Cheers to the mid-budget action movie! Oftentimes it’s overshadowed by the big budget franchise film, but even in the face of commercial risk, a movie like Novocaine can come out and surprise you. That’s how franchises like John Wick, and studios like 87 North are born. While I can’t see Novocaine reaching the same heights critically or commercially, it’s still a nice, albeit slight, diversion at the cinema.
Novocaine comes to us from directors Robert Olsen and Dan Berk, the duo behind the cult classic Villains. Those who have seen that film most likely already know they have a certain flair for quirky outlandishness. However, the biggest thing to surprise me about Novocaine was actually how tame it was, despite how much it was being sold as a gory and crazy chaotic comedy.
The film follows bank Assistant Manager, Nathan Caine (Jack Quaid), who was born with a genetic disorder that permanently numbs his nervous system so he can’t feel hot, cold, discomfort, or pain. He meets recently hired employee Sherry (Amber Midthunder), and the two hit it off in a very adorable way. However, just as their relationship is about to take off, a trio of criminals breaks into the bank, stealing thousands of dollars and taking Sherry hostage. With no help coming, it’s up to Nathan to spring into action and use his unique disability as a strength, in his quest to save his new love.
With a premise like this, and a directing duo like Olsen and Berk, one would anticipate that the film would be a lot crazier than it is. In fact the gory body horror and outlandish situations, like Nathan sticking his hand in a deep fryer, formed the lynchpin of the film’s marketing campaign. However, admittedly, I ended up feeling pretty desensitized to the whole thing by the end of it. A film boasting about its over-the-top squirm factor should actually have been a lot more brutal. And that, in and of itself, is perhaps my biggest gripe with Novocaine; it’s more tame than it should be. It lacks a certain ambition to take things further than it does, and in doing so, produces a movie that’s fun, but ultimately more forgettable than it wants to be.
However, that’s not to say that Novocaine is a bad movie. On the contrary, it’s perfectly fine. However, the film actually has all the ingredients within it to be better than it actually turned out. It offers up a solid enough time when it could have been a game changer, or at most, spawn a few enjoyable sequels.
That said, I do appreciate it as a return to original action premises that studios are generally more resistant to make these days. As such, I can’t help but find the film to be pretty likable. It has the scrappy stakes of Die Hard, the chaos of Crank, and the bloodiness of Saw. And with all that combined, it makes for an entertaining enough trip to the cinema. It’s a wildly entertaining big screen blast that’s outrageous and original.
A great deal of this is attributed to the winning, everyman performance of star Jack Quaid. Quaid has made a brand of being the good-hearted regular joe ever since he broke out as Hughie in The Boys. While we saw him challenging this role in a phenomenal way in this year’s much more ambitious Companion, here as Nathan Caine in Novocaine, he wears the badge proudly and allows us to root for and sympathize with his incredibly charming character. Novocaine, if nothing else, is about a sheltered individual dealing with a disability, so it’s Quaid’s job to convey the arc of someone who learns to harness that disability in a way that helps him live his life without fear. And he nails this.
He adequately veers believably between sad sack, to understandably smitten, to innocent, determined hero very easily. His befuddled, in-over-his-head demeanor as he’s forced into every action sequence is what gives the film most of its levity. However, what Quaid does that is incredibly genius is how he allows us to believe that after every boss battle, he gets more and more badass, gradually building to a resourceful body-horror John McClane (complete with action quips). In short, with his performance, and how he handles the writing for Nathan gives life to the very definition of unlikely hero.
In supporting roles, Amber Midthunder, as Sherry, and Jacob Batalon, as Roscoe, also shine wonderfully. Midthunder gives an incredibly surprising performance, adequately able to pull off the twists about her character convincingly with ease. While Batalon stays in his “guy in the chair” comfort zone to another charming and funny degree. The more that’s revealed of their two characters, the more interesting their performances become – particularly in Midthunder’s case, as she’s able to harness her Prey experience to incredibly badass degrees towards the film’s final act.
As far as the writing and premise are concerned, the idea of a hero harnessing his disability as a special power of sorts is what really sets the film apart from other run of the mill action romps. It gives the film heart and allows the audience to automatically connect to Nathan and his quest. This is completely necessary because without that, the story would be an incredibly basic “hero saves the girl from criminals” type of action movie. And while complexity is no guarantee of quality, how the film handles its simple premise to stretch the boundaries of gore and blood (while never exceeding them) does add to the fun.
I will admit the one thing that didn’t work for me about the writing was the comedy. Novocaine works perfectly well as an action movie, but as a comedy I found myself smirking more than straight up chuckling. I felt most of the jokes, charming as they were delivered, ultimately fell flat, coming off with a fair amount of flavorlessness. I think the film could have used a bit more wit and originality from a comedic perspective. Though I will admit the sight gags do a much better job of making one laugh than the rest of the cornball punchlines.
From a directorial perspective Olsen and Berk keep things very fast-paced, which is a good thing for a film with a premise as thin as this. They understand it’s not something you can milk for too long, and keep every situation briskly moving in an agreeable way. They also do a pretty good job at executing some of the film’s more gore-soaked gags and action sequences in adequate ways. One action sequence uses glass in a really terrific way, while another ends in a terrific bang featuring an arrow through Jack’s knees, while another results in a pretty brutal wrist skewering (you’ll know what I mean when you see it). These are pretty innovative kills, and I don’t mind complementing the duo for those brief moments of genius. It’s one hell of a fun ride!
On the whole, however, that’s as far as Novocaine goes, and it seems to be content with that. And that’s not a problem as far as making an enjoyable movie at a time when we don’t often see original action premises in production. It’s fun, with strong performances, especially from Quaid and Midthunder, who sell the premise with their charm, toughness, and chemistry. I just ultimately wished that a film with so much going for it could have used the elements it had to make something more challenging and game-changing. I wanted to feel more, squirm more, and come out with my mind blown. That said, despite its lack of ambition, on the whole, Novocaine serves as a pleasant Saturday afternoon matinee. No more, no less.
Rating: 7.5/10