Since 2020, I haven't seen Martin Lawrence on the screen, but this year he showed up with a diabolical thriller. Though the movie has received some harsh negative reviews, I tell you it is not the case if you see movies beyond their surface storyline. Though I see this movie as a copycat of a movie titled, 'The Silence of the Lambs' which was produced in 1991 and starred Anthony Hopkins and Jordie Forster, but in the case of this movie, it was involved with Art, not cannibalism. Mindcage is a movie with deep messages, lessons, and meaning underneath if you look closely but a lot of people watch this movie based on the surface story hoping for a more exhilarating thriller that will tickle their fantasy. This movie is enjoyable and good to watch. It was a good watch for me.
Mindcage (2022), an American mystery-thriller film revolves around two detectives who are after a copycat serial killer but instead get stuck in a maze game by the original serial killer himself who is called 'The Artist'. This movie starred Martin Lawrence, John Malkovich, Melissa Roxburgh, Robert Knepper, Jacob Grodnik, and Aiden Turner. The idea of the story of this movie was created by Mauro Borrelli and also directed by him. We have always seen Martin Lawrence's comedic roles, but in this movie, he acted seriously which makes this movie his first major non-comedic role.
The movie started off with a murder crime scene of a woman who was killed, decorated with angelic features, and whose body was coated in a resinous substance. Detective Mary and Doyle were called to the scene to take up the case. They realized that it was a copycat murder of the previous work of The Artist. As fate will have it, Mary discovered later that her partner Doyle was the one who caught the original serial killer aka ' The Artist'.
Mary then convinced Doyle and the police department to go seek help from the Artist and probably cut a deal with him to help them catch his copycat before any more murder surfaces. As we have, time was not on Mary's side when two more murdered victims were found in the city. Mary began to intensify her investigations with the Artist by searching for answers within their discussion during psych evaluation but the Artist began to divulge clues that led Mary a step backward with the copycat serial killer.
Mary became frustrated and pressed further for more clues and answers from the artist which then led Mary and Doyle into a diabolical game in a maze and a quest to discover the truth. Then the true mystery of the movie begins to unravel as a lot was discovered about the background of the Artist and the copycat killer. Did Mary and Doyle get the copycat killer? You will have watched the movie to know.
Positives Of This Movie.
First of all, I want to commend the extensive use of the mystery genre in this movie. It was extensively used in a way that was unexpected and shocking. It had me guessing what would happen next and what the ending would be like. You'd think you know where the movie is going or what is going to happen next in the movie but you are wrong. The use of mystery in this movie made it more interesting, intriguing, and fascinating. Also, it made the ending of the movie unexpected and enjoyable for me. The thriller aspect of this movie was close to horror but what makes it all exciting is the fact that there is a thin line that differentiates it from horror and thriller. Overall, it is a decent thriller.
The cast was amazing, especially the Artist (John Malkovich) and Mary (Melissa Roxburgh), though Martin Lawrence did amazingly well, I am still not used to seeing him in serious movie roles. The location used for the movie was befitting and perfect. The setting sequence of the scene was amazing, you can't predict how the movie would end. Also, I commend the cinematography of this movie. It was perfectly done to fit the plot of the story and also add more suspense to the movie.
Negatives
The plot of this movie was written well but it wasn't that perfect. The positive thing about the plot was the suspense and twist of the storyline, but the plot had some potholes which were missing background stories and unnecessary scenes that were not explained. For example, the introduction of the use of sage on the murder victims. What was the usefulness of the sage? Why did the killer use sage to design his victims? These questions, I have no answer for these questions as they were not explained in the plot.
Some aspects of the movies were not explored fully, like gore, killings, and the Artist's character. This movie would have been more of a masterpiece if those aspects were explored fully. I see this movie has a paranormal and supernatural genre but the genres were not explored and explained. For example, the Artist has a special ability to possess a person he sketches and uses them as his tools. How did he come up with that ability? Is it a supernatural curse? How possible can a human have that ability based on scientific facts? If these aspects were explored, this movie would have been a blockbuster with more sequels to come in the future.
My Rating and Recommendations.
Overall, this movie is a good watch and a decent thriller. There was no strong language used, no nudity or gore. Rating this movie, I will be giving 4 out 5 stars and I will be recommending this movie to Martin Lawrence fans, thriller movie lovers, and mystery movie lovers. If you have second thoughts about watching this movie, don't just watch it and give it a chance. You would enjoy the mystery, suspense, and ending.
All images above are from the movie screenshots
Thank you for visiting and supporting my blog 🤗
