Coleen Gray and Helen Walker

(On Cable TV, September 2021) Among film noir fans, Nightmare Alley is perhaps best known for being a rare A-list production with first-rate stars and a decent budget — most crime thrillers we now associate with the noir tradition were B-grade productions, not meant for prestige nor posterity. But this film had one of the most famous actors of the time, Tyrone Power, and the production crew required to do justice to its ambitious setting, from the underworld of carnival shows to Chicago high society… and back. If the essence of noir was poking at traditional American values and pressuring its characters until they did unspeakable things, then Nightmare Alley couldn’t be more representative — our hero chooses to be a conman and associate with others who share his lack of morals. This all backfires a few times, and the film clearly patterns itself along the lines of a classical rags-to-riches-to-rags tragedy, the hero doomed by his own personal failings. Power is better than average here, with such notables as Joan Blondell, Coleen Gray and Helen Walker providing good supporting performances. It’s not pleasant stuff (although the ending isn’t quite as dark as it could have been) but the heightened nature of the carnival environment does lend a welcome off-kilter quality to the result. The other role of the carnival is to create parallels between it and larger social issues — viewers will easily make the parallels between the carnival’s naked artifice and how it’s more honest than Chicago high society about its deceptions. It’s not surprising to learn that the film was not a hit upon release, but that its critical reputation has considerably improved since then. It remains somewhat harsh and merciless, which is a flavour of cinema that’s better digested today — not to mention that only confirmed classic Hollywood fans know much about Power these days. In any case, the film remains worthy of a look, and is set in the coming months to get a big-budget remake as an enduring homage.