Great performances, camerawork, and production design. I am still digesting my thoughts on the story.
The previous adaptation of "Nightmare Alley" was released 75 years ago, at a time when film noir accounted for 20%-30% of all major movie releases. Nowadays some elements survice in cheap thrillers or in forced, dull revivals. Del Toro instead approaches this from the perspective that goes better with him: exploring further the curiosities of the carnival. He gets to indulge in the usual oddities associated with his films and personal memorabilia collection. He evokes wonder, awe, and terror, and his lead character gets a sympathetic, rundown older mentor.
But this accounts for a third of the movie. After getting the audience hooked on this, while slyly introducing the thematic arc, Del Toro uses the rest of the film to try his hand at something different: a standard film noir, with an exploration on mentalism vs psychotherapy, mind games, manipulation, double crosses, and people dealing with pain in dysfunctional ways. There are no children, no monsters.
There is nothing for me to criticize of the rest of the story; it was just hard to enjoyx due to the bleakness. I saw where the eventual ending was headed since Cooper's interactions at the carnival early on. The journey of the character was common in the early XX century: many men had their ups and downs between the roaring 20s, the World Wars, the Dust Bowl, and the Great Depression. People still experience such highs and absolute lows, but in less visually obvious ways; it is easier to hide. It is something to reflect on: fhe carnivals are not going on at present, but this story is still happening today.
Thematically, this is a good companion to this year's lighter "The Eyes of Tammy Faye".
The previous adaptation of "Nightmare Alley" was released 75 years ago, at a time when film noir accounted for 20%-30% of all major movie releases. Nowadays some elements survice in cheap thrillers or in forced, dull revivals. Del Toro instead approaches this from the perspective that goes better with him: exploring further the curiosities of the carnival. He gets to indulge in the usual oddities associated with his films and personal memorabilia collection. He evokes wonder, awe, and terror, and his lead character gets a sympathetic, rundown older mentor.
But this accounts for a third of the movie. After getting the audience hooked on this, while slyly introducing the thematic arc, Del Toro uses the rest of the film to try his hand at something different: a standard film noir, with an exploration on mentalism vs psychotherapy, mind games, manipulation, double crosses, and people dealing with pain in dysfunctional ways. There are no children, no monsters.
There is nothing for me to criticize of the rest of the story; it was just hard to enjoyx due to the bleakness. I saw where the eventual ending was headed since Cooper's interactions at the carnival early on. The journey of the character was common in the early XX century: many men had their ups and downs between the roaring 20s, the World Wars, the Dust Bowl, and the Great Depression. People still experience such highs and absolute lows, but in less visually obvious ways; it is easier to hide. It is something to reflect on: fhe carnivals are not going on at present, but this story is still happening today.
Thematically, this is a good companion to this year's lighter "The Eyes of Tammy Faye".