Nope (2022)

Nope (2022)

Written, Directed and Produced by: Jordan Peele
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer
Streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

More than as a singular piece, Nope works better as a piece in Jordan Peele's filmography. His directorial debut, Get Out, is a contained horror with a focused social commentary. With Us, he explores a similar style of horror, but with some added flavor of surrealism. With Nope, it's barely horror. It's mostly a surrealist, science fiction film with the undercurrent of a horror. I like how Peele is smoothly taking the audience into different sub-genres within the horror genre. Usually genre films are not considered high art, I like how Jordan Peele tricks you into believing that it's a genre film and does whatever he wants to with it.

Coming to Nope, it's an absurd, weird experience because of the elements they use in the story and the style of storytelling too. I like this kind of storytelling when it's done partially. If the entire film is as absurd, even the good elements don't land as much because I'm not as emotionally invested in the story. I like any film that's not predictable, and Nope is anything but predictable. I enjoyed feeling confused, and ambiguous for a bit. That feeling added with horror would exponentially elevate the whole experience. But this film doesn't go into the horror territory as much. And I didn't get what the film was trying to say or do as well. I would've loved the film, either if it was a little more clear or if it zeroed in on the horror elements a little more. Going to read explanation articles on the film now.