This review of "Nightmare alley" (1947, Edmund Goulding) heavily depends on a comparison with "Nightmare alley" (2021, Guillermo del Toro). This may seem unfair to the film, but the remake by Del Toro was the occasion that put me on the trail of his 1947 predecessor. On top of that the comparison also gives us some insights into the differences between noir and neo noir.
Both films are based on a novel of the same name by William Lindsay Gresham (1946). For a (neo) noir the story has little fysical violence, but the cynicism of the main character is no less.
Of the differences between the movies the difference between black and white (1947) and color (2021) is most visible but least important.
More important is the fact that the characters of the 1947 version are more clear cut. This is true for Zeena (the teacher in mentalism of the main character, Joan Blondell in 1947, Toni Collette in 2021), Pete (the alcoholic man of Zeena, Ian Keith in 1947, David Strathairn in 2021) and above all for main character Stanton Carlisle (Tyrone Power in 1947, Bradley Cooper in 2021). In 1947 Stanton is not only cynical but also a hypocrite. Does he realy believe that he is helping members of his audience with their psychological problems?
You can assert that the 2021 characters are more nuanced, but all in all the more clear cut ones of 1947 do help in telling the story.
The single exception to the rule given above is femme fatale psychologist Lilith Ritter. Cate Blancett is a much more convincing femme fatale in the 2021 version than Helen Walker in the 1947 version.
Central element in the film is the hubris of Stanton Carlisle making a transition from mentalism to spiritualism. In the 1947 version the tarot cards of Zeena are used as a more prominent warning sign against this hubris. The relation between Zeena and Stanton made me think of the relation between the German officer Hermann and the grandmother of Tomsky in Alexander Pushkin's "Queen of spades".
Of course hubris can't go on without a punishment. In the 2021 version the dark ending (in line with the novel) contains a convincing punishment, thus coming to full circle with the beginning of the film. The half hearted happy end of the 1947 version shows all signs of interference on the part of the production company.
All in all both films have their strength and weaknesses. I conclude to a draw.
Both films are based on a novel of the same name by William Lindsay Gresham (1946). For a (neo) noir the story has little fysical violence, but the cynicism of the main character is no less.
Of the differences between the movies the difference between black and white (1947) and color (2021) is most visible but least important.
More important is the fact that the characters of the 1947 version are more clear cut. This is true for Zeena (the teacher in mentalism of the main character, Joan Blondell in 1947, Toni Collette in 2021), Pete (the alcoholic man of Zeena, Ian Keith in 1947, David Strathairn in 2021) and above all for main character Stanton Carlisle (Tyrone Power in 1947, Bradley Cooper in 2021). In 1947 Stanton is not only cynical but also a hypocrite. Does he realy believe that he is helping members of his audience with their psychological problems?
You can assert that the 2021 characters are more nuanced, but all in all the more clear cut ones of 1947 do help in telling the story.
The single exception to the rule given above is femme fatale psychologist Lilith Ritter. Cate Blancett is a much more convincing femme fatale in the 2021 version than Helen Walker in the 1947 version.
Central element in the film is the hubris of Stanton Carlisle making a transition from mentalism to spiritualism. In the 1947 version the tarot cards of Zeena are used as a more prominent warning sign against this hubris. The relation between Zeena and Stanton made me think of the relation between the German officer Hermann and the grandmother of Tomsky in Alexander Pushkin's "Queen of spades".
Of course hubris can't go on without a punishment. In the 2021 version the dark ending (in line with the novel) contains a convincing punishment, thus coming to full circle with the beginning of the film. The half hearted happy end of the 1947 version shows all signs of interference on the part of the production company.
All in all both films have their strength and weaknesses. I conclude to a draw.