Nicolas Cage returns to the horror genre in The Carpenter’s Son, a movie that takes one of the boldest swings of his career — a psychological, religious horror reimagining of the Holy Family’s story. Directed by Lotfy Nathan, the film casts Cage as The Carpenter (Joseph), FKA Twigs as The Mother (Mary), and Noah Jupe as The Boy (Jesus), reinterpreting their story through an unsettling supernatural lens set in Egypt.
The premise alone sounds daring — a horror retelling of the birth and early life of Jesus — but while The Carpenter’s Son may aim for spiritual depth and psychological terror, it ends up feeling hollow and confused. Despite its haunting cinematography and committed performances, the film struggles to decide whether it wants to provoke, unsettle, or inspire.
A Horror Movie Wrapped in a Biblical Parable
At its core, The Carpenter’s Son attempts to fuse religious iconography with body horror and psychological dread. It’s not a new idea — filmmakers like Darren Aronofsky (Mother!) and William Friedkin (The Exorcist) have explored similar territory — but Lotfy Nathan approaches it with a minimalist, surrealist tone.
The story follows The Carpenter, his wife, and their young son, who are plagued by unexplainable visions and ominous forces. Their life in Egypt quickly becomes a nightmare of whispers, blood, and visions of crucifixions. The audience quickly realizes this is not just any family — it’s a reimagining of Mary, Joseph, and Jesus facing the weight of divine purpose and mortal suffering.
The film’s imagery is strong: flickering candles, whispering winds, and dreamlike editing evoke a biblical fever dream. But atmosphere can only carry a film so far — The Carpenter’s Son too often relies on its visual mood without building emotional or narrative tension.
Who Is This Movie For?
That’s the central question — and perhaps the reason The Carpenter’s Son falters.
For horror fans, the film lacks genuine scares or narrative momentum. The slow pacing and emphasis on religious allegory make it more meditative than thrilling. For the devout, the film’s premise alone may border on offensive — taking sacred figures and placing them in scenes of gore, dread, and existential horror.
Atheists or agnostics might find its symbolism overbearing or its narrative too anchored in theology to resonate. What’s left is an audience caught between two extremes — one too reverent to enjoy the horror, and the other too skeptical to care about the faith.
Film critic Marjorie Lin from CineScope Weekly summarized it best:
“Lotfy Nathan’s film wants to say something about divine suffering, but ends up feeling lost between worship and mockery. It’s a movie caught in purgatory.”
Performances: A Study in Contrast
If anything elevates The Carpenter’s Son, it’s the performances.
Nicolas Cage delivers a surprisingly restrained performance as The Carpenter. Known for his signature intensity, Cage instead plays Joseph as a man haunted by faith, grief, and confusion. His quiet desperation gives the film some much-needed grounding.
Noah Jupe, portraying The Boy, brings tenderness and mystery. His performance captures a child’s awakening to divine power — one particularly haunting scene shows him miraculously healing a grasshopper in his hands, a moment that’s both beautiful and deeply unsettling.
FKA Twigs, however, struggles. Despite her magnetic screen presence, her inexperience as a dramatic actor shows. Her performance is stiff, her dialogue delivery flat, and her emotional range limited. It’s unfortunate, as her role — embodying maternal grace and fear — is crucial to the story’s emotional core.
Key Cast & Roles
| Actor | Character | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Nicolas Cage | The Carpenter (Joseph) | A devout man struggling with faith and supernatural forces. |
| FKA Twigs | The Mother (Mary) | A young woman torn between faith, fear, and motherhood. |
| Noah Jupe | The Boy (Jesus) | A gifted child whose visions foreshadow a tragic destiny. |
| Lotfy Nathan | Director | Known for Harka and his surreal narrative style. |
Themes: Faith, Fear, and the Absurd
Thematically, the movie attempts to question divine will and human suffering. It explores what it means to be chosen — or cursed — by God. But rather than delving into these questions meaningfully, the film drifts into heavy-handed symbolism.
Scenes of crucifixions, blood, and body horror feel forced, rather than illuminating. By the midpoint, the film becomes more about endurance than engagement.
Religious scholar Dr. Alan Reeves commented on its premise:
“What The Carpenter’s Son attempts — turning sacred narrative into horror — could have worked had it embraced metaphor instead of literal fear. Instead, it confuses blasphemy with bravery.”
Film Overview
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Genre | Psychological / Religious Horror |
| Director | Lotfy Nathan |
| Runtime | 118 minutes |
| Release Year | 2025 |
| Setting | Egypt |
| Themes | Faith, Prophecy, Divine Fear |
| Cinematography | Symbolic imagery and chiaroscuro lighting |
| Audience Rating | 2.5 / 5 (Mixed Reviews) |
Style Over Substance
Visually, the film is impressive. Cinematographer David Ungaro captures biblical imagery through modern horror aesthetics — dusty sunlight, candlelight shadows, and disorienting handheld sequences. The problem is that the visual grandeur never connects to a cohesive story.
For all its ambition, The Carpenter’s Son lacks rhythm. It oscillates between haunting visuals and shallow character arcs. The horror elements — chains, blood, crucifix imagery — feel disconnected from the emotional journey of its characters.
By the third act, as The Boy’s divine nature becomes clearer, the film feels repetitive and hollow. Its mystery evaporates, replaced by predictable symbolism and vague resolution.
Why It Doesn’t Work?
The movie’s failure lies in its tone. It doesn’t commit fully to being a horror film, nor does it deliver the intellectual depth of a religious allegory. The pacing lags, the dialogue feels detached, and the scares are few and far between.
Even with its stellar cast and strong premise, The Carpenter’s Son ultimately feels like an experiment that never found its purpose.
Film analyst Peter Callahan described it aptly:
“It’s a movie that wants to terrify you with faith, but ends up making faith itself feel empty.”
Final Verdict
The Carpenter’s Son is a visually ambitious but emotionally hollow take on biblical horror. Nicolas Cage brings gravitas, and Noah Jupe delivers empathy, but the movie’s slow pacing, lack of narrative cohesion, and tone-deaf symbolism make it a difficult watch.
It’s a film that will undoubtedly divide audiences — some will see it as bold, others as blasphemous — but most will leave feeling indifferent.
FAQs
It’s a horror reimagining of Joseph, Mary, and Jesus’s early life, exploring divine purpose through psychological terror.
Not exactly — it uses religious figures but tells a fictionalized, horror-based story.
Nicolas Cage, FKA Twigs, and Noah Jupe lead the cast.
Some may find its reinterpretation of biblical figures controversial.
The story takes place in Egypt, reimagined as a haunted biblical landscape.
It’s an attempt to mix religion, horror, and psychological drama — though not entirely successful.
