With 'Nope,' Jordan Peele Did It Again
How does he succeed in doing something other film directors can’t?
So yeah, I re-watched Jordan Peele’s 2022 movie Nope this weekend, and I can already tell you that it will become an iconic piece of work, much like his other movies, Get Out, Candy Man, and Us. Peele is incredible at de-centering whiteness in all his work to make space for Black and brown characters. As a Black person, I feel “seen” in his films. So, without going into too much detail, Nope brings to life the story of a Black horse trainer family. The father dies at the start of the film under mysterious circumstances, and the brother OJ, played by Daniel Kaluuya, and sister Emerald, played by Keke Palmer, are left trying to sustain the family business.
One evening, OJ notices something that looks like a spaceship in the sky. His sister convinces him that if they can capture whatever it is on film, they’ll be able to air it on the Oprah show and make lots of cash. And so from there, Peele takes us on an exciting and unique journey that keeps you bound to your seat for almost two hours. Peele and Kaluuya have worked together before, and you can tell by the way they collaborate in symbiosis. Kaluuya is more than credible in the role. You sense that he is intrigued by the mysterious occurrences around him, annoyed yet endeared by his little sister, who always seems to want to hug the limelight.
When you look at the characters, it is not their blackness that strikes you; it is their common humanity. Peele again shows that it is not the color of the character that makes a film good; it is their depth and their story. This begs the question as to why half of Hollywood insists on casting mainly white characters in films. When you see what Peele does, you realize that there is no reason why other film directors cannot do the exact same.
The film is effortless in the way it represents society. Yes, there are white people, but not just white people, and truth be told, that is what actual society looks like. The uniquely white worlds that Hollywood has promoted for decades are but another facet of white supremacy in action. When I look at some of the films I used to watch in the 80s and 90s in my formative years and see little to zero representation of people who look like me, I wonder how I managed to build my identity as a Black woman. I mean, I was literally absent from all that discourse; it was as though I did not exist.
Peele doesn’t just rely on the representation. He is a master storyteller who brings original content to the screen every single time. When you take a seat to watch something he created, you never know where he is going to take you, and that is what cinema should be about. I’m tired of all the effects-packed, boring, re-heated stuff that Hollywood is in the awful habit of showing us. Peele is entertaining while at the same time making sure the worlds he creates are places where everyone feels included.
Last year I made myself a promise: I decided to stop going to watch movies that didn’t feature Black characters. Why should I pay to go see a film that ignores or deprives me of my voice or people that look like me? So far, I’ve been able to keep to this decision. I’m just hoping there are more Jordan Peele movies in waiting because this is exactly what the world needs.
Thank you for reading my perspective.
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He's become the Alfred Hitchcock of Black directors: conveying specific fears of his audience into compelling works.
He's an absolute legend.