Jordan Peele’s Nope (2022) is a fantastic movie that spans several genres, from Western to Horror to Sci-Fi. The film follows the story of OJ (Daniel Kaluuya) and Emerald (Keke Palmer) as they work with a team to capture a picture of the alien that has invaded their ranch. Quickly into viewing the film, it is evident to see how expectations are flipped. Throughout history, cowboys have been portrayed as white Americans who migrated west, when in reality, the majority of cowboys were non-white. At the beginning of the film, we are introduced to the Haywood family, a black brother and sister duo who own a ranch, fulfilling the cowboy trope, but flipping expectations in their race. Viewers also learn that OJ and Emerald are descendants of the actor in the first film created, who is also a black cowboy.
Expectations are also flipped in regards to the alien. At the beginning of the film, we see OJ and Emerald’s father killed by the alien (although the siblings did not know of the alien at the time, they learn later). It is interesting to note that the duo are not interested in payback by killing the alien, rather they want to capture it on film. When the alien is killed at the end of the film by the balloon, Emerald celebrates knowing no one else will die, but this was never their main goal, defying what the audience may expect. The alien itself also defies viewer expectations. UFOs are always portrayed as mechanical ships that contain aliens, never as an alien itself. By flipping this concept on its head, the threat the alien brings intensifies, as this is something that is not commonly done.
Nope also flips common tropes on their heads, such as the trope of the final girl. At the end of the film, we see Holst (Michael Wincott) killed by the alien, Angel (Brandon Perea) alive but of no help, and OJ possibly dead, leaving Emerald as the only one remaining. She releases the balloon to lure the alien in for the picture, gets the perfect shot, and kills the alien. However, at the very end of the film, the audience sees OJ did survive the alien’s attack, meaning Emerald was not truly the final girl.
Overall, Jordan Peele is an amazing director with a unique creative vision that allows him to create new experiences unlike anyone else.
I really liked how you discussed the times where expectations were flipped in the movie. I didn’t really think about all these expectations as I was watching the movie, but now that you point them out they become very evident. I think the fact that they weren’t trying to get revenge on the alien provides insight into their characters, but also to their situation. They were trying to chase the impossible shot for money and fame. Others like Steven Yeun’s character, the other filmmaker, and the tmz camera man all tried the same thing and died because of it. We see in the end the siblings giving up their goal to survive. However, they still ended up achieving it. I also thought it was very interesting seeing the alien being portrayed as the ship itself. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before in an alien movie. Usually the ship harbors the alien. It’s intriguing when director’s flip common tropes and it helps create a unique, creative film.
I hadn’t thought about all of the tropes and expectations that Nope! had flipped. Knowing this, I feel like I can appreciate it more, and I can understand what made it a success in the horror genre. That being said, I think Em was mad at the alien and wanted to kill it after it seemed to kill OJ. After she killed it, she said “Nobody fucks with Haywood! Nobody!” and cheers, which makes it seem as though she was messing with the alien to get revenge AND to get proof of its existence for money. Without that line, I would have agreed that none of her actions were vengeful, but I think they were. I also think that they would have known that proof of an alien that was killing people would have led to people trying to hurt the alien, but their need for money was more pressing. I think that their willingness to die for proof of Jean Jacket’s existence could also prove that it wasn’t just for money and fame- money and fame wouldn’t matter if they were dead. Moreover, I think that trying to get a little revenge is what sets Em and OJ’s crew apart from the other groups. The TMZ guy and Jupe were just exploiting Jean Jacket, while Em and OJ had a personal reason and OJ showed a little respect for Jean Jacket, which ultimately helped them get the evidence and not die.