(Spoiler Warning)
It's been kind a weird few days for me. So I felt like watching something a bit different than what I usually watch. I like drama films, I have a few in my collection, but I can't think of any that are my favorites off the top of my head (Although 2012's Mud was awesome) . So when I came across a DVD of Joe in a pawn shop a while back I thought,why not. So on this weird day of mine, I figure I do a review to give me something to distract myself. So like before, I'll do plot summary, pros and cons, then a final score. Let's get to it.
Our story follows and ex-con by the name of Joe, played by Nicolas Cage. He runs a small company charged with cutting down sick trees to make way for new pine trees to be planted. While working one day, a young man named Gary, played by Tye Sheridan, asks for a job. Joe gives him the job, and after the day is over, Joe tells Gary he can being his dad who needs a job with him if he likes. Gary's dad is an abusive alcoholic and I'm going to be honest there's a lot going on in the movie. I would've just quoted the wikipedia page summary, but it's a sentence long. I'm not joking. But basically Joe takes a liking to Gary and helps him out, while Gary's dad goes around town getting into trouble and then the two things intersect at the end.
So, let's get to the pros and cons.
Pros - Nicolas Cage and Tye Sheridan are fantastic. I give Tye the slighter edge, but mostly because Joe is mostly a reserved kind of character and that can be considered easier to do. He does have his funny and intense moments, but Tye does most of the heavy lifting here. The film also captures the setting and tone of the story really well, and at moments it can really draw you in.
Cons - First and foremost, the films pacing grinds to a complete halt and it just feels slow. Like, I know how dramas are supposed to play out, and they can do a good job with keeping people invested, but Joe does this really stupid thing of having too many minor subplots going on and even one subplot where Gary's dad murders a homeless man for his wine that's never resolved. Stuff like that can kill the pacing of a film and while there are a few good moments in between the slower bits, it feels like it's on a 2:1 ratio.
Final Score: 7/10
I was going to give it a six, but I can't deny how awesome Cage and Sheridan are in this movie. The movie would've been much better though had it been maybe twenty minutes shorter, and didn't have so may subplots going on. If you can find it for cheap, and don't mind the slow parts, I recommend it. I myself though might not be re-watching it any time soon.
So there you go, a Nicolas Cage film that doesn't completely suck. A rarity to see nowadays, but maybe he'll get lucky and we can see a few more in the future.
So until next time, you folks have a good one.
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