Nightmare Alley 4K 2021

Guillermo Del Toro decided to repeat the success of his The Shape of Water. It is obvious that the author is aiming for another Oscar. In addition, Del Toro, like many before him, could not refuse a political agenda. Excuse me, I can't help mentioning it, though it is insignificant, but it is terribly ridiculous!

There is a scene in the film where there is a love foreplay between the main characters. There, the heroine, suddenly says, "Wait...I've never come to this on my own volition." Well, that's again an allusion to poor women being raped by men all the time, etc. What's so ridiculous? It's that this action takes place in a troupe of various con artists. Yes, a dubious contingent, but except that in the film they are presented very friendly to each other. Moreover, this young lady has a protector in the form of her dead father's friend, who is ready to smash the face of anyone who offends her. Now the question is, who raped her? At least give me a hint. But no, there's no hint, there's a forced narrative for the "academics" in Hollywood to tick off.

I apologize for such a big digression, I couldn't resist, but I want to say that this nonsense didn't hurt the viewing experience. It's a good film about the vanity of man, set in the noir genre, with a pinch of Del Toro's trademark darkness and bloodiness. The film is unhurried, but the two and a half hours are unnoticeable. The picture manages to maintain intrigue. On the other hand, the movie cannot be called outstanding because there is a sudden leap in time that causes the characters to change in character. Their changes are understandable from a logical point of view, but there is no understanding from an emotional point of view. It's like looking at two photos of the same building. In the first photo it is new and beautiful, and in the second photo there are only ruins. The question arises, what happened?

In addition to a weak script, which is also predictable, the acting in the film is weak. Except for Cate Blanchett! She is always mysterious, beautiful and terrible at the same time. I can't say anything about the others. Willem Defoe is not enough and Bradley Cooper is boring.

The great thing about the film, for which I rated it so highly, is the moral and how right the ending was in terms of dramaturgy. From that point of view, it's a very useful piece of work.