Perplexity is the only word with which you can easily hint at the sensations that arise after watching this “Canadian blockbuster”, sometimes reminiscent of the creations of the notorious Asylum. This is not a joke – the film really looks like a penny and incompetent forgery, made in a couple of weeks and similar to a pathetic imitation of an expensive action movie, the premiere of which should take place in a couple of weeks – such are the everyday life of Nicholas Cage! In recent years, he has quietly switched from expensive blockbusters to second-rate author projects with unknown directors and good, but forgotten actors. I can’t say that I’m happy as a long-time fan of this – because of this career turn, his name will never be associated exclusively with top projects – what are such movie absurdities as Abandoned and Arsenal worth! His new film, unfortunately, can be safely put on a par with such "creations" - the level of cheapness and general absurdity here is about the same.
Already the first shots for this film looked very weak, but before viewing still there was a small hope that the movie can be perceived as a budget copy of the same “Signs”. Alas, all hopes collapsed in the first 15 minutes of viewing - so from the very beginning the movie looks boring and ridiculous.
The very idea of the film, despite the scarcity, is by the way very good - in the near future, due to the severe energy crisis, the US government (no word about other countries as always) began to form huge cities fenced off from the rest of the world everywhere to save the entire population of the country - like those described in dystopias. And since there are a lot of people left even after the mass famine, and the resources of the planet have been almost completely depleted, the government has formed a special state service whose agents, going to the field, check every person for his suitability for life in the “beautiful new world”. The character of Cage, as indicated in the annotation, is one of these agents who, while performing another task, suddenly becomes imbued with sympathy for a young woman and her young son. Suggesting that the bright future about which he tells all the immigrants is very doubtful, he really thought nothing through, runs away with them across the Americas, not even knowing for sure whether it is possible to survive there or not.
There is very little meaning in this film. The main problem of the "Bureau of Humanity" is not even cheap (which here tried to hide a large number of beautiful post-apocalyptic shots), but that the movie turned out to be nothing at all. The film is simply no, it is simply unrealistic to tell or advise someone - everything from the very beginning looks boring and far-fetched, and those who prefer to watch only new movies about such a film better not know at all. For whom this misunderstanding was filmed, I personally do not understand - it turned out to be so undisclosed that it will not even be possible to give a definition of the genre! From the action movie there is only one short-term chase and a couple of stupid scenes with shooting reminded me, don’t faint, movies with the participation of Nevsky – and it’s a hell of a movie where the main role is played by the man who starred in “The Rock” and “Faceless”! From the thriller there is not an ounce of tension - and this despite the fact that the main characters here are in danger every minute and all the way are forced to run away from a gang of government thugs (the leader of which is knocked out in a fight eye for some time wrapped in tape!!) they do not sympathize and do not empathize. And for drama, there are too boring and superficial dialogues, although thanks to Cage, there are still a couple of good conversation scenes here. He himself, despite the game "on the machine" leaves a good impression simply when he appears in the frame - he is such a cool actor.
To top it all off, the film achieves an inappropriately gloomy ending that made me remember, God forgive me, the second-rate horror films of the 80s and 90s churned out on the wave of success of “Predator” and “Aliens” – those films in which, in addition to the terrible cheapness and playfulness, they were famous for the fact that the main characters in them could never overcome evil – such a fate was awarded to actors exclusively in first-class projects. Here too, Cage’s hero was deprived of the opportunity to at least beautifully knock out a couple of bad guys. His hero here in general, despite some hints of brutality (secret agent after all) for the whole film does not commit a single cinematic beautiful action - only goes hoping for luck incomprehensible where and with an apathetic appearance consoles his newfound "family", and in the end manages to die in the most stupid and ridiculous way - by the way already in the seventh (!) time in the last 4 years.
