Nicholas Cage in JOE

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Nicolas Cage’s career has had a see saw swing ever since he took the Oscar for his alcoholic tragic in Leaving Las Vegas. For every The Rock and Face Off there’s been the dire dross of substandard supernatural or splatter film. Many of his latter films have had no theatrical release, and most did not deserve to have one.

JOE, however, in  which he plays the titular character, is as deserving a theatrical release as any, yet has been denied a big screen showing.

Cage plays a bloke in boondocks Americana who runs crews whose task is to poison trees for land clearing. He’s a down to earth boss who rewards conscientious workers and is more than willing to give a kid from a dysfunctional family a job.

Thus Joe, who has major anger management issues, becomes an unlikely mentor and role model for Gary, who aspires to rise above his squalid surroundings and the orbit of his alcoholic father, G-Dawwg.

JOE is a blue ribbon blue collar drama, rich in incident and character. Based on the novel by the late, great Larry Brown, grandee of grit lit, the screenplay is by Gary Hawkins, the videographer of the novelist and obvious keeper of the flame.

Under the direction of David Gordon Green, JOE not only boasts Cage’s best performance in years, but further excellent work from up and coming star, Tye Sheridan, marvellous in MUD last year, and the late Gary Poulter, frightening as the low down, sell his kid for a schooner piss head.

Sheridan was the recipient of the Marcello Mastroianni award at last year’s Venice Film Festival where the director was also honoured with a special award.

Chris Spellman’s detailed production design is a treat- Joe’s abode is a trove of what maketh the man – and Tim Orr’s cinematography is Orr-some.

A mesmerising tale of flawed heroes, sacrifice and redemption, JOE is available now on DVD, complete with a host of special features, through Madman.