The Infancy Gospel of Thomas is an apocryphal text describing Jesus’ lost years not accounted for in the New Testament. My first time even thinking about the topic was when Chris Rock mentioned it in Kevin Smith’s Dogma. Events in Jesus’ life that could be perceived as miraculous are attributed to malevolent, even supernatural forces, and suggest that the people around him were terrified of his incredible powers, which he didn’t always use responsibly. This forms the basis of Lofty Nathan’s horror film, The Carpenter’s Son, starring Nic Cage, Noah Jupe, Isla Johnston, and FKA Twigs.
It’s a fascinating idea, twisting the Bible into a supernatural horror story. Cage plays Joseph, with FKA Twigs as Mary and Jupe as teenaged Jesus as they struggle to keep the faith while enduring constant threats. A stop at a remote Roman village turns deadly when the boy is tempted by a mysterious stranger to leave his father’s teaching behind and embrace darkness.
Religion and horror often go hand-in-hand, but rarely in so direct a manner. Pulling from his Coptic Christian experiences, Nathan looks to be launching a full-frontal religious assault that will shake one’s faith. I can’t wait to see it!
SYNOPSIS: A remote village in Roman-era Egypt explodes into spiritual warfare when a carpenter, his wife and their child are targeted by supernatural forces in The Carpenter’s Son. Joseph (Nicolas Cage), Mary (FKA twigs) and their teenage son Jesus (Noah Jupe) have lived for years under threat, clinging to their faith and traditions. But a stopover in a small settlement unleashes growing chaos when a mysterious stranger (Isla Johnston) tries to entice young Jesus to abandon his devout father’s rules. With every pull of temptation, the boy is lured into a forbidden world, as a terrified Joseph realizes that a demonic power is at work. Violent, unnatural events inexplicably follow Jesus, and he begins to experience nightmarish visions of the future. Finally, he learns the fearsome truth about his new playmate, as well as the child’s real name: Satan. Writer and director Lotfy Nathan, drawing from his Coptic Christian background, delivers a meticulously crafted, genre-bending supernatural thriller packed with unshakeable images of the divine and demonic at war.
Magnolia Pictures will open The Carpenter’s Son on November 14th.
