Neill Shaughness’s review published on Letterboxd:
I was nervous about this one because I last time Peele made a film that everyone loved (Us) I was super disappointed. Fortunately he has redeemed himself to me with this one. There are a few character moments that felt a bit stretched (mostly with that director of photography character), but they we're not overly impactful to the plot so I mostly dismissed them.
This is the freshest take on the UFO mythology in DECADES. The last significant movie along these lines was Signs and fory money this is much better.
Spoilers from here on
I wasn't sure how I felt about the design of the alien til the climax when we finally get to see it in all its glory. The jelly fish/kite design is inspired and sufficiently "alien".
My favorite element, however, is the concept itself and how it cleverly weaves itself into the theme and back stories of the characters. Having the UFO itself be a predatory creature stalking Hollywood animal trainers is simply cool as fuck. Watching Kaluuya transform from helplessly terrified of an unknown to an expert in his field tackling a new challenge was endlessly gratifying to watch.
I am always impressed when a horror film can believably keep its protagonists motivated beyond survival and getting the "Oprah shot" works strongly in that regard.
Though, I gotta say. After all that, if you showed me that final polaroid, I would just think I was looking at a kite. There isn't even anything around it to give us a sense of scale. I don't think they got their shot.
Masterclass in sound design.
