameron Geiser

Jordan Peele is among the best of the new genre filmmakers of the 21st century. Alongside Robert Eggers, Denis Villeneuve, Ari Aster, Leigh Whannell, and Nia DaCosta (Check out last year's Candyman which Peele helped write the screenplay for) he's now firmly secured his place as one of the most unique creative voices in genre filmmaking. With Nope Jordan Peele takes his signature style of horror, comedy, and fascinating core ideas and blends it altogether with a particularly 'Spielbergian' sense of spectacle. OJ (Daniel Kaluuya) and Emerald Haywood (Keke Palmer) are left picking up the pieces of their family's longstanding business of horse wrangling for Hollywood film productions after the death of their father Otis Haywood Sr. (Keith David) from mysterious objects falling out of the sky in the beginning of the film.

Six months later we catch up with OJ and Emerald in Hollywood struggling to keep the business running smoothly. OJ lives at the family ranch and is generally quiet and stoic, the total opposite of his infectiously charming sister Emerald- who decides to return home with OJ in between jobs. Later that night one of the horses gets spooked by Emerald playing some sick jams at a high volume and OJ heads out into the night to bring the beast back. While out in a nearby valley OJ hears an echoing faint voice in those rolling hills, bright flashes of light in the distance, and when he looks up at the night sky, he sees something. Something big, something fast. I won’t dive further into detail because I believe this film is strongest when all of the mystery is left intact. Let the film tell you what it’s about, not the marketing team, or even any fellow critics that may get a little too trigger happy with descriptive spoilers. In fact after my first watch, I feel that this is Peele’s strongest work thus far. Though ultimately I’ll need another round to really dig into it.

This is a film that has a lot to say with its side stories and subtext. There’s a recurring story that runs alongside the main narrative involving a 1990’s family sitcom, a costumed chimpanzee, and Steven Yeun’s character, Ricky. These scenes, paired with others that come later in the film, double down on this critique of a society that is geared to turn tragedies into profits. It’s also a film that has a lot of love for film crews and those that will put everything on the line for the perfect shot. There’s a lot of care given to portraying those who are often overlooked on the battlefield of cinema. Making a movie is a lot like waging a war at times, and occasionally a battalion of crew can get lost in the shuffle- intentionally or not. The film also excels in its execution of tension and unease. The first half of the film has a slower pace, and it’s a welcomed one, but it’s the second half of the film that really twists the knife. Peele has a knack for finding a base fear and exploring its complexities in entertaining fashion. In Nope the mystery of the unknown is everywhere, and Peele knows how to articulate and visualize those itchy, sweaty, and paranoid fears to perfection.

The only critique that I can muster for this film is that I wish there was more characterization for the four main characters. Antlers Holst, played with a gravely gravitas by Michael Wincott, the cinematographer that OJ and Emerald seek out for “The Oprah Shot” is a terrific addition, but I only wish we had more screen time with him, or a few lines that could give us character information through subtlety. For example, in Jaws Quint (Robert Shaw), the grumpy old sea dog that takes Chief Brody (Roy Scheider) and Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) aboard the Orca to chase down the giant shark, is a character that I know well, but only for a few small lines that are scattered throughout his performance. When Quint and Hooper are comparing scars aboard the doomed vessel, Quint talks about his time in Boston on St. Patrick’s day, when he heckles Hooper about “havin city hands”, or the differences between pleasure boatin’ versus sharkin’, about workin for a livin’- these are all small indicators that give Quint a layered personality, someone who had a past and was changed by it. This is not to dunk on Nope by any means, I found it to be one of my favorite experiences in a theater this year (which says a lot!). OJ and Emerald are well realized characters, definitely. There’s just a pinch of dialogue here and there that I wish other characters had received to flesh them out a bit more. That note feels almost trivial for how good the final version of the film came to be. Just a bit of tightening here and there could really improve it overall, but still, I had a great time with this film.

Cameron Geiser is an avid consumer of films and books about filmmakers. He'll watch any film at least once, and can usually be spotted at the annual Traverse City Film Festival in Northern Michigan. He also writes about film over at www.spacecortezwrites.com.