What a movie. I don’t know what to summarize here, and most importantly, whether to expect from one of your favorite actors any worthwhile projects in the future. Cage, being once a superstar of Hollywood, has recently lost its former popularity and his latest films are less and less popular and less discussed by the general public, which by the way I would not call a serious disadvantage. It's just a statement of fact. Especially in our time, when the actors of the same generation remain afloat only due to comic book action films and countless reboots of the classics of the last century, it is unlikely that such an extraordinary actor would find his place in such a framework. Another thing is that with such talent and charisma, I would prefer to see Cage in secondary roles in more high-quality films of our time than to constantly watch him in leading roles in such an “art”, sometimes resembling natural amateurism. Meanwhile, the other day should be released another, already 5 (!) in a row film with his participation this year – this time – a black comedy with not the worst director of this genre Brian Taylor. Are we hoping for the best?
“The New Depression and the Ghosts of Fascism” or “Capitalism Has Failed Again”
The film embodies the classic features of American critical literature - John Steinbeck ("Grapes of Wrath") and Sinclair Lewis ("It's impossible for us"). Obviously, this film is not for small minds, a single-celled philistine has nothing to catch here.
Nicolas Cage played great. Good texture for such a role. The plot is largely typical of the American school of realism and social fiction - it is a legacy from the time of Jack London ("Iron Heel", "Scarlet Plague", etc.).
The picture is visually as well done - there are stunning panoramas of North American landscapes, American farm life, well and authentically spelled out details of the architecture of American ranches and reservations of the poor.
There is also a certain dynamic here. The spirit of pursuit, pursuit, wandering. Although in general - the nature of the narrative is rather measured and leisurely. In these visual and dynamic moments, this film is very similar to another American film - Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man.
Good, strong, relevant film.
You probably know that the legendary actor Nicholas Cage starred in a large number of thrash and semi-trifling films to pay a large number of bills and alimony to his ex-wives. Among the few third-rate films Nicholas has made, I decided to celebrate this one. The Bureau of Humanity is called the Bureau for the Distribution of Socially Inefficient Citizens in Colonies, where people are promised a fairly normal life. But not everything is as colorful as described in the advertising booklets: Noah (Cage) heard rumors that the immigrants do not communicate. The situation was complicated by the fact that he was sent on a mission to deport the family of his longtime friend. After digging deeper, Noah begins to fight the totalitarian system.
The film shows a real apocalypse - scorched and dried fields and people trying to survive. However, I could not help but think that I was in front of some thrashy, cheap apocalypse: it didn’t look natural. It seems like everything should be normal, but it feels like a low-budget film. There are some special effects in the film. The filmmakers tried to portray the atmosphere of doom and impending disaster. Whether they succeed or not is up to you. If you are interested in this movie, of course.
One look, but no more. As is the case with any low-budget film.
The apocalypse changes, but there is no value and, as always, gasoline and water. The film is low-budget, however, with a relatively simple plot with chases and shooters, it came out quite original, although some motifs from the recent film The Bad Party (2016) are visible, including the state control from The Mystery of the 7 Sisters (2017).
Economic disaster, warming, drought, migration, civil war – this is understandable – the standard post-apocalyptic set, but with democracy, slightly sluggish, giving it a somewhat intricate form with a communist bias.
“America is the land of the free and the brave, surrounded the cities with walls” fenced off from the “scumbags” & #39; giving carte blanche to an agency called the “bureau of humanity”. In order to avoid spoilers, we will not retell the content and the viewer will learn for himself what the “productivity index”, “new Eden”, “the law of humanity”, as well as why children dreamed of freedom, and adults were engaged in humanitarian issues. Nicholas Cage, with his inherent skill, gave everything a dramatic effect. I'm fine. You can see it.
Nicolas Cage and professional burnout are incompatible
This film is especially important for its idea.
Even if the planet Earth itself revolts against the Evil of people, killing the living world, depriving it of green forests, clear waters and safe homes, Humanity, even in its smallest part, will save Nature, bringing it and the notorious humanity renewal and purification!
Unfortunately, both directing is impoverished with artistic imagination, and the technological capabilities of filming, as well as the script, were not sufficient to produce a quality film product.
However, the film in which Nicolas Cage participates will never be a loser!
He will save any picture with his unrivaled talent for being extremely convincing, natural and sincere, even against weak scenarios.
Actor Nicholas Cage... It's the Master!
He always loves his heroes, and therefore he knows their characters and motives of behavior. He is devoted with all his soul to those in whom he reincarnates, and the audience believes him infinitely.
