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The acclaimed actor is likely the ideal pick for a daring scary movie centered on Jesus Christ, however not for the reasons some viewers may think. In reality, the star doesn't even portray the central religious figure in The Carpenter’s Son: the part he plays is referred to merely as The Carpenter. He is cast as a father figure of this story, attempting to keep his religious convictions while The Boy (portrayed by Noah Jupe), his teenage foster child, begins to display divine powers. The explanation it's challenging to imagine a different major actor playing this part is that while the role becomes burdened with multiple difficulties, Cage himself seems almost touchingly convinced that the dark, somber feature is a valuable project.

The Actor's Current Film Selections

Nicolas Cage has been using his time more carefully in recent years. He still does more films than most regular audiences will ever see — for instance, did you know that the actor has filmed three separate cowboy movies recently? — however he also mixes in esteemed critically acclaimed roles for example Dream Scenario, another notable movie, and Longlegs. This new film seems like one of those, because it’s not strictly scary, possibly controversial, and handles a exaggerated concept quite seriously.

The Film's Plot and Handling

Sadly, writer-director the director fails to repay that serious attention. The film begins with a interestingly wandering context, positioned as based on an unknown scripture about the youthful days of the messiah. Cage's character, The Mother, and the boy relocate from place to place, afraid of religious persecution or suspicion regarding their son's strange powers. “Calamity follows us,” The Carpenter mournfully notes. That continues when evil influences target the family in their latest settlement, initiating on that familiar Biblical temptation for the son.

Sometimes, the film resembles an Exorcist-style horror film, though no one of the central roles are clearly inhabited. On the contrary, they are increasingly alienated from each other, while these powers influence a resident female (Isla Johnston, listed as “The Stranger”) who The Boy forms a relationship with, and provides all troubling visions of a bleak destiny. The Carpenter in particular grapples with his role in this story, sometimes berating his child he can’t fully understand.

Debate and Sensitivity

This material is apt to stir disagreement, and the director approaches it with plenty of delicacy — overly, possibly. The notion of a young man facing his future martyrdom and lured by dark influences is certainly frightening, but Nathan may be hesitant regarding looking exploitative and keen to indicate his goals, thus he frequently withdraws to dimly foreboding visuals. Characters brood incessantly — the singer-actress, who displayed notable talent in another movie, of all things — cedes her role to her Mother Mary cloak, occasionally interrupted by several gruesome scary visuals.

Cage's Portrayal and Movie's Weaknesses

At the same time, Cage dabbles in precisely the type of melodramatic acting that those who enjoy his campier roles might be looking for. One scene (shown) in promotional material where he flips out and screams “My belief is broken!” If that kind of dramatic explosion is included in your Jesus-themed horror movie, maybe a more brazenly silly style would be more effective of his eagerness to exaggerate as required. On the other hand, the film echoes the weaker straight-to-DVD productions Cage made through much of the last decade — not the cheesy thrillers instead the dramas and paranormal movies that often seem intriguing, and frequently include several notable actor's highlights, but in the end seem like, indeed, cheap home video fare.

Frankly, several of these, although simpler, were easier to view in general. Here is where I need to disregard my personal rule, not spiritual but work-oriented: Long ago, a beloved editor convinced me to eliminate adjectives like “monotonous” or “lifeless” from my reviewing language. These phrases express scant except a subjective and generically described impatience, withdrawing from the task of clearly expressing the intellectual and sensation of viewing a particular movie. It’s difficult to convey monotony without seeming uninteresting personally. It’s no more expressive as terming a movie “interesting.” “Explain further,” that is.

But I must confess, I felt uninterested during much of The Carpenter’s Son. To the movie’s non-exploitative credit, it’s a churchy kind of dullness, not for The Carpenter’s Son is lecturing, but because it requires a type of patient acceptance to sit through it. At some point soon after starting, the film settles into a repetitive rhythm of simmering distress, and fails to