Review: "Joe" – A Story of Resurrection

Walker Sayen ’16 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer

Director David Gordon Green has had an interesting career as a film director. He started out as an independent director, producing such pictures as George Washington and All the Real Girls. However, he made a dramatic shift to directing more mainstream fair when he helmed the stoner comedy Pineapple Express. While Pineapple Express may have been a success, since then he has directed such studio comedy offerings as The Sitter and Your Highness, that received a critical backlashing. Recently with Prince Avalanche, and now Joe, Green has taken a step back towards his independent roots of southern gothic cinema. And with Joe especially, he has succeeded in regaining some of the magic of his early movies.
Joe is not just a return to form for its director, but also its star. Nicolas Cage has gone from academy award winning actor to the red flag that a movie movie is bad. Just like Green, Cage’s career started off strong but has fallen off the beaten track over the years.
However, with Joe he delivers a performance that is surprisingly subtle and restrained for a performer who is known for going over the top. Together Green and Cage have fashioned a fine movie full of atmosphere, and proves that the talent each demonstrated at the beginning of their careers is still very much alive, despite some missteps along the way.

The movie itself is both flawed and breathtaking. Joe’s mood was palpable and there are many scenes that only seem to contribute to the overarching atmosphere and tone instead of adding anything to the plot. The plot itself is slightly meandering and without focus. Th antagonist’s relationship with Cage’s Joe is muddy. But the more explicit story regarding Joe’s seedy background is not really important. What is important is that Cage’s character is morally ambiguous. Unlike many films where the conflicted character is both a good and bad man, one side comes out on top in the end. However, what makes the character of Joe so interesting is that his bad characteristics and his good characteristics are both presented separately and without judgment. At one point he act in a disreputable manner and the next he is taking care of the young boy (played by Tye Sheridan) for whom he has become a surrogate father.
The best parts of the movie are the scenes between Nicolas Cage and Tye Sheridan. There are some wonderfully filmed moments between the two, in particular the scene where they meet and another where they are searching for Joe’s lost dog.
Overall, the film, despite the fact that some of the specifics of the plot are not completely ironed out, is a wonderful return to form for its star and director, two immensely talented men who have squandered their skill along the way, finally showing that they still have what it takes to produce a moving piece of cinema.