Certificate: 15
Running time: 150 minutes
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe, Rooney Mara, Ron Perlman
Directed by: Guillermo Del Toro
The story: An ambitious man with a talent for manipulating people takes a job at a carnival and begins to learn the art of mentalism.
The verdict: When you think of Guillermo Del Toro, you might automatically think of horror - of demons and beasts and things that go bump in the night. Though Nightmare Alley may be devoid of the supernatural and mythological elements of many of Del Toro’s previous films, it is not vacant of monsters. The difference is that these monsters are a lot closer to home - walking among us and reflected back at ourselves in the mirror.
Bradley Cooper plays Stanton Carlisle, a mysterious drifter who gains work at carnival. Stanton is immediately an intriguing character - not only is his past ambiguous but it soon becomes clear that his intentions and morals are ambiguous too. Cooper is a perfect choice to play a character such as this, able to be both incredibly charming and enigmatic at the same time.
Cooper is joined by a cast of similarly engaging characters and similarly terrific performances - perhaps most notable is Cate Blanchett who plays a cryptic psychiatrist and who goes toe to toe with Stanton. Nightmare Alley is a reasonably lengthy 150 minutes but throughout these characters pull the audience into their world and the running time becomes negligible.
Nightmare Alley is also visually stunning. It’s shot beautifully and the noir elements shine through in the cinematography. Nightmare Alley is dark and delicious and so incredibly watchable. The film draws the audience into its nightmarish and sombre settings, and doesn’t let them go until the final gut punch moments. Indeed, when the credits roll, it is almost like awakening from a nightmare - if only nightmares were as exquisite and enchanting.
The rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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