Arcadian (2024)

April 14, 2024 8:16 AM

[TRAILER] In a near future, life on Earth has been decimated. Paul (Nicolas Cage) and his twin teenage sons (Jaeden Martell, Maxwell Jenkins) find tranquility by day but terror by night when ferocious creatures awaken and consume all living souls in their path. Faced with an impossible situation, the boys come up with a desperate plan for survival, using everything their father taught them to keep him alive.

Alsdo starring Sadie Soverall, Samantha Coughlan, Joel Gillman.

Directed by Ben Brewer. Written by Michael Nilon. Produced by Michael Nilon, David Wulf, Arianne Fraser, Delphine Perrier, Braxton Pope, Nicolas Cage for
Saturn Films/Redline Entertainment/Highland Film Group. Cinematography by Frank Mobilio. Edited by Kristi Shimek. Music by Kristin Kontrol (of the band Dum Dum Girls), Josh Martin (who records under the name Daughn Gibson).

85% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Now playing in select US theaters. JustWatch listing.

posted by DirtyOldTown (1 comment total)

Maybe the most surprising thing about this movie is that, despite its film festival accolades, despite having Nic Cage as a star/producer, and despite being released in an era where nearly all heralded indie films seem to be parables about grief or metaphors about the declining state of the world... well, despite all of that, this is a well-acted and paced story about the inevitability of letting your kids go.

The handheld cameras didn't seem to fit the vibe of the movie that well, but I got used to them. I don't know the Dum Dum, Girls or Daughn Gibson, but the music is excellent. Cage really seems to have done this role more as a way of helping this good film get made than for anything in particular he gets to do as Paul. He's not even in the second act, really.I'd like to see Sadie Soverall in another role as she doesn't get a ton to do here (though the movie sort of exists from the brothers' POV and makes a point of demonstrating that they underestimate her as well). She's got a great face, though, highly expressive, and she quietly steals many of the scenes she's in.

Solid and enjoyable movie. Not so much an original or ambitious mind-blower as a good film that knows its turf and works it well.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:24 AM on April 14 [2 favorites]