ReelBob: ‘Nope’ ★★½

By Bob Bloom

Jordan Peele’s “Nope” is a science-fiction themed movie driven by an interesting premise. It offers some exciting scenes. It’s suspenseful and creates tension.

And, yet, despite these attributes, the movie fails to coalesce as a whole. It simply feels unsatisfying and incomplete as if Peele had forgotten to add an ingredient to his latest cinematic recipe.

The bulk of the movie is centered at Haywood’s Hollywood Horses, a successful horse-wrangling business catering to the film industry. It is now run by OJ (Daniel Kaluuya) and his sister, Em (Kiki Palmer), who inherited the business after the strange death of their father, played by Keith David.

The Haywoods claim to be descended from the unidentified jockey riding the horse in Eadweard Muybridge’s first-ever moving picture.

They have had, as Em proclaims, skin in the game since the birth of movies.

But that does not help them in keeping the business viable. OJ is an introvert, a taciturn individual who says as little as possible. He appears more comfortable around his horses than people. He seems always to be looking around, as if searching for something.

And since the death of his father, OJ has been intently scanning the skies. Kaluuya provides an interesting, low-key performance. You sense he knows something is amiss; that he, his sister and others in the area are being watched — or perhaps — stalked.

Among them are the Haywoods’ neighbor, Ricky (Steven Yeun), a former child star, who now runs a theme park-dude ranch. Ricky, who dresses in cowboy duds that would make Roy Rogers blush, wants to buy the Haywoods’ ranch, but OJ has no desire to sell.

Peele falls short in trying to blend a UFO thriller with observations about Hollywood and filmmaking.

This is especially true in a subplot that really fails to fit into the overall fabric — Ricky’s tragic experience on his childhood TV sitcom when his chimpanzee costar went berserk on set.

The bulk of the movie is Em and OJ’s attempts to film the unexplained presence in the never-moving cloud overhead.

While Kaluuya’s OJ may be quiet, Palmer’s Em is a ball of exuberance and excitement. She’s constantly talking — even when she should simply shut up — and on the move.

“Nope” is a dark and dangerous version of “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” with a hint of “Jaws.” And while it provides several unnerving chills and thrills, “Nope’s” payoff feels anticlimactic as well as somewhat of a letdown.

With “Nope,” Peele aimed for the stars, but his movie feels a bit short of reaching the stratosphere.

I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. I review movies, 4K UHD, Blu-rays and DVDs for ReelBob (ReelBob.com), The Film Yap and other print and online publications. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com. You also can follow me on Twitter @ReelBobBloom and on Facebook at ReelBob.com or the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My movie reviews also can be found at Rotten Tomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.

NOPE
2½ stars out of 4
(R), bloody images, violence, language