And then on the screen is born not a fairy tale, not a fantasy, but the miracle of life itself, in which we, the audience, are fully involved!
This is the real art of cinema.
It's beautiful. My last ten films with Nicholas Cage. 1.
Well, brother rabbits have arrived: Civilization has again ordered a long life, resources are running out, you are to blame, the human race is threatened by abundant exterminus. This is it. One passion for reproduction, and human pleasures like drinking and entertainment among the people have not disappeared anywhere, but on the contrary, in a state of increased aggressive world mood, the entire American nation, and we are talking about it, is actively degraded and requires various subsidies in order to drink clean water and eat tasty, but everyone cannot survive. Democracy has created the United States, and it will soon destroy them. So works for the benefit of the entire progressive nation Sharashkin office with the loud name "Bureau of humanity", judging by the laws of the genre, well, the canons - it must work full-fledged representatives of the human race. However, for a few dozen bureaucrats with sadistic tendencies, there is one decent citizen who is “too old for this f***” (c), and just craves the truth of goodness and justice. However, such cadres have nothing to do in a bleak utopian future. But then comrade, and his name is pretentious name Noah Cross, and rotated systems of all types on his life experience, in order suddenly for all the years of his career, to take and send to hell the legal laws of the bureau intercede for, oh horror, oppressed single mother with her son in her arms.
Nicholas Cage is a psychopathic nature that I love very much, but something went wrong, and Mr. Cage began a thorny journey through the list of strange, I would say experimental tapes. Every time I look at another craft, where the poster shows the pretentious face of the master, I hope that, Lord, this time you can watch, you can smile somewhere, but alas, I see a tired and extremely hangover Nick. It's sad, the actor is good.
What should be the Bureau of Humanity? It all begins with traditional utopian landscapes on the theme of fallen civilizations, in other words, we are shown landscapes of mountain plains deliberately illuminated to a state of burnout, and Noah Cross races along these very roads. The scorched America of the future... All of a sudden, Americans are living what they used to be: truckers, trailer parks, fat tankers, and you can’t say that just a decade ago the economic crisis was bombed. The near future, which was mentioned in the synopsis, does not manifest itself in any way, i.e., it is formally there, but it is not felt, it is not visible. If we consider the hallmarks of a fantastic film android with a live screen and a dive unmanned unit, clumsy painted in a photo toad, then naturally we are in the era of apocalyptic Canada.
What do you expect from a film where the stale scene is the abode of the fallen rednecks in confrontation with the ruling democratic elite? A juicy thrash, for example, or an art house, but neither could be obtained at the exit. Cage's expected showdowns with bad guys, shootouts and chases, with naturally grotesque villains, and the overplaying Nicholas came to naught in the first forty minutes of timing. For the film, declared as a fantastic action movie, loses this term, most of all it looks like a dull road movie with the participation of the once famous actor. If you remove from the script the main antagonist in the face of an employee of the bureau, then you will get a spitting melodrama. Cage is maximally inactive, a cool bureau employee was expected to challenge a powerful corporation, and a movie turned out about a tired widower who was just looking for family warmth, but purely accidentally ran into a bunch of government officials in cloaks and with machine guns. Yes, and does the hero from the bay of velvet, of course, his message will be revealed later, but this will only gain even greater naivety, because of which the position of the film is aggravated. Playing from under the sticks Cage, and the rest of the ensemble did not create a miracle, absolutely passable movie.
Or maybe Nicholas at one of the drug parties made a bet and lost, and instead of giving the largest amount of money, he made a deal with the powerful of this world, if they did not cut his budget, he for a certain time will slap on the basis of thrash directors of the lower movie clips? Then his soul will be safe and sound.
