“Arcadian” gives a new twist to living “down on the farm.” The word means an ideal rural paradise, but the home set up by Paul (Nicholas Cage – “Longlegs”) and his teenage sons, Joseph (Jaeden Martell – “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone”) and Thomas (Maxwell Jenkins – “Joe Bell”), as a refuge from a world gone mad may be rural, but it is far from a paradise – and faces a deadly threat.
The film begins with Paul scavenging a machine shop (a body lies on the floor) and then making his way past heard but unseen battles occurring in nearby parts of a decimated city. He finally makes his way to a hideout where he comforts two crying baby boys.
Switching to 15 years later, the boys are mid-teens living in a rundown farmhouse. There is an unseen threat that comes out at night and attacks the barricaded home. Whatever it is, it evidently arose due to environmental destruction that doomed human society.
Thomas is a thinker and a tinkerer, while brother Joseph would rather run through the forest to visit a the nearby Rose farm, which is much more orderly, prosperous, and with a girl his age, Charlotte (Sadie Soverall – “Saltburn”). On the way back from one of his visits to the Rose farm, Joseph falls into a deep crevice which also happens to be a nesting spot for the creatures that attack humans. His father comes to rescue him, but in the process is badly injured.
Director Benjamin Brewer (“The Trust”) gets fine performances form his actors, especially the young ones. He also manages to get a restrained performance from Cage, who holds to a rational characterization of Paul even in the most harrowing moments.
The story, by Mike Nilon (“Braven”), gives us a thoughtful exploration of what it is like to live an isolated life in a largely depopulated world with limited resources – with the addition of monsters trying to get you each night. This is an old trope movies have dealt with since the 1950s, but seldom with the nuances seen here.
The cinematography is excellent and we get some beautiful shots of the Irish countryside, the prosperous Rose farm and the comparatively desolate place where Paul and his boys live.
The monsters. There is some interesting work here. They appear to be man-sized wingless, fireless dragons with a hairy mane that runs down the back. Where they came from is never made clear, but they are fearsome, especially in their nightly assaults. Created almost exclusively in CGI, the monster design reportedly owes some of its characteristics to Disney’s “Goofy” cartoon character. Fortunately, the design was toned down to make them more believable.
This is an enjoyable post-apocalyptic monster flick, with good pacing, some thoughtful human interactions and fine acting. Even the musical score is decent!
Runtime: One hour, 32 minutes
Availability: Broadly available on streaming services
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