Novocaine -Review

The phrase ‘no pain, no gain’ can’t really apply to Nathan Caine (Jack Quaid), a man who has risen up the ranks to an assistant manager for a firm in San Diego. Nathan however suffers from a disability meaning he cannot feel pain – seems like a bonus right? Except with this lack of sensation, he could bite off his own tongue, crash into sharp corners of tables or suffer from extreme burns. This is no advantage, after all, he is not immortal, and he can still die, but the lack of sensitivity makes day-to-day living more lethal.

Nathan’s life seems to be on the up, however, when he meets Sherry (Amber Midthunder) who he has a meet-cute when she accidentally spills hot coffee over his hand. Sherry falls in love with him, standing up for him as some of his old school bullies resurrect his nickname Novocaine. The next day Nathan is about to chat Sherry up when a gang of Santa-suited robbers storm in, escaping with Sherry as a hostage. Nathan makes the quick decision to risk his life and chase after her.

It's a pretty simple but enjoyable premise. At 1hr 50 it is full of fun thrills and laughs, headed by Jack Quaid in his second impressive role of 2025. Quaid plays the dorky banker with charisma and panache. A classic fish-out-of-water story as Nate goes from a loner who spends his spare time alone in his dark apartment playing Call of Duty or Grand Theft Auto, to being in the thick of a chase which sees him dunk his hand in a vat of hot frying oil and is shocked when he shoots someone in the head in an act of self-defence There is great energy and physical comedy within Novocaine. It does comedic action pretty well and has some fun little needledrops, such as ‘Everybody Hurts’ by REM which welcomes the audience to the life of Nate.

Likewise, there are a fun few little twists and turns that caught me off guard. Whilst it is nothing special or unique, the film does the simple things pretty well. However, the ending does go on for a little too long, with a plethora of fake-out deaths that leave the conclusion 10 or so minutes too long. Nevertheless, Novocaine is a pretty painless experience.