Nightmare Alley

[+ pitman]

The World Premiere of this took place last night in NYC, Toronto, LA, Austin and at the Castro in San Francisco, where I saw it.  I thought it was great.  Outstanding performances by Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett and everyone else.  Every scene was beautifully composed and shot.  Some pretty dark subject matter.  See it on a big screen.  This one will win lots of awards.

Edited December 3, 2021 by pitman

[BuffaloKyle]

It filmed briefly here in Buffalo in March 2020 literally days before the pandemic shutdown. They needed snow in the scene and there was none they had to truck it in from somewhere else. 

[+ tassojunior]

On 12/2/2021 at 8:24 PM, pitman said:

The World Premiere of this took place last night in NYC, Toronto, LA, Austin and at the Castro in San Francisco, where I saw it.  I thought it was great.  Outstanding performances by Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett and everyone else.  Every scene was beautifully composed and shot.  Some pretty dark subject matter.  See it on a big screen.  This one will win lots of awards.

It opens December 17. 

[jeezifonly]

Visually, the dense, dark truffle-kind-of-treat that is Del Toro’s signature. Strong performances, great use of seedy carnival atmosphere and denizens. Bradley Cooper is aging beautifully. 

[+ tassojunior]

Now free on HBO and Hulu. That was quick. 

[TruHart1]

I saw that the original “Nightmare Alley” from 1947 with Tyrone Power was available on TCM a week before I saw the new Del Toro version. The introduction on TCM by film noir expert Eddie Muller was interesting because he said that Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper’s role) was considered to be Tyrone Powers’ best performance on film.

 Del Toro did change a few plot twists but for the most part, the script of the new film followed the same storyline as the original. The original film is quite interesting, though a few scenes in the new version would have not been approved by the 1947 censors. Other than that, the newer script is much more cohesive than the 1947 version.

The cinematography in the new film version is very impressive and so much better than in the original, but that’s to be expected. The cast is also stronger across the board than in the original version, but Tyrone Powers was very good in the original, playing a gritty Carlisle, very much against the type of roles in which he had previously been cast.

The newer film is a beautifully shot film, all scenes in the traveling circus are in rain, every scene set in NYC are in snow. In NYC the interiors are gorgeous Art Deco. In the traveling circus, everything is wet, muddy and gritty. The original film is all gritty, noir, black and white cinematography, which works extremely well for the original script.

All in all, the newer film is much stronger, but being able to compare both films to each other was fascinating!!!

TruHart1 😎

 

[+ WilliamM]

On 12/26/2021 at 6:37 AM, jeezifonly said:

Visually, the dense, dark truffle-kind-of-treat that is Del Toro’s signature. Strong performances, great use of seedy carnival atmosphere and denizens. Bradley Cooper is aging beautifully. 

I saw Bradley Cooper in Philadelphia about eighteen months ago as the narrator in the Broadway musical "Candide" with the Philadelphia Orchestra. Yes, he looked great.

[+ tassojunior]

2 hours ago, TruHart1 said:

I saw that the original “Nightmare Alley” from 1947 with Tyrone Power was available on TCM a week before I saw the new Del Toro version. The introduction on TCM by film noir expert Eddie Muller was interesting because he said that Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper’s role) was considered to be Tyrone Powers’ best performance on film.

 Del Toro did change a few plot twists but for the most part, the script of the new film followed the same storyline as the original. The original film is quite interesting, though a few scenes in the new version would have not been approved by the 1947 censors. Other than that, the newer script is much more cohesive than the 1947 version.

The cinematography in the new film version is very impressive and so much better than in the original, but that’s to be expected. The cast is also stronger across the board than in the original version, but Tyrone Powers was very good in the original, playing a gritty Carlisle, very much against the type of roles in which he had previously been cast.

The newer film is a beautifully shot film, all scenes in the traveling circus are in rain, every scene set in NYC are in snow. In NYC the interiors are gorgeous Art Deco. In the traveling circus, everything is wet, muddy and gritty. The original film is all gritty, noir, black and white cinematography, which works extremely well for the original script.

All in all, the newer film is much stronger, but being able to compare both films to each other was fascinating!!!

TruHart1 😎

 

There's also a black and white version that will probably be available streaming soon.

I sort of thought the ending scene was the weak spot in a fantastic movie. Could have  been a cameo during the credits it was so added-on. Not sure DiCaprio would have fit the part as originally intended. Brad was gold. 

[TruHart1]

8 minutes ago, tassojunior said:

…
I sort of thought the ending scene was the weak spot in a fantastic movie. Could have  been a cameo during the credits it was so added-on. Not sure DiCaprio would have fit the part as originally intended. Brad was gold. 

In the 1947 version, there is a somewhat happier ending in that when he comes back and takes the only job he can with the traveling circus, he finds his wife is also back with them and it appears they are reconciled in the final scene. The final scene in the new film is supposed to be ironic, but it sort of feels like a cosmic joke punchline!

TruHart1 😎

[dentjusay]

Acting, visuals, and aura of the film were great. I definitely had Big Fish vibes when watching. The story was not as impressive for me though. I was hoping for certain interactions between characters to have more depth throughout the film (Bradley & Rooney, Bradley & Cate), but they instead turned into predictable messes. And that ending left me feeling unsatisfied and let down similar to how you feel when a show/movie ends with the protagonist realizing it was all a dream 🙃. The fantastical world GDT created kept my utmost attention and interest, even if the story had some room for improvement. 7/10

[Alpha714]

I agree.  Was disappointed in the film and lost interest as it unfolded way too long.