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Nicolas Cage is likely the perfect choice for a audacious horror film focused on the biblical figure, however not for the motivations certain viewers could guess. In reality, Cage does not even play the central religious figure in The Carpenter’s Son: the part he plays is credited simply as The Carpenter. He is framed as a father figure in this tale, striving to maintain his faith while his son (acted by Noah Jupe), his teenage adopted son, starts to exhibit divine powers. The explanation it's challenging to imagine another leading star taking this character is that even as the role becomes stricken with various challenges, the actor appears almost touchingly convinced that the gloomy, bleak small film is deserving of his effort.

Cage's Latest Career Choices

Cage has been using that time more carefully recently. He continues to does more films than the majority of casual fans may ever watch — for example, did you know that the man has made several different Westerns over the last few years? — yet he also adds prestige independent films such as one recent hit, Pig, and Longlegs. The Carpenter’s Son sounds like a similar project, because it’s borderline horror, possibly controversial, and takes a exaggerated description quite seriously.

The Film's Plot and Handling

Regrettably, writer-director the director does not reward viewer engagement. The Carpenter’s Son opens in a engagingly rootless setting, positioned as drawing from an obscure religious text concerning the youthful days of the messiah. The Carpenter, the maternal figure, and the boy move from place to place, afraid of faith-based hostility or suspicion over The Boy’s unusual abilities. “Trouble pursues us,” The Carpenter mournfully notes. This persists as evil influences attack them where they currently live, initiating with that well-known scriptural test for the son.

Sometimes, this production resembles an demonic possession-type possession movie, though none of the main figures are clearly inhabited. Rather, they grow more and more distant mutually, while these entities affect a resident female (the actress, named “The Stranger”) that the son bonds with, and gives all troubling visions of a grim future. Cage's role notably struggles with his place in the narrative, sometimes berating his child who mystifies him.

Controversy and Sensitivity

This material is prone to invite debate, and Nathan approaches it with plenty of delicacy — too much, maybe. The notion of a teenage boy facing his eventual sacrifice and lured by mysterious forces is certainly frightening, but Nathan could be wary of looking exploitative and eager to signal his goals, therefore he regularly retreats into gloomily threatening filming. Characters continually reflect — FKA Twigs, who demonstrated notable talent in a recent film update, surprisingly — yields her acting to her character's costume, sometimes broken up by some gnarly horror imagery.

Cage's Acting and Movie's Weaknesses

Meanwhile, Cage dabbles in exactly the kind of exaggerated performance that his more snickering appreciators might be looking for. There is a moment (also included) in previews in which Cage loses control and screams “My faith has been shattered!” If that kind of dramatic explosion is part of a Jesus-themed horror movie, possibly a more boldly ridiculous method would take better advantage of Cage’s willingness to go over the top as required. On the other hand, The Carpenter’s Son is closer to the weaker low-budget movies Cage made during the 2010s — apart from the B-movies but rather the narrative films and ghost stories that typically appear interesting, and often contain some select actor's highlights, but finally come across like, well, cheap home video fare.

Honestly, some of those, though not as grand, were easier to view overall. Here is where I must violate my usual practice, not religious but career-related: Years back, a beloved editor persuaded me to remove adjectives like “boring” or “dull” from my analytical lexicon. These words communicate minimal other than a subjective and generically described restlessness, avoiding the job of clearly expressing the intellectual and feeling of viewing a specific film. It's hard to express tedium without seeming uninteresting yourself. It's just as unclear as calling a movie “engaging.” “Elaborate,” that is.

But I must confess, I grew weary during much of the film. In its defense, it is a devotional type of dullness, not due to The Carpenter’s Son is lecturing, but as it requires a sort of dutiful submission to watch it. Eventually soon after starting, the film enters a repetitive rhythm of simmering anguish, and never really