“Novocaine,” the recent action-comedy film from directors Dan Berk and Robert Olsen, released March 14, prompts the viewer to imagine what lengths a person might go to in the absence of pain. Nathan “Nate” Caine — played by Jack Quaid — is an average man with a not-so-average genetic condition that does not allow him to feel physical sensation.
After his new girlfriend Sherry Margrave is kidnapped, Berk, Olsen and writer Lars Jacobson pull out all the stops to fully make use of Nate’s condition in graphic action scenes — perhaps to an excessive, unrealistic extent. Body horror lovers and fans of high-stakes actions will find the film worth a watch, but other audience members may find it repetitive and needlessly gory.
Jack Quaid plays an unlikely hero — a physically tough person whose personality does not quite match his ability. Nate is introduced as an extremely safe and stable person who tries to minimize the harm that his condition causes. Because he can’t recognize if he has been hurt, Nate avoids anything that may cause him damage. He takes this to an extreme level, even refusing to eat solid food for fear that he might bite his tongue off. However, after Sherry is kidnapped in a bank robbery, Nate embarks on an adrenaline-filled chase to rescue her.
As he is put into increasingly absurd and dangerous situations, Nate is forced to act completely outside of the safe life that he has created for himself. The nature of Nate’s condition allows for creative sequences, making the audience well-aware of the fact that he can do things that the average action hero may be held back from. This cements Nate as a fresh action character who makes unconventional decisions. One standout scene involves Nate being tortured for several minutes, forcing him to fake his pain to avoid being killed.
However, some sequences fall short of engaging, leaning more towards gratuitous and pointless. There is an extended scene in a tattoo parlor that does little to contribute to the plot, but drags too long. It seems that the only purpose of that moment is to introduce a new way that Nate can hurt himself — something that we see plenty of in almost every other scene.
Nevertheless, Quaid gives an endearing performance, especially in the first few action scenes, relying heavily on his lack of pain and remaining ridiculously polite to the people trying to kill him. Quaid does a good job of selling the faux suffering, making this a memorable part of the film.
A standout performance is also given by Amber Midthunder, who portrays Sherry. She charmingly plays the object of Nate’s affection, and pivots to the more emotional and high-stakes part of the film convincingly, making her performance well-rounded. The remaining supporting performances serve their purpose with no distractions, not adding anything particularly special, but giving the film what it needed.
This action-comedy does not neglect the latter half of its classification. Despite being brutal in many instances, “Novocaine” is filled with laugh-out-loud moments. In addition to using Nate’s lack of pain for action sequences, the gimmick is extended to heightening comedic effect. Nate’s simple annoyance at being impaled or shot is absurdly funny, giving the audience some much needed relief amidst the blood. These comedic moments often come in the height of the violence, emphasizing Nate’s lack of expertise in these situations and shocking the audiences with each decision he makes.
Perhaps the least compelling part of the film is Nate’s motivation. When he risks his life and reputation to save a woman he has only recently connected with, some audience members may want to to ask — “Why is he doing this again?” The film takes place over only two days. For someone who didn’t eat solid food just the previous day, Nate certainly puts himself in a lot of danger.
It is also worth noting that a lack of pain can only take a man so far. Over the course of the film, Nate is battered to an almost ridiculous extent — a viewer may start to wonder how he can possibly keep moving. The film would have been more compelling if there were consequences to his numerous injuries.
Though many of the action sequences use Nate’s inability to feel pain as a clever device, the gags begin to feel slightly over the top in the last 30 minutes of the film. At a point, the gore surpasses shock value and becomes a gimmick that feels overused by the end of the film. Audience members are left feeling less shock and more boredom. Reducing the runtime of this hour and 50-minute film could have helped alleviate the repetition problem.
“Novocaine” is a funny and action-packed film that will leave viewers covering their eyes. Quaid’s performance as an atypical action hero helps this film stand out amongst a stream of similar action-comedies, though the plot leans too heavily on the central gimmick. “Novocaine” asks the audience to suspend their disbelief to root for a genuine, if slightly misguided, protagonist in this well-made — but ultimately flawed — film.
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