The Carpenter’s Son, Lofty Nathan’s sophomore feature, sounds promising on paper: Nicolas Cage portrays Joseph with all the typical Cage mannerisms, and a teenage Jesus has a fistfight with Satan herself. But the execution is so tedious that it makes this 95-minute film feel like forty days and forty nights.
★★☆☆☆
The last decade of Nicolas Cage’s career has been full of some of the most original and inventive films imaginable, and there’s always one consistent element that unites them: Cage’s balls-to-the-wall commitment to his characters. His recent films have demonstrated this to great effect, from his scene-stealing, meme-inspiring villain in Longlegs (2024) to the sun-drenched fever dream of The Surfer (2025). If Cage has a film scheduled for release, you can always count on it being worth a watch. It would be wonderful if The Carpenter’s Son were as entertaining as his earlier work, but this biblical horror takes itself far too seriously, ultimately falling flat by the end.
The devout Carpenter (Nicolas Cage) and The Mother (FKA Twigs) travel from village to village with The Boy (Noah Jupe), too anxious to stay long in one place. The Carpenter is strict with The Boy, often punishing him for his nightmares and poor behaviour, leading The Boy to rebel and discover untapped powers. While in a village, The Boy is tempted by The Stranger (Isla Johnston), who tries to corrupt him in her own ways.
Director Lofty Nathan adapts the story from the ‘Infancy Gospel of Thomas’, a tale created in 180 AD, which has been rejected by the Church as heretical fiction due to its portrayal of Christ engaging in sinful acts with his abilities, such as striking someone blind and killing a boy with a curse. It’s an original and daring decision that, in the right hands, could be a brilliant concept that revitalises the tired biblical genre. Unfortunately, The Carpenter’s Son lacks even the semblance of a good screenplay, with the clunkiest lines of the year and the dullest structure seen in a long time. The film drags itself along at a snail’s pace, moving from one religious Cage lecture to another, and Twigs does not get anything to do as The Mother other than stand around and strike a mournful pose.
As is typical for much of his oeuvre, Cage feels as though he is in a completely different film from everyone else. He plays The Carpenter more subdued than usual for half the film, but as soon as he goes through a crisis of faith, he unleashes his full Cage-mania on the stoic Twigs, who gives nothing back to him. Everyone but The Carpenter has a British accent in this—you get the feeling it’s in Cage’s contract that he has to use his own voice. It’s a relief he didn’t try to attempt it.
Jupe does his best portraying this version of Jesus, depicted with teenage angst and lust. He sports the most typical Gen Z haircut ever seen in a film set 2,000 years ago; surprisingly, no one in the hair department chose a long wig over Jupe’s usual (definitely permed) hairstyle. The costume design is bland and mediocre. Before long, you begin to wish for some colour and clothing that doesn’t resemble a potato sack.
One highlight of the film is how well shot it is. Cinematographer Simon Beaufils, who also worked on the stunning Anatomy of a Fall (2023), uses the desert landscape to great effect, often creating a hellish sunset overhead while Satan is tempting Jesus. The tight close-ups on faces and the extreme long shots of the wilderness contribute to the unsettling atmosphere.
The Verdict
The Carpenter’s Son has a brilliant premise, but this original story is in the wrong hands, resulting in a film that feels tedious and lengthy rather than tense and frightening. Cage usually elevates any film he appears in, but even his presence can’t fix a clunky script and poor editing.
Words by Jordon Searle
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