Review of Midnight Special (2016) by Gustavo B — 08 May 2016

Breaking news alert on the TV announced the abduction of a 8 year old boy in Texas, there is no photos available. An amber alert is issued for the child, Roy (Michael Shannon) and his accomplice Lucas (Joel Edgerrton) are taking the kid out of the state.

At the same time the FBI raid a religious cult compound in the search for the same kid.

"Midnight Special" is the most recent film by Jeff Nichols (Take a Shelter) it tales the story of Alton (Jaeden Leiberther) a child with special powers and his biological father who are been chased by the FBI and Texas cult where they escape.

The film borrow the best of the most important sci-fi films about special powers and alien encounters, from Close of Encounter of the Third Kind, The Abyss, THX-1138, Cocoon to ET. Jeff Nichols develops his own visual style creating a film which presents a religious cult idolizing a kid with special powers while mocking the US government for trying to use this child as their personal possession or weapon. The story explore several aspects of human condition, from a fathers love for his son, his faith on this kid visions, the danger of so called new religions who just manipulate families and the idea of a better future based on extreme sacrifice.

Midnight Special represents another achievement in independent sic fi movies, like Alex Garland "Ex Machina" the film is not trying explode the genre, but filling the the story with visual effects or secret mysteries like J.J. Abrams does. It creates a good story with meaning and a message.

Faith and conviction is the main engine in this movie.