Review of Midnight Special (2016) by James R — 23 Mar 2016

I really enjoyed this one. Midnight Special is a blend of sci-fi, drama and suspense. It's the tale of a father named Roy (Michael Shannon) who along with his best friend Lucas (Joel Edgerton) have taken his son Alton (Jaeden Lieberher) away from a cult group that see him as their Lord.

Kinda weird right? Alton has special powers which include being able to show people visions, some telepathic powers and can predict the future. I really don't want to spoil the story here. I saw a special screening where Jeff Nichols was there and got to describe the film in depth and how he wanted people to see it.

Midnight Special is best viewed as he put it if you don't see anything about it before hand and let it unfold in front of you. It's a tale of a man and not wanting his son to die, but it's a lot about belief.

Belief in something else and belief in the people around you. The movie also stars Kirsten Dunst as Alton's mom Sarah and Adam Driver as a FBI specialist named Sevier. I really enjoyed the film and the twists that it presents.

Some fantastic performances especially from Shannon and Edgerton. If your a fan of Nichols previous films Mud (2012) and Take Shelter (2011) or of such classics like Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) I highly recommend giving this one a look! It's a great little sci-fi mystery that has a really good message.