Nightmare Alley (2021)

Nightmare Alley (2021). Nightmare Alley: Directed by Guillermo del Toro. With Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe. An ambitious carny with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words hooks up with a female psychiatrist who is even more dangerous than he is.

“Bradley Cooper stars in Guillermo del Torou0026#39;s remake of this story about an impoverished drifter who happens upon a carnival geek show. From there, he learns various magic tricks and creates an act of illusion that he takes to the city. Thereafter, he encounters more than he anticipated. Rooney Mara is his love interest and fellow circus performer, Willem Dafoe is lively and animated as the amoral carnival owner and Cate Blanchett is a mysterious psychiatrist with whom Cooperu0026#39;s protagonist crosses paths. Richard Jenkins is excellent as a rich tycoon with an immoral past.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eCooper gives a multi-dimensional performance that helps carry the film and he gets plenty of help; this film noir boasts a formidable acting lineup, stunning period detail and is handsomely shot, however its overall impact is greatly dulled by a running time that is way too long. Although it starts strong with an ominous first chapter and has quite a hauntingly bleak conclusion, somewhere in between the narrative loses its bite and thus ends it potential for greatness.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIn addition to being overlong, Del Torou0026#39;s work feels claustrophobic, a problem that his earlier films have been able to overcome more effectively. Overall, a film that could have been a masterpiece if it had spent more time in the cutting room. Some gruesomely violent scenes should be forewarned about. That being said, the filmu0026#39;s final frame still lingers on. Recommended to viewers with patience and a strong stomach.”