Nightmare Alley ★★★★☆

2021 film

Watched 13 February 2022

The tone is pitch-perfect — the aesthetic, the performances, down to how karmically predictable some of the twists are. Love all the little props, such delicate artefacts, all feeling like they could tell a whole story. I couldn’t stop thinking of Ricky Jay, and now I find myself wishing for a Del Toro film about him. Or maybe just the objects he left behind.

About star ratings

My ratings are subjective. I’m not aiming for a perfect ranking of comparative artistic merit, just trying to represent how I feel about stuff. Here’s what they mean:

★★★★★: Personal favorite. I simply love it, warts and all.
★★★★☆: Something special. Highly recommended.
★★★☆☆: Good, but unremarkable. I’ll probably forget about it.
★★☆☆☆: A waste of time. Not recommended.
★☆☆☆☆: Practically insulting. Soulless garbage. (Rare!)