Indie wunderkind director David Gordon Green (George Washington) tackles a reclamation project of sorts by casting Nicolas Cage as the titular figure, an ex-con with a righteous hot temper who befriends a teenager (Tye Sheridan, a rising talent from The Tree of Life and Mud) struggling to protect his mother and sister from his abusive father. Just from the trailer alone, Joe certainly shares a kinship with Mud, which was a key step along the redemptive path for Matthew McConaughey, so all eyes will likely be on Cage now. Let the whispering campaign commence. Opens April 18 at Esquire Theatre. (R) Not screened in time for review
This article appears in Apr 16-22, 2014.
