Nightmare Alley - 4 nominations

 

Best Motion Picture of the Year Guillermo del Toro (producer) J. Miles Dale (producer) Bradley Cooper (producer)

Best Achievement in Production Design Tamara Deverell (production design) Shane Vieau (set decoration)

Best Achievement in Costume Design Luis Sequeira

Best Achievement in Cinematography Dan Laustsen

Stan Carlisle runs away to join the circus.  There, he learns the secrets of the clairvoyant act thanks to Madame Zeena and her husband Pete who take him under their wings.  Stan falls in love with the electric lady, Molly, and they run away together.  Two years later, Pete has become a premier psychic act and con man in Buffalo.  When a psychiatrist, Dr. Ritter, comes to his show to reveal him as a fraud on behalf of her friend, Stan wins the moment and Dr. Ritter's fascination.  Together, they conspire to swindle her friend who is living with the guilt of having forced a mistress to get an abortion from which she died.  I won't give away further spoilers but somehow, the movie gets even more intense from there.

I'm shocked that none of the performances in this film were nominated, they were outstanding and in some cases, truly creepy.  The cast is chock full of powerhouse actors and former Oscar winners, and Bradley Cooper's snub for this film was a real surprise as many predicted this to be "his year" to win.

Guillermo del Toro is simply a genius at creating the darkest themes and the most beautiful and perfect production and costume design, and cinematography.  The three worked together masterfully to make multiples kinds of worlds - the gritty circus, the shiny, elite Buffalo performance stages, and everything in between.  His characters get what they deserve, even when you want to root for them to escape.  His imagination knows no bounds, and Nightmare Alley delivers exactly what it advertises in the preview.  

The film is absolutely not for everyone, but if you like a good, dark story with sinister characters, this one's a keeper.  I loved it.

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