Nope (2022)

The newest movie from today’s pre-eminent hater of long titles, Jordan Peele (Get Out, Us), Nope follows grief-stricken horse trainer OJ Haywood (Daniel Kaluuya), whose father Otis ran a successful business training and providing horses to Hollywood productions. After Otis (Keith David) dies in a mysterious, gory accident, OJ tries to keep the now-failing business and accompanying horse ranch afloat, with the help of his charismatic estranged sister, Emerald (Keke Palmer). But things get even more complicated for the Haywoods when they notice an odd, threatening cloud on the horizon of their ranch. Enlisting the help of an electronics store employee named Angel (Brandon Perea), and gruff, highly-respected cinematographer Antlers Holst (Michael Wincott), OJ and Emerald decide to investigate the bizarre cloud, hoping to make it big with their findings.

Writer-director Peele stands among the most creative, visionary auteurs of our time. At once an emotional family drama, a gruesome commentary on our constant need for entertainment and spectacle, a thesis on COVID-era agoraphobic trauma and a bonkers sci-fi horror story, Nope might be his most ambitious project yet. Learn as little as possible about this strange and singular film before seeing it… but definitely see it.