When a secret screening of Jordan Peele’s “Nope” occurred a few weeks back, I spoke to two people who attended and both of them mentioned the film’s resemblances to M. Night Shyamalan’s “Signs.”
Shyamalan’s film was a slow-burner that dealt with UFOs in very similar ways that Peele seems to in “Nope”. There’s a little more humor in Peele’s film, but the idea seems to remain the same. Instead of focusing on a farm family, Peele sets his sights on Wranglers in a Southern California ranch.
”Nope” seems to be a bigger budgeted popcorn version of “Signs” with sprinkles of “Twister” and an emphasis on chasing UFOs. Popcorn fun. There are no big allegories. Maybe you can read into the themes of how you can avoid UFO death? The Xenophobia that comes with the unknown?
The trailer is misleading and the film is said to not be a riff on the Twilight Zone episode (“Maple Street”) everyone was speculating about. Much like “Signs,” it’s a very contained piece of filmmaking from Peele. It’s hard to not look forward to this one.
“Nope” is being released on July 22nd, 2022. A peculiarly imagined poster has been stamped in almost every movie theatre in the country.
M. Night Shyamalan tells TheWrap that "Lady in the Water" is the film he most wants reappraised, calling it the closest fusion of his family-film and thriller sides.