
‘Nightmare Alley’ – Review
Academy Award-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro makes his return to the big screen with the dark and edgy noir suspense thriller Nightmare Alley, which is a throwback to the classic iconography of the noir genre and which serves up a twisting and psychologically tense narrative that will have you gripping the edge of your seat.
When charismatic but down-on-his-luck Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper) endears himself to clairvoyant Zeena (Toni Collette) and her has-been mentalist husband Pete (David Strathairn) at a travelling carnival, he crafts a golden ticket to success, using this newly acquired knowledge to grift the wealthy elite of 1940s New York society. With the virtuous Molly (Rooney Mara) loyally by his side, Stanton plots to con a dangerous tycoon (Richard Jenkins) with the aid of a mysterious psychiatrist (Cate Blanchett) who might be his most formidable opponent yet.
Long regarded by Guillermo del Toro as a passion project, Nightmare Alley which is an adaptation of the classic noir novel by William Lindsay Gresham takes audiences back in time to the late 1930s and early 1940s and into the world of travelling carnivals, huckster showman and manipulation of the soul. Always a passionate filmmaker who gives everything of himself to the projects he works on, del Toro brings a great vision to Nightmare Alley and strives to bring audiences back into the fold of classic film noir tropes of the time period. With a finely attuned sense for detail and story, del Toro lets the narrative of Nightmare Alley plays out at its own pace and this is a slow-burn thriller that takes its time and wraps you up in its twisting and complex narrative.
With Nightmare Alley del Toro presents a lavish canvas of time gone by. We are first introduced to the nomadic world of the travelling carnival and its strange inhabitants via the film’s protagonist Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper) who stumbles into their world and soon becomes a part of it. As the story grows we then see Stanton drift off to the pull of the big city and del Toro juxtaposes a sepia landscape of Rockwell inspired carnival imagery with the austere might and power of Art Deco Chicago and the harsh shadows and sterns lines that make up its skyline. With frequent cinematographer Dan Laustsen, del Toro produces some incredibly gorgeous imagery that pulls you further into the narrative stylings of the time. With its gorgeous visual trappings, Nightmare Alley is a film that is hard to avert your eyes from and as the narrative moves deeper into the abyss the images grow stronger and stronger.
Being a Guillermo del Toro film, audiences can also expect the usual accompaniments of the directors’ noted style. Dark shadows, dynamic colour palettes, misunderstood and complex characters and a haunted, creepy atmosphere all make their way into the production. Along with a good helping of gore. With Nightmare Alley Guillermo del Toro peers into the mind of a dark and troubled individual who’ll go to any means necessary to get what he wants and what begins as a tale of the American Dream soon turns into a total nightmare. A noted fan of the noir genre, as a director del Toro works to keep Nightmare Alley firmly entrenched in the scope of the genre, but also injects his own unique visual and narrative ideas and the results make this film a very intriguing and heightened watch.
Standing front and centre in Nightmare Alley as its haunted, no-good protagonist Stanton ‘Stan’ Carlisle is Hollywood A-lister Bradley Cooper and he cuts an impressive figure in the part. As the dashing and handsome Stanton, Cooper builds a character who begins as a dreamer who soon takes a darker turn and as he tastes the power that his act gives him, he’ll go to any length to keep it no matter how dark or traumatic the results. Cooper is a pure hustler as Stanton and his good looks, charm and ability to read people take him a long way as master psychic ‘The Great Stanton’, but his haunted past gives him a dangerous and feral edge and god help anyone who gets in his way. On-screen Cooper is very reminiscent of Clark Gable in his performance and he brings a matinee idol sense to Stanton and his gift and control over drama makes for an interesting character who will pull you into his dark side.
Playing opposite Cooper is Academy Award-winning actress Cate Blanchett and she brings out her inner vamp as the calculating and clever Dr Lilith Ritter. A classic femme fatale in every sense, Lilith is an excellent foil for Cooper’s Stanton and when she exposes his con she can’t help but fall into his game. Giving Lilith a keen intelligence and cat-like poise, Blanchett brings a dangerous sexuality to the role and slowly but subtly works her way into Stanton’s plan to con as many wealthy spiritualists as he can. As adversarial lovers, these two characters make for very interesting eye candy and each plays off the other with lustful zeal. As the narrative progresses in Nightmare Alley we begin to see Lilith’s claws come out and they’re sharp and ready to draw blood and it’s as the tension builds that Blanchett lets her bad girl persona out.
Stuck in between Stanton and Lilith is Rooney Mara as carnival ingenue Mary Elizabeth “Molly” Cahill who falls blissfully in love with Stanton and who builds a life with him early in his career as ‘The Great Stanton’. Mara brings an innocence to the role of Molly and gives audiences another perspective to view Stanton in as he becomes enamoured by his power and his ability to work ‘spook shows’; clairvoyant cons where he claims to speak to the dead. As the tension of the narrative heats up, Mara’s Molly moves in an interesting direction and her presence is key to the third act and the make or break decision that Stanton is forced to make.
Rounding out the rest of Nightmare Alley is a list of total A-list performers including the likes of Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe, Richard Jenkins and Del Toro’s good friend and long time collaborator Ron Perlman. Collete brings a sensual maternity to psychic Zeena Krumbein, who takes Stanton under her wing in more ways than one and guides him in the art of her act with her alcoholic husband and Stanton’s mentor Pete (David Strathairn). Then there’s the great Willem Dafoe who is an utter scene-stealer as carny ringmaster Clem Hoately. Best described as a pimp and a peddler, Clem is a devious and dangerous individual who prides himself on presenting the most grotesque attractions including the infamous ‘Geek Act’ for his patrons and Dafoe dives into the role with plenty of zeal. There’s a sly, cutthroat quality to his performance and Dafoe holds your attention with his menacing character.
Haunting, menacing, thrilling and beautiful, Nightmare Alley is a cinematic presentation that delivers a true spectacle to the big screen. Holding to the tropes of film noir, while also working with the director’s style, Nightmare Alley is a film of considerable grandeur and spectacle and it presents a narrative packed out with twists and turns that deliver on the unexpected.
Image: 20th Century Studios