The Carpenter’s Son Blu Ray Review (Magnolia Pictures)

The Carpenter’s Son is a 2025 folk horror film written, executive produced, and directed by Lotfy Nathan (12 O’Clock Boys and Harka). It was produced by Nicolas Cage (Spider-Noir, The Surfer, The Wicker Man, Bangkok Dangerous, Lord of War, Next, and Vengeance: A Love Story). It grossed $146,356 worldwide at the box office. A remote village in Roman-era Egypt explodes into spiritual warfare when a carpenter, his wife and their child are targeted by supernatural forces. Joseph (played by: Nicolas Cage from Longlegs, Willy’s Wonderland, Bringing Out the Dead, Ghost Rider franchise, Raising Arizona, Wild at Heart, Face/Off, Leaving Las Vegas, The Rock, and Con Air), Mary (played by: FKA twigs from The Crow, Honey Boy, and Brighton Beach) and their teenage son Jesus (played by: Noah Jupe from Ford v Ferrari, Honey Boy, A Quiet Place franchise, and Hamnet) have lived for years under threat, clinging to their faith and traditions. A mysterious stranger (played by: Isla Johnston from The Queen’s Gambit, Invasion, and Life After Life) tries to entice young Jesus to abandon his devout father’s rules. He is lured into a forbidden world, as a terrified Joseph realizes that a demonic power is at work. Violent, unnatural events inexplicably follow Jesus, and he begins to experience nightmarish visions of the future. He learns the fearsome truth about his new playmate, as well as the child’s real name: Satan!!!! The Carpenter’s Son is an interesting and unique horror take on Jesus. It’s a darker origin story for one of the most important people to ever exist. This unhinged drama is full of fear, tension, faith, family, and horror. It was directed by Lotfy Nathan, I’m not familiar with his previous work but this definitely made an impression on me. It’s not a straight up religion or horror feature, it’s a mix of both. Noah Jupe is the real lead in this as Jesus. He’s been solid in everything that I’ve seen him in so far and I’d say this is his strongest performance in his career at this point. Jesus has been portrayed by so many over the years so I appreciate Jupe’s different approach here. He drives this odd folk horror and it manages to keep the attention of the audience. Nicolas Cage is Joseph aKa The Carpenter. He’s the one trying to guide his son after corruption arrives and it tries to change him. He provides a great balance to everything that goes on here. It’s a rather normal role for the iconic actor, he’s not over the top or wild in The Carpenter’s Son like some of his more recent material. I love that he’s not afraid to try something new each time. This is a controversial film since it shows Jesus and his world in a much different light. The rest of the cast includes FKA twigs, Isla Johnston, Souheila Yacoub (Climax), Penelope Markopoulou (Meta ti Fotia), Orestis Paliadelis (Dolls of Dresden), Elena Topalidou (Arcadia), and Manolis Mavromatakis (Tamam). It has a rather small cast so each role is definitely more important than your typical production. I will say that I wish it had a better flow and pace to it because it does drag a little at times. It’s not even a long movie but it feels like it. Regardless, it’s better than it’s reputation. The Carpenter’s Son has a good amount of suspense, thrills, paranoia, mystery, and a dark atmosphere to it. The ending is was just okay but I didn’t hate it or anything, I just wasn’t expecting that finish. It’s a very ambitious project and adaptation but I do appreciate what they