Nightmare Alley

Nightmare Alley (1947)

  • 100% of critics liked it
    (10 reviews)

  • 84% of users liked it
    (1,518 ratings)

Nightmare Alley is the sordid tale of a conniving young man who, in the words of one of the film's supporting characters, ends up low because he aimed so high. Drifter Tyrone Power sweet-talks his way into a job as barker for a rundown carnival. He is fascinated by an illegal side-show… More

Unrated,
Directed By
Genres
Drama, Classics
In Theaters
Jan 28, 1947 Wide
20th Century Fox

Critic Reviews

  • Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

    A strange and rather sick movie made by highly talented people.

  • J. Hoberman, Village Voice

    Neither a great movie nor even a classic noir but it has a great ambition to be daring and, once seen, is not easily forgotten.

  • Anton Bitel, Eye for Film

    Alongside Todd Browning's Freaks, this is a brilliantly grim assessment of humanity's place in the cruel circus of life.

  • David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews

    ...worth a look, if only for Power's engaging, electrifying performance.

  • Christopher Null, Filmcritic.com

    will haunt you for days

Read all 10 critic reviews

See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • AJ V


    A touching, dramatic, exciting, romantic, interesting film. I loved Power as the young man who aims too high, goes too far, pushes too much to get what he thinks he deserves. It's pretty long, but very worth seeing.

  • Michael G


    Nightmare Alley gets better every time I see it. The photography is so beautiful and simultaneously sleazy that I felt like I need a tetanus shot after watching it. Tyrone Power plays a great prick who gets what he wants through Jedi mind tricks and a series of screw jobs. Obviously… More

  • Cindy I


    Good movie, with an especially good performance by Tyrone Power. He plays a magician/mentalist in a circus sideshow. One of his fellow performers dies due to a careless, although unintentional, act by Power, a death foretold in a tarot card reading by Joan Blondell. Power leaves the… More

  • Ken S


    The best Carnie Noir film ever made. and Colleen Gray is wicked hot

  • Veronique K


    a highly underrated film noir flick starring tyrone power who is usually the typecasted swashbuckler....a story around the circus and the art of con. power plays a drifter who seeks a job in the circus and acquires the trickery of conning art supervised by the senior con woman played… More

Read all 6 featured audience ratings

Currently unavailable on Flixster

Also available on

Other Retailers

Not Available
Not Available
Not Available

Subscription Services

Not Available
Not Available
Not Available

Cast

See more (40)