Nope (2022) Review

By now, you might have heard of the movie, Nope. If you haven’t seen it, you’ve probably seen ads about it or advertisements in the theater. With so much action and detail packed into one movie, many have to ask, is it worth watching?

Starring Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer, Nope was released on July 22, 2022. Nope tells the story of OJ and Em Haywood, a pair of siblings who train horses for Hollywood. Alongside their Grandfather, they are the owners of the only black-owned horse ranch in Hollywood.

*Spoilers ahead*

After a tragedy at the horse stables, their father passes away, and their ranch falls into dire circumstances. With their father gone, their primary source of income is selling horses to Ricky Jupe Park (Steven Yuen).

Jupiter (Jupe) is a former child actor who now owns a local amusement park. Jupe got his nickname when he starred in the movie “Kid Sheriff”. This was after he was on the show “Gordy’s Home” a silly show about a family with a pet monkey, which had a rather sudden end. Nevertheless, Jupe seems enthusiastic about his time on the show and spends his life chasing fame any way he can.

Soon, strange things start to happen around the ranch after their father's death. In the 6 months that have passed, the electricity goes out randomly, audio slows down at night, and generally, things have been behaving strangely. They even saw something in the sky which looked like a UFO.

In the hopes of fame and glory, Em and OJ decide they want to try to get what they saw on camera. The UFO ends up sucking up a few of the duo’s horses and after multiple attempts of trying to get this thing on camera, there’s no use, and each night things get more and more dangerous.

We soon find out that Jupe has found out about the UFO and holds his own show about his “new discovery”. About 100 people come to watch this new discovery of his. Jupe has a horse in a large cage and releases the horse hoping the UFO will abduct the horse. Unfortunately, things don’t go according to plan.

The UFO seems more interested in the humans and abducts everyone, including Jupe. We get to see the inside of the UFO which is very disturbing. It looks like a stomach and each human is digested. As Jupe dies we get to see a glimpse into his past. A glimpse into how “Gordy’s Home” ended.

Straight away we’re opened to a horrific scene of Gordy, the monkey, tearing apart one of the cast members. Blood is splattered everywhere and it seems that most cast members didn’t make it. There Jupe is, hiding under the table, watching Gordy. It’s terrifying as Gordy looks around for Jupe. And, he finds him. Instead of killing Jupe though, Gordy tries to give Jupe a fist bump. Jupe, being only a child, exchanges the fist bump. Mid-fist-bump, we hear gunfire, and the police enter and kill Gordy.

After this, the tragedy is all over the news and people are scared. Even though OJ and Em are scared, they still want to get their photographic evidence. While in their home, the UFO is right above their house and drops the “human remains” of its dinner on the house. We see blood pouring outside, all over the windows as it does so.

Desperate to get this UFO on film, they go outside and are determined, even if it means death. They soon find out that this UFO is actually a creature and not so much a UFO at all. OJ chases after it trying to get it on camera. Em has an idea and lures the creatures towards a balloon and it sucks it up. But, the balloon pops. At first, we aren't sure if OJ survives, but we see him riding back on his horse as Em smiles at the heartwarming reunion

The true meaning of Nope is more than meets the eye. It’s about us as humans and how we care so much about the internet and fame that we’ll go to crazy lengths for it. Peele made a simple yet amazingly complex film which is very hard to accomplish. The ending was emotional when you saw the two siblings reunite and the majority of the movie keeps you on your toes. The movie had some hilarious moments, and the end left people with more questions than answers which is what made the movie so unique and enthralling. Overall, this movie is a great thriller and has so much detail.