A highly entertaining spectacle that needs to be seen to be believed.
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Director extraordinaire Jordan Peele knocks it out of the park once again with his third directorial feature–NOPE–the biggest and boldest of his filmography yet.
Starring Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer, Steven Yeun, Michael Wincott, and Brandon Perea, it follows two ranch-owning siblings (Kaluuya and Palmer) who attempt to capture evidence of an unidentified flying object.
There is a certain level of expectation one has when going in on a Peele film, knowing very well that his brilliant mind will deliver nothing short of amazing though with NOPE, it was hard to tell where the expectations lie due to the lack of clear understanding what the plot of the film was. Allowing viewers to go in blindsided is always a bold step but it pays off as minds will undoubtedly be blown as the film progresses.
Despite its massive scale, there is a balance that Kaluuya and Palmer’s natural chemistry sets that brings the film back down to earth, just as the well-intended light-hearted and humourous instances (thanks to standout Perea) cuts the tension of the bone-chilling moments in the film. It is incredible how much funnier it gets the more times characters explicitly mutter the film’s name during an intense moment.
With a faultless cast and screenplay, NOPE’s success is not without the technical masters who collectively helped shape and bring to life Peele's complex screenplay. Like all horror films, it relies on its use of sound to set the tone and instill fear in its viewers. Michael Abels' haunting score also adds to the film’s eeriness and perfectly supplements the setting, cinematographed by acclaimed cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema.
While NOPE takes a softer approach on the social commentary the writer-director is widely known for, it's still laden with metaphors that’ll send fans and viewers alike on a frenzied journey to decipher what the film is truly about. Deeper meanings aside, the sci-fi horror succeeds with its interesting approach on the topic of UFOs on surface level alone. Combined, it makes one of the year’s most intriguing and engaging films.
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