So what is “Nope” even about, since you can’t tell anything from its title? The story focuses on Otis Junior “OJ” Haywood (Daniel Kaluuya, Peele’s leading man from “Get Out”) and his sister Emerald “Em” Haywood (Keke Palmer), whose quiet horse ranch is suddenly terrorized by what appears to be a UFO floating above them. First, their father is killed by falling debris from the mysterious flying object, and then things get stranger when their power cuts out for short periods and their horses start disappearing rapidly — at which point Em decides that they have to get the UFO on film, saying that they can make money if they get what she dubs the “Oprah shot.”
With the help of tech expert Angel Torres (Brandon Perea) and cinematographer Antlers Holst (Michael Wincott), the latter of whom sets up a hand-cranked camera to avoid the UFO’s apparent electromagnetic pulse, they try to film it, even though OJ realizes a horrifying truth about the flying saucer before they even make their attempt. We won’t spoil here whether or not the gang gets the “Oprah shot” in the end, but if you haven’t seen “Nope” yet, head to Amazon Prime to check out Peele’s smart, introspective take on a summer blockbuster and a monster movie rolled into one.