Looking at the career of Nicolas Cage from the promising 80s to the end of the stable 00s, tears begin to turn on their eyes. The representative of the glorious Coppola family climbed to the top at a rapid pace, managed to interest only the best Hollywood directors and invariably experimented, trying to bring his dramatic skill to undeniable heights. Hard work paving the way to the “Golden Globe” and “Oscar”, Cage received the coveted awards, but this his passion is not extinct. On the contrary, he competently invested the received preferences, expanding the field of his activities to participate in large-scale action films, where he managed to squeeze even such mastodons of the genre as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone. "Rock", "Faceless", "Gone in 60 seconds" became a model of new-fangled action, and Cage's participation invariably guaranteed high artistic qualities of productions and no less pleasant for producers box office. Refusing to stop there, the actor deftly changed “Adaptation” to “Treasure of the Nation”, amused the audience with his eccentric antics, bought up estates around the world, married and divorced in just a couple of months, and after many years of genius madness still came out in circulation. No one expected that the spoiler of fate, the honored hero of Hollywood would be in an extremely precarious financial position. And the failure of the 150 millionth “Sorcerer’s Apprentice”, filmed under the auspices of cult producer Jerry Bruckheimer, forced Cage to go to serious lengths to eliminate a gaping hole in the bank account. And with each passing year, Cage began to sink deeper and deeper into mediocre jobs that guaranteed earnings, but at the same time destroyed the belief that he would ever return to his former high level. Among the endless stream of secondary film raw materials, consecrated by Cage’s participation, was the “Bureau of Humanity”, which has a very intriguing synopsis, but destroyed by a traditionally soulless production, choked with a meager budget.
So, through the efforts of director from nowhere Rob W. King and screenwriter David Schultz, the action is thrown into the near future and shows us the America of another faded post-apocalypse. A global environmental disaster, compounded by an unprecedented economic downturn, has transformed the United States into a totalitarian state living under entirely new laws. Due to the lack of food and water, the government organizes a special department known as the Bureau of Humanity. Operatives serving under inviolable regulations are obliged to investigate the quality of work and prospects of ordinary citizens. And if they don't do enough good to society, the agents are obliged to send the poor man to specialized camps, after which no one will see them again. In extreme cases, it is allowed to destroy dissenters right on the spot, in order to exclude the possibility of rebellion and unnecessary spending. Sincerely believing that such a policy is simply necessary in the prevailing realities, operative Noah (Cage) faithfully serves his native country, because judging by the existing propaganda, only the best must survive, while all the others are only ballast. But meeting Rachel (Sarah Lind) and her son Lucas (Jacob Davis) makes the character think about priorities. Unable to do them harm, Noah decides to consider further actions and gradually before his eyes are facts that destroy his worldview. It turns out that the government is primarily interested in its own good, while all other people, including operatives, act as limp consumables. And since this is true, Noah is no longer able to follow her lead and matures to break the rules.
As Nicolas Cage’s work after The Sorcerer’s Apprentice shows, he takes special pleasure in participating in frankly defiant projects that include horror, thrash action movies and fiction. Now it’s the actor’s turn to try his hand at the territory of Mad Max, Road and End of the World with Sean Ashmore. However, any post-apocalypse needs not only the desire of the creators to play with its precepts, but also in well-developed drama and entertainment. And the latter can and should be recreated without much financial cost. It is only necessary to pick up filming locations in a picturesque and preferably abandoned area, which in the United States or Canada, where the producers of the Bureau of Humanity come from, is quite easy to do. But as the finished result shows, Rob W. King initially understood what kind of picture he was entrusted with making. Moreover, the participation of Nicolas Cage already symbolizes the quality and pretentiousness, which are at an extremely low artistic bar. Watching the development of events it is extremely difficult to believe that we are really America of a seedy future, since neither the scenery nor the landscapes stand out against the background of what can be seen in some secondary road thriller. In words, we are told about global world changes, but in fact we see the mediocre grayness of existing existence, where in fact nothing significant is happening that makes us forget about all things and join the screens in order not to miss anything from attention.
