When charismatic but down-on-his-luck Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper) endears himself to clairvoyant Zeena (Toni Collette) and her has-been mentalist husband Pete (David Strathairn) at a traveling carnival, he crafts a golden ticket to success, using this newly acquired knowledge to gift the wealthy elite of 1940's New York society. With the virtuous Molly Cahill (Rooney Mara) loyally by his side, Stanton plots to con a dangerous tycoon Ezra Grindle (Richard Jenkins) with the aid of a mysterious psychiatrist (Cate Blanchett) who might be his most formidable opponent yet.
Others to round out the cast are Willem Dafoe as Clem Hoatley, Ron Perlman as Bruno, Mary Steenburgen as Mrs. Kimball, Peter MacNeill as Judge Kimball, Holt McCallany as Anderson, Tim Blake Nelson as carny boss and Mark Povinelli as the major.
This was crafted well by director Guillermo del Toro ("Cronos" '93, "Mimic" '97, "The Devil's Backbone" '01, "Blade II" '02, "Hellboy" '04, "Pan's Labyrinth" '06, "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" '08, "Pacific Rim" '13, "Crimson Peak" '15, "The Shape of Water" '17) plus TV, shorts and a video game. What is odd is that when I mention del Toro's name, the response I receive is one of 'who's that?' What's ironic is that his name is as A-list as Spielberg or Hitchcock or Ridley Scott. I guess that because he does so many independent films, word doesn't get out as much. Trust me, this filmmaker is amazing in how he's able to extract just the right emotion out of his actors for any scene that comes along. If you like this director's dark approach to directing, his "Pinocchio", which he also writes is in post production for a 2022 release. It is also equally well written by Guillermo del Toro ("Cronos" '93, "Mimic" '97, "The Devil's Backbone" '01, "Hellboy" '04, "Pan's Labyrinth" '06, "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" '08, "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" '10, "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" '12, "Pacific Rim" '13, "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" '13, "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" '14, "Crimson Peak" '15, "The Shape of Water" '17, "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" (screen story) '19, "The Witches" '20, Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans" '21) plus TV, video games, video shorts and shorts, and Kim Morgan ("The Forbidden Room" (additional writer) '15) plus a short, based on the novel by William Lindsay Gresham. As with all of del Toro's scripts, this screenplay was concise, cohesive, tightly written all with a great story that the audience can simply escape into. With all the plot twists and turns, this story will keep you riveted to your seat. Obviously del Toro had the lion's share of the experience here, but Morgan certainly had pivotal input toward the script. Usually after a film runs for a two hour period, I'm starting to become frustrated and impatience, however this two and a half hour running time sailed right along, and this is a sign of talented writing and directing. The cast was consummate: Cooper, Blanchett, Collette, Dafoe, Jenkins, Mara, Strathairn; I was riveted.
If Guillermo del Toro isn't nominated come Oscar time, there's something seriously wrong. This was every bit as compelling as his "Pan's Labyrinth". With so many big-budget, visual effect ridden films out there at this time of year, it's certainly refreshing to see something that is as original as "Nightmare Alley" is.
Out of 4 Stars: 4 Rated: R 150mins.
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