Jordan Peele is an expert in the horror genre. With his popular films like ‘Get Out’ and ‘Us,’ he has taken us on thought-provoking journeys. His latest film ‘Nope’ is ready to do the same. The official trailer for the long-awaited film has finally arrived and well, we have more questions than answers.
Check it out below.
True to his form Jordan Peele has given us a film trailer that has us analyzing every single detail. I admit I’ve already watched this trailer several times and am still trying to figure out exactly what ‘Nope’ is about. The synopsis of the film does not help either.
The residents of a lonely gulch in inland California bear witness to an uncanny and chilling discovery.
See what we mean? This synopsis tells us nothing and my brain is working overtime to understand. The thing about Jordan Peele is he does not just do a basic horror film. You have to pay attention to what is happening on the screen and every scene is as important as the last. His films are special because they are based on the issues faced in the Black community. With ‘Get Out’ and ‘Us,’ he focused on racism and systematic inequality. ‘Nope’ most definitely is doing the same.
When Jordan Peele initially released the poster for ‘Nope’ back in 2021 I was immediately intrigued. The poster features an ominous looking cloud with what looks to be a kite string hanging out of it. That had me questioning if this was going to be a film about an alien invasion of some sort. From what I have gathered watching the trailer, that appears to be the case. But that is not all this film is going to be about. Jordan Peele is known for making films that will throw in classic horror elements to the storyline while adding a twist of Black history. The opening of the trailer which talks about the first assembly of photographs to create a motion picture being a two second clip of a Black man on a horse, is already setting the tone.
We don’t have a ton of Black filmmakers out there making horror films where we can see ourselves on the screen. Jordan Peele is the one who has taken the genre and done something unique with his storytelling and he continues to put us at the forefront. I’m excited to see Academy Award winner Daniel Kaluuya (damn it feels good to say this) teamed up with Jordan again on a new project because we all know how amazing he was in ‘Get Out.’ One of my other favorites Keke Palmer is also starring in the film. We still don’t know too much about their characters other than they both work at Haywood Ranch where they are the only Black owned horse trainers in Hollywood. We also know that Keke Palmers character is related to the Black man mentioned at the beginning of the trailer. That connection will most certainly come into play in the movie at some point.
The alien invasion thing is just the beginning but everything that happens in this film is going to leave us stunned, I’m sure. For all we know, we could actually be completely wrong about the alien invasion storyline but that’s what we’re sticking with for now. The creepy cloud thing is sucking people up into the sky for reasons unknown, and there’s a lot of weird faces lurking around. Everything is up for interpretation at this point. One thing we know for sure is Jordan Peele has us saying “Yup” to seeing this film.
In addition to Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer, Nope stars Barbie Ferreira, and Steven Yeun.
Some Other Thoughts
- Honestly loving the play on words with the film’s title being ‘Nope.’ It’s a bit of a running joke within the Black community. Typically, when we are faced with something that is just totally off and we want no parts of, we’ll immediately say the word “Nope.” This whole trailer had me saying “nope” to all the creepy things I was seeing.
- “What’s a bad miracle? They got a word for that?”
- Daniel Kaluuya’s character looks incredibly bored by everything.
- Keke Palmer’s energy is infectious. That little twirl after she says “we like to say, since the moment pictures can move, we had skin in the game” is adorable.
- Why are there so many of those inflatable tube men in assorted colors? I just know something weird is going to happen with those.
- Wondering if there is any significance to Jordan using Stevie Wonder’s song “Fingertips (Part 2)” in the trailer. He doesn’t just use a song for the hell of it. There’s ALWAYS a reason.
- Jordan Peele sure knows how to make something dark and ominous. At the 0:44 mark of the trailer I was glued to my screen.