'Novocaine' review: Obnoxious action thriller will leave you feeling numb
Courtesy of Paramount
Outside of established IP and franchise-building, the only "original" movies that seem to get greenlit at major studios are those with high-concept, easy-to-sell premises. To its credit, “Novocaine” has a nifty little hook, though it starts to feel stale after about the first twenty minutes. The story centers around Nathan Caine (Jack Quaid), a lowly junior bank manager who, due to a rare disorder, cannot feel pain. This means he can be punched, stabbed, poked, prodded, and have hot coffee spilled on him—and he won’t feel a thing. It’s a fun idea that quickly becomes nothing more than a recurring punchline. We get it—you can’t be hurt, but surely there’s something more beneath the surface, right? RIGHT?!
Wrong.
Instead, Nathan uses his so-called "superpowers" to help rescue one of his employees, Sherry (Amber Midthunder, from “Prey”), after feeling an instant connection with her following just one date. That’s it. One date, and Nathan is ready to risk his life and chase down a group of ruthless, Santa-clad bank robbers. It might be an easier sell if Quaid and Midthunder had even the slightest chemistry, but alas, the sparks never fly.
We’re left with Nathan, a bank manager who spends his days behind a desk, suddenly transforming into a full-blown action hero—without any explanation as to how he becomes such an expert fighter. It’s reminiscent of the far superior action film “Nobody,” where the backstory of Bob Odenkirk’s character made it plausible that he could take on a group of Russian thugs in close quarters. (For the record, that single sequence was far more invigorating and thrilling than anything in “Novocaine.”)
The repetitive nature of the fight scenes feels like being stuck on the same level in a video game—monotonous and uninspired. Directors Dan Berk and Robert Olsen shoot these sequences with the flair of a poorly edited music video, lacking any real style or identity. Where’s the innovation?
Quaid, so good in “Companion” this year, can’t quite leverage his charm to overcome a script full of cheap one-liners and the never-ending joke of his inability to feel anything. His zippy sidekick, played by “Spider-Man” star Jacob Batalon, doesn’t add much, and the primary villain, played by a smarmy Ray Nicholson, is painfully flat. “Novocaine” is a film that desperately tries to emulate the grungy, guerrilla style of a lower budgeted Michael Bay movie, but in doing so, it ultimately, akin to the main character, leaves you feeling nothing.
Grade: D
NOVOCAINE opens in theaters Friday, March 14th.