Nicolas Cage’s performance is quite typical for him, but this circumstance is not repulsive. The actor looks confident in front of the camera, keeps as a professional, which is not surprising for a person who has been collecting awards and nominations of prestigious festivals for decades. But at the same time, it must be admitted that the director did not take advantage of the full spectrum of the actor’s talent, not allowing him to show his signature impulsivity, which is still legends. Cage's hero, Noah, looks tired, as the plot demands, but combative, otherwise he himself would have been sent to the death camp long ago. And when the story begins at least some semblance of active action, Cage begins to have fun and show us why he likes to act, albeit in blatant obscenity. The only problem is that Rob W. King is not particularly interested in showing miracles in working with action, since his main task was to bring the plot to its logical conclusion with minimal losses of budget and physical strength. Because of this, the excavated Cage has to cool his fervor every now and then, which definitely did not benefit anyone. “The Bureau of Humanity” by the hands of its director destroys intrigue, eradicates the rudiments of danger as a species and does everything necessary for Nicholas Cedge to write another work in his list of artistic failures. But despite all the troubles that fell on the actor, in his eyes the shine of creative madness has not yet extinguished and I want to believe that he is aware of the situation in time and will put his life on his feet, eliminating unnecessary spending and as a result denying the need to star in everything in a row.
In conclusion, I want to say that the Bureau of Humanity should be taken into account only those viewers who are ready to perceive Nicholas Cage in any form. In fact, the tape of Rob W. King is unworthy of attention and loses to most genre counterparts, at least minimally rising above the average artistic level.
3 out of 10
Another bleak future. In 2030, global warming led to a civil war in the United States that devastated the country. A government agency known as the Bureau of Humanity collects statistics. People who, in the opinion of the bureau, do not work effectively enough, get a ticket to the best gasenwagens of post-apocalyptic America.
In this sad world, Agent Noah Cross, one of the bureau’s best agents, decides which citizens will be deemed “unproductive” and go to places where the sun doesn’t shine. At some point, Cross feels sorry for a woman with a child, and he begins to accompany them to the border, while the rest of the bureau’s agents follow in their wake.
Unfortunately, with such a promising vision, the Bureau of Humanity is a parade of mediocre script elements and borrowings. The plot, based on the main concepts of Logan and Road with a tangible influence of classics such as 1984, often sags and is, in fact, a fairly simple unambiguous story. The script is confusing at times, lacking a clear direction characterizing the journey of the protagonists. Again, standard narrative in one form or another has already been presented on the screen hundreds of times and much better reveals all the intricacies of the relationship of the characters.
The characters are flat, uninteresting and follow traditional archetypes. It is unfortunate that little time has been devoted to their personal dramas and interactions.
The world of the Bureau of Humanity fits its own characters. In fact, it is never felt that the action takes place in the near future. The film makes no attempt to convince the viewer that the world of "Bureau" refers to futurism, except, of course, abundant use of weak visual effects. Already in the opening scene, Nicolas Cage is sitting in the car against the background of a terrible green screen.
The main problem of the Bureau of Humanity, however, is different. When watching, there is no sense that the heroes are in danger. And if something bad happens, then despair also fails to overwhelm the viewer. The villain, in turn, who represents an important aspect of the "post-apocalypse" in cinema, is disappointing. He is too formulaic, without clear motivation, and absolutely without charisma. And, probably, the main theme of the film was chosen slippery, because it is difficult to consider the Bureau of Humanity in the current context of global warming, although the creators, apparently, had such intentions. Yes, and the message “power elites lie to ordinary citizens” is already somehow annoyed.
Naturally, the main element in the film with Nicolas Cage is himself Nicolas Cage. The actor, who had quite a lot of major roles and whose merits are beyond doubt, has been glowing only in passing films for the past few years. And unlike this year’s other mediocre projects (Arsenal and The Unfathomable), Cage isn’t that bad here, to be honest. His character is flat and uninteresting, but sometimes I had the feeling that Nicholas was trying his best to pull the film out. Or it just looked good in contrast – the acting of all the other artists in the film is terrible and much worse than Nicholas Cage.
“The Bureau of Humanity”, unfortunately, continues a series of incompetent productions in Cage’s career. With every new film like this, hopes of Cage getting back in shape are dashed. Due to the low budget, the Bureau offers poor special effects, because of the writers’ creative impotence, the story is boring, and the scenery and camera work leave much to be desired. Only the concept of the world stands out, but there are so many holes in history that it’s amazing how someone wrote it all and didn’t even read it again. Thrash is thrash and there are only two reasons to watch it. First, try to catch an aesthetic feeling called “so bad, even good.” The second reason is Nicolas Cage. But I don't think he cares.
