- Release year: 2025
- Director: Dan Berk and Robert Olsen.
- Producers: Adam Friedlander, Joby Harold, Julian Rosenberg, Matt Schwartz, Drew Simon, Sam Speiser, and Tory Tunnell.
- Screenplay by: Lars Jacobson.
- Cinematography by: Jacques Jouffret.
- Music by: Lorne Balfe and Andrew Kawczynski.
Synopsis: a man who can’t feel pain uses his condition to fight off the robbers who have taken his love interest as a hostage.
Shotgun Commentary: insane and hilarious. Big, BIG fun for anyone who enjoys gratuitous violence taken to surreal extremes, The Boys (2019 – present) style.
Review
Novocaine is the perfect action film for anyone who enjoys gory humour. It is as light and wholesome as a movie with a kidnapping and fried hands can be. If you are the type of person that giggles at the sight of exaggerated murders in a slasher, boy are you in for a fun time!
A joke turned fable
The story begins like any revenge tale, awkward guy meets cool girl, they hit it off, and tragedy strikes. In this case, the tragedy being a robbery at the bank they work in. The robbers decide to take Novocaine’s love interest Sherry (Amber Midthunder) as a hostage on their way out, prompting Novocaine (Jack Quaid), whose real name is Nate, to go after her.
This detail is quite telling of the state of society right now. While one doesn’t expect to get a social commentary on a film as deranged as this, it would be naive to ignore the obvious critique staring at you right in the face. A disappointed head shake that can be felt, particularly, during the exact moment when Novocaine decides to leave the injured policeman and steal his car to go after the robbers himself. The issue has been discussed in other reviews in this blog before, but it bears mentioning again.
The unexpected message
The police, like any other emergency service, should be a force people believe in. A presence that makes you feel reassured and safe instead of frustrated and nervous. However, Novocaine’s assessment of the situation and his decision might just be the most realistic part of the whole feature.
He assumes that the police is going to take ages to get there. That they will do their job slowly and incompetently. And that Sherry will be long dead by the time they get a clue. This disenchantment with state institutions is something that can be felt universally. The same way you wait over five hours for an ambulance that will never come in the UK, or you think twice before reporting a crime in the US if you happen to not be white.
There is a grave problem with the services that should exist to help the people right now. Whether that is due to lack of funding, systematic racism, or inefficiency in the screening process, it is an issue that should be addressed urgently. Then again, like most important issues, it is widely ignored by those with the power to fix it. So you’ll probably keep seeing films denouncing this situation for years to come.
Bright futures
That being said, let’s turn now to the cast. Jack Quaid seems to be on a roll of amazing career choices, embracing the awkward persona he embodies so well and transforming it in all sorts of way to give us great performances in fantastic movies. With Companion (2025) and Novocaine out this year, and past projects like Logan Lucky (2017) and The Boys, his presence is projects is becoming a great tell that the product will be good, or, at least, a lot of fun.
As for his love interest, Sherry, she is played by Amber Midthunder, the star from Prey (2022) is showing up on big projects such as this one and Opus (2025), finally getting the recognition her talent deserves. Despite having very little time on screen and playing a pretty plain, clichéd character, she does deliver as much as the text allows her, creating an enjoyable experience for the audience despite the clear shortcomings of the character’s creation.
Ray Nicholson is another rising star in this project who seems to be getting a lot more spotlight in 2025 with this feature and the upcoming horror movie Borderline (2025). He clearly gets his penchant for horror from his father, from whom he also gets the looks and the blood-chilling smile, a feature that he often uses and that will surely give him many villain roles in the future.
Final thoughts
All in all, Novocaine is a gory action comedy that you will love if you are the type of person who laughs with The Boys and enjoys self-deprecating humour. It is a great adventure, best enjoyed if you ignore the realities of what the body can and can’t withstand.
Instead, focus on how lovable the loser protagonist can be. Huge recommend for a fun time, just don’t bring your “this is inaccurate” friend with you.
Thanks to Paramount for big-screen access! Novocaine will be released the 28th of March.
Advice to take from this movie:
- A piece of cake and a milkshake for lunch is the perfect example of what adulting looks like nowadays.
- Not all nepo babies suck at their jobs.
- We can call leave the fades to white in the past now. PLEASE.
What’s your take? Have you watched Novocaine? Don’t hesitate to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below, or leave a message in my contact page! For more reviews and cinema-related articles, check out the rest of my blog! 😀