A story about animals
No! is a film by director Jordan Peel, who plays with the viewer from the very beginning. Starting with a quiet story, keeping the viewer in suspense in the least obvious moments, ending with beautiful and dynamically changing frames. When approaching this production, one should have a clear mind, without any knowledge of the ongoing story. A repeated narrative is the ban on looking into the eyes of animals. And actually, I shouldn’t write more about it so as not to spoil the fun for you guys. Horror keeps the viewer in suspense most of the time, does not slow down, fights with typical blockbuster movieson the trails. Because yes, Jordan Peele is known for moving more political themes in his films. Here, although some audiences may pay particular attention to black characters, the story of animal trainers itself comes to the fore. Especially since the mysterious names of the film’s chapters accurately indicate the names of the trained animals, but also outline their symbolism. I will also add that there are SF threads in the film. But who are the aliens, what are they doing here, who are they and how does it affect the lives of the main characters – you have to find out for yourself.
Galapagos Films ‘No’ press kit
Acting that fights stereotypes
I will outline one of the most important aspects of the film. It’s about the relationship between OJ Haywood, played by Daniel Kaluuya, and Emerald Haywood, played by Keke Palmer. They were the ones who got the medal. Family jokes, banter, but at the same time helping each other in situations where the sky is falling on your head, are portrayed perfectly in the film. It is also worth emphasizing the acting of Brandon Perea, playing the role of Angel Torrs – a fan and seller of technology. The shopkeeper emphasizes the sibling relationship, I add a pinch of humor and an alternative way of thinking. It presents the trail of a logically thinking conspiracy theorist. Angel turns his tech skills into pragmatism. His relationship with the Haywood siblings seems awkward, but turns serious in threatening situations. Michael Wincott was amazing as well. actor of cinematographer Antlers Holst. A man bored with life who believes in the power of art and believes that there are things too perfect to see the light of day. Wincott portrayed the character as fascinated by the beauty of the alien. By the way, Steven Yeun playing Ricky “Jupe” Park, a more supporting character, seemed a bit incomprehensible to me at first. The director, however, saves the day here as well. He knows how to create a character differently than usual. It is not without reason that Park does not work through the trauma, he is looking for another purpose in his life. Coming back to the amazing sibling relationship, it contrasts very well: OJ has “work to do” all the time and I want to prove he can take over his father’s legacy, while Emerald just wants fun and peace from life. Their character traits at the moment of greatest trauma come together,
Perfect audiovisual contrast
Contrast is the key word in my opinion. When the action accelerates and the camera starts to move behind the characters, wide frames change with narrow ones. We won’t notice many cuts in the film, and the most beautiful scenes are those where there are no cuts at all. Most often it happens in brutal and goosebumps shots. Showing the location of Agua Dulce as a peaceful and quiet place inhabited by ordinary people turned out to be a bull’s-eye. The beginning of the film is so simple, so human, that when a real problem arises, animated too naturally, you immediately believe that the people depicted in the film are really in trouble. Perfect acting contrasts with simple tropes, music, fast frames and most importantly – with a big cloud in the sky. Mysterious, right?
Galapagos Films ‘No’ press kit
Where are my extra scenes?!
Movie No! is available in Polish distribution thanks to the Galapagos publishing houseand… their release, as usual, is of high quality, although the additional content is disappointing. Or rather, the lack of it. The packaging of the film is minimalistic, the pop-up menu in the Blu-ray player is really nice and fits into the aesthetics of the production, and access to a really large number of subtitles – as many as 10! – can be perceived as a definite plus. I also liked the interlude: when the movie stops for a longer time, in the form of an animated Universal Pictures logo. The Polish translation of the subtitles worked really well, although some puns were translated too literally. I miss Polish dubbing or at least a voiceover. I am disappointed with the lack of any additional scenes, especially since foreign media promote the Blu-ray version as having 90 minutes of additional scenes. In the Polish edition, we will not find a single additional material. Even the packaging is misleading, because although we are nowhere informed about the bonuses, in the small table on the back it says, and I quote: “Special Extras: Replayable instandard definition . Audio and subtitles may vary. Supplementary materials in the original version or in the Polish language version”. There are no extras on the disc! In my opinion, this is a major drawback of the Polish edition, because some scenes beg for explanation and interpretation by the author.
Really No! look up
I haven’t seen good thrillers or horror movies in a long time, but this film turned out to be an amazing audiovisual work for me. It really affected me enough to genuinely root for the main characters. It was enough to build the most human narrative and show how a person can behave in such a situation. This film shows that you don’t need fireworks and amazing special effects to present a good and engaging story. All you need to do is change the frames, move the camera well and write characters that seem typical at first glance, and then become developed and do not forget about their original goals. And although there are no extras on the disc, I can honestly say that this film is worth watching once in a lifetime.
