Novocaine
PARAMOUNT
While the conversation and debate of the “nepo baby” rages and continues to rage on regardless of what side of the fence the viewer sits on, its somewhat ironic that both Lewis Pullman son of Bill Pullman, Jack Quaid son of Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan, are having major breakouts within the cinematic landscape. Quaid has been on a longer rise with his turn on The Boys for Amazon as well as a small ensemble part in Oppenheimer. Notably, however, Quaid has found himself striving within the Horror genre with turns in the reboot of Scream and Companion being released in 2022 and 2025, respectively. The credit list above mostly finds Quaid’s talents the in supporting role, so what best time to see the actor strut his stuff as a leading man in the silly albeit splendid ragdoll of Dan Berk and Robert Olsen’s Novacaine.
The best place to start is continuing the conversation on Quaid. The actor here and his performance here are so incredibly likeable and charismatic. The charm and emotive immersion Quaid exhudes here is remarkable and almost effortless. It’s a type of charm and immersion that some performers would kill and die for in order to be likeable and have natural engagement. It, of course, helps with the arc and character of someone who is trying to break through the glass ceiling of being both comfortable and accepted within a world that, on the surface, is all fun and games, but a little deeper has pain and cracks that are slowly being worked on and healed. Which leads into how genuinely empathetic and touching Novocaine is when it touches on serious and important topics as mental and physical harm. This is brought to a touching and gentle disposition with Quaid alongside the equally important and terrific Amber Midthunder. The two work incredibly well alongside each other with once again great chemistry and a dynamic that hooks its viewer with terrific sentiment and enthusiasm.
Granted, a film about being what is essentially an action rag doll and talking significantly about how much heart it has might read like the calm before the storm. That is not the case, and while Novocaine is still a loud, silly spectacle, it rides a brilliant line between reality and heightened fantasy. Yes, it pushes the limits of audience believability, but sells it with such integrity and brazen enthusiasm. Partly, once again to Quaid’s endearing likability, but equally as how big and loud Novocaine manages to put his body on the line for entertainment value. The set pieces and action while once again not necessarily something unique or special - it is best to remember this is not what Novocaine is intended to display - but is exhilarating to watch with the humanity that Quaid brings in his characters strength to do anything to fight in such love and passion for someone who understands him. Ever so simple yet effective writing in getting the easy and straightforward aspects right and laying the groundwork for a fruitful experience.
Nevertheless, the narrative is compelling enough with great twists and turns, as the aforementioned action sequences are great in execution, the plotting adds a great amount of weight with one notable unexpected twist that works wonders to add heartbreak and shock to an otherwise conventional outcome. Nothing here is spectacularly unique, but getting the basics right and adding a little flair in between does a tremendous amount of work to make this venture at least feel fresh. The only real slight element that is lacking would be the villain of the piece, in Ray Nicholson. Now, Nicholson is not bad here, nor is his performance poor in quality or the point at which Novocaine suffers. His villainous turn in the last fifteen minutes is indeed compelling and wonderful to watch. Undoubtedly, however, it is clear the actor isn’t quite at the calibre, at this time being four or five films off in terms of skill, that the film demands, nor the actor can muster up to both convince and project such terror and uncertainty in this character and thus story. It is just one slight hiccup in an otherwise surprising and entertaining feature that succeeds in great entertainment as well as successfully mapping Jack Quaid as a terrific leading man.
