ARCADIAN
(director: Benjamin Brewer; screenwriter: Michael Nilon; cinematographer: Frank Mobilio; editor: Kristi Shimek; music: Kristin Gundred, Josh Martin; cast: Nicolas Cage (Paul), Jaeden Martell(Joseph), Maxwell Jenkins (Thomas), Sadie Soverall (Charlotte), Samantha Coughlan (Mrs. Rose), Joe Dixon (Mr. Rose), Joel Gillman (Hobson); Runtime: 92; MPAA Rating: R; producers: David Wulf, Braxton Pope, Nicolas Cage, Mike Nilon, Arianne Fraser, Delphine Perrier; RLJE; 2024)
“A gripping near future sci-fi film and coming-of-age drama about a family sticking together to survive against monsters in the aftermath of an apocalypse.”
Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz
A gripping near future sci-fi film and coming-of-age drama about a family sticking together to survive against monsters in the aftermath of an apocalypse. It’s crisply directed by Benjamin Brewer (“The Trust”/”Beneath Contempt”) but densely written with little exposition by Michael Nilon, as it follows the template of A Quiet Place.
There are only a few survivors in the post-apocalyptic world, which no one knows what caused it.
The widower Paul (Nicolas Cage) lives in a remote rustic cabin with his two playful teenage opposite sons, Thomas (Maxwell Jenkins) and Joseph (Jaeden Martell). He’s a strict but caring father, living in a world where it’s safe to go outside during the day but at night the family must lock themselves in from the nocturnal killer monsters who arise from the ground trying to get into their cabin.
The boys resent each other, as Thomas resents that dad relies on Joseph because he’s the smart one, and Joseph resents that dad allows Thomas to regularly visit a nearby farm where he flirts with the attractive Charlotte (Sadie Soverall) while he must do the difficult scavenging chores. When dad is injured, Thomas unsuccessfully tries to get medicine for him from Charlotte’s mean-spirited father (Joe Dixon).
In the third act, the otherworldly creatures attack Paul’s place and the humans must stand up to them or perish.
The unusually subdued Cage still gives an eye-popping performance, while Martell and Jenkins give sturdy performances. But the imaginatively created creatures, more than the actors, make the film worth seeing. What needed improvement was the blurry visuals from the shaky hand-held camera.
It played at SXSW.
REVIEWED ON 4/14/2024 GRADE: B-