Guillermo del Toro’s “Nightmare Alley” is a phenomenal movie that will never see the success it deserves. I really had no idea what to expect going into this movie, and the marketing made sure of that. Previews showed a horror film set in a carnival that included monsters, but none were present in this film – at least non-human monsters. This was also accentuated by del Toro’s typical mystical style, which includes strange creatures and magic. Instead, “Nightmare Alley” is a grounded noir thriller in many different locations, that abandoned the carnival shown heavily in the trailers after the first third of the film. Themes of loss, triumph, and justice are very common throughout, as we follow a man trying to rise up in life and become successful.

The film begins with a man dragging a wrapped body into a hole in the middle of a house. He then lights the house on fire and walks out. This man is our protagonist, Stanton, played by Bradley Cooper, a charismatic grifter who treats every situation like a chameleon, blending into his environment and becoming exactly who he thinks he needs to be to get what he wants. Stanton joins and rises through the ranks of a carnival, taking odd jobs here and there and learning as much as possible from his peers, all the while preparing to leave. Eventually, Stanton leaves the carnival for a solo career to become a psychic with a woman named Molly, played by Rooney Mara. They eventually get married off-screen and the relationship is borderline abusive at times. These characters have little on-screen chemistry, which is enough to take you out of the illusion of the movie, at times. Stanton continues to take increasingly dangerous gigs and employs a therapist to help him learn about his clients. Can he keep up the act and fool a man who threatens all that Stanton has built?

Boasting 150 minutes, “Nightmare Alley” has a quite indomitable runtime. Such long movies are rarely that popular with mainstream audiences. I love the way this movie treats the audience as smart moviegoers who don’t need everything explained immediately. There are beautiful moments when the camera just lingers on a scene and we truly feel the locations, from the dirty and dark carnival to bright foreboding buildings. That’s not to say the film has a slow pace, as the entire runtime is packed with important events and intriguing dialogue. There are graphic scenes of physical violence and drug use at key points in the film, yet they never feel gratuitous. The shot composition is straightforward, but during pivotal scenes, there can be a real sense of claustrophobia. Sometimes we are almost trapped with these characters and their choices.

The characters of this film were almost entirely fleshed out and a joy to watch. While the leads of this film, Bradley Cooper and Cate Blanchett, play their parts with a lot of vigor and emotion, many of the supporting characters are almost dull and one-dimensional. Actors such as Ron Perlman, who played a strongman, and Willem Dafoe, who played the carnival’s owner, were used extensively for the marketing of this film, but for the most part, were left behind after the first third. The supporting cast was still fun to watch on first viewing, but lacked anything to come back for on rewatch.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this film to anyone who can bear the watch time, as it has a lot to offer. This may not be the usual output for del Toro and Cooper, but that’s not inherently bad. Together they created a truly interesting and engaging movie that could be enjoyed by many people who may have missed it.