Arcadian

"I had higher hopes for this post apocalyptic survival horror movie, but it landed just in the middle of the road for me. Nick Cage has more of a supporting role in this one, the two lead roles are his sons. When the action starts with the creatures attacking, it's so dark and the camera is so choppy and jerky that you can't really tell what's going on. Later on, when we finally do get to see what the monsters look like, their faces are bordering ridiculous. I did like the fast paced chattering and rapid fire biting that they do when they attack. Then I thought that the creatures joining together to make a giant wheel was too Looney Toons for me. Overall, a quick watch that was somewhat entertaining, but still missed the mark for this genre. 6/10"

" an unpopular opinion but I found it boring. Not sure what happened to Nicholas Cage after all these years and his weaker movies. I really thought this movie had some hope. "

"This jumped straight into everything. It felt like it started in the middle of the movie even though it starts with a very brief flashback. The things outside look interesting. It was worth a one time watch. C+"

"Slow, boring and silly in my opinion. I also thought A quiet place was massively overrated which doesn’t seem to be a popular opinion so…"

"a little slow but when it does get to the point it’s great & when it finally shows the creatures they look pretty creepy in my opinion "

"I get why so many people have negative thoughts about this movie. It is totally a weird cross between a quiet place and critters. However, I found the movie very unique and interesting. The creatures were unique and a weird hybrid, mashup of werewolf and spider.S. I really enjoyed it!"

"4½⭐/5⭐ + Arcadian is one of those movies that works equally well as a straightforward family drama as it does a survival horror movie. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic landscape where a subterranean, mutated life form comes to the surface at night to prey on the surviving human population. This is horror in the vein of A Quiet Place and It Comes At Night. It takes place in a rural setting and features an intimate story about a father who tries to keep his two sons safe in an abandoned, fortified house. What's most appealing is that if you took out all of the monster and horror elements and made the conflict about something else, the movie would still work. The acting, directing and writing are that good. Nicolas Cage is commanding as the father, but I also thought Jaden Martell as his younger son and Sadie Soverall as the older son's love interest were both great in their own right. They both nearly stole the movie in my opinion. This is one of those surprise hidden gems that come out of nowhere. I could see myself rewatching this again come Halloween. A wonderful surprise. - I had trouble with how the creatures functioned within the story itself. It's not clear what they actually are and what they do to the population (I'm guessing they eat them and absorb the bodies into themselves). They also have weird characteristics that sometimes don't make sense. One thing I found distracting was their loud, rapid, snapping jaws that sounded more like machine guns being fired. If it had a purpose it wouldn't be so bad, but it seems to happen for no reason. Also, some of the handheld camera movements were a bit too much at times. It could distract from the flow of the visual narrative at times. If anything, the negatives highlight the strength of the overall movie. You don't have to watch it for the creature feature aspect, and the camera movements don't ruin the movie. NOTE: Nicolas Cage has proven that despite some questionable movie choices, he is the real deal."

"The monsters literally made my husband and I laugh out loud, they looked so silly and weren’t remotely scary. Several things didn’t make much sense to me and overall it was a bit boring. And, as I mentioned, it was laughably ridiculous when it was obviously meant to be creepy and tense. "

"Totally new monsters with unique skills and design! So excited to see something new and interesting. The movie does have a few possible plot holes but they explain so little that rather than being an alien invasion movie it's just straight up survive the monsters. Loved it way more than I thought I would. "

"Based on the trailer, I liked the direction this story was going. This film had a great cast and their acting was all well and good, but the script/plot wasn't completely original or new. With the trailer, I anticipated what the monsters could be and what their backstory would reveal, however the whole design/makeup of the monsters needed to be more terrifying. I wanted it to be juicier and to have more mysterious components, but its slow pace -especially towards the end- killed this movie for me. I'd rate this a 6 🖤 because the beginning started off with good humor and the story was building nicely. The highlight for me would be the relationship between Nicholas Cage and his sons, Maxwell Jenkins and Jaeden Martell. Their interactions were relatable and emotional (particularly in one scene I wish didn't happen). I had higher hopes for this one, too, which was a shame. I wouldn't go so far as to say it's a waste to watch, though, just know that it's set at a slower pace like an indie film that may leave you wanting more. "