Posted by Jonathan Klotz | Published
Hollywood is full of remakes, so much so that even seemingly original movies are remade, starring Keanu Reeves. Knock Knock (1977 version The Game of Death) even in animation Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank (it is Burning Saddles with anthropomorphic kung-fu dogs). In 2021, Guillermo del Toro brought his version of the classic game to the theater, bringing the noir classic.Nightmare Alley back to the theaters as only a visionary director could.
Alas, history repeats itself, and as it did the first time, the second time around the world the film was still a box office flop, despite the A list.
Nightmare Alley is Classic Noir
Nightmare Alley Bradley Cooper stars as Stan Carlisle, a broken man, and finds himself working at a festival, run by Clem (Willem Dafoe) as part of Madame Zeena’s (Toni Collette) “clearing” act, where he learns how to perform a fake magic routine. Loved by one of the characters, Molly (Rooney Mara), Stan takes his act on the road and turns out to be a natural trickster, except there’s a problem, two in fact: one, there’s always a big fish, and two, he’s been warned about pretending to talk to the dead.
In one of his games, Stan meets Dr. Ritter (Cate Blanchett), a skeptical psychologist who tries to prove that he is a fraud, but it backfires and knocks down the first domino in Stan’s complete downfall. Secrets come out, learning goes too far, and like any good noir, there’s murder, and no one gets out unscathed. Nightmare Alley it may have the outward stylistic flourishes of Guillermo del Toro, but underneath, it’s still dark, with all the darkness that implies.
A Box Office Bomb That Needs Audiences to Think
Nightmare Alleyunlike most of del Toro’s best works, it’s not a story about the supernatural. Instead, it’s a great story of a man on the edge and his quick, completely preventable downfall as bad guys do bad things to each other with unexpected consequences. Bradley Cooper gives a fantastic performance as Stan and shows a level of talent that no one would have expected from a jealous boyfriend. Wedding Crashers.
With a budget of $60 million, Nightmare Alley it was a huge flop, earning only $39 million worldwide. Although this is attributed to its release in December 2021, when COVID was still delayed and kept older moviegoers out of theaters, it is still a disappointment. Those who have seen the film have enjoyed it, as evidenced by the 68 percent audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which is very good for such a dark film. It’s not a fun experience, and the gruesome story will haunt you for days after watching it, but at the same time, there are a few of del Toro’s trademark flourishes that remind you that he’s one of the best directors working today.
Nightmare Alley it is not for everyonebut with the recent success of Nosferatunow is a good time to go back to another classic from a lost era in Hollywood. Not many noises are being made today, and considering the modern sci-fi noir, Reminiscence also failed to find an audience in 2021, it’s clear that no one will go to theaters for dark films that involve more dialogue than your average blockbuster. And yet, both films have recently found a broadcast audience, proving that given the chance, they will win fans and slowly, quietly become modern cult classics.
Nightmare Alley is available to stream on Hulu.
