Nightmare Alley (Criterion) Disc 1 11/25 Blu-ray (Rental)

Noir fatalism has rarely been so alluring as in this vision of the world as a soul-sick carnival of corruption. Putting his own luxuriantly stylized spin on the classic hard-boiled novel by William Lindsay Gresham, master fabulist Guillermo del Toro conjures a sordid, seductive portrait of America on the cusp of World War II. The film follows Stan Carlisle (Bradley Cooper), a roustabout in a traveling sideshow who uses charm and deception to become a phony mentalist preying on the rich and powerful—but at what cost? Brought to life by an all-star cast that includes Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe, and Rooney Mara, and nominated for four Oscars (including Best Picture), Nightmare Alley is a haunting descent into the illusory abyss of the American dream. DIRECTOR-APPROVED 4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES 4K digital master of Nightmare Alley: Vision in Darkness and Light (2025), a new 159-minute, black-and-white extended director’s cut, supervised by director Guillermo del Toro, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack 4K digital master of the theatrical version of the film, with Dolby Atmos soundtrack Two 4K UHD discs of the films presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the films and special features New audio commentary on the extended director’s cut featuring del Toro New documentary on the film’s performances, visual language, costume and production design, and score New introduction by del Toro on the different versions of the film New conversation between del Toro and actor and producer Bradley Cooper New conversation between del Toro and coscreenwriter Kim Morgan Trailers English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing and English descriptive audio PLUS: An essay by crime-fiction and true-crime expert Sarah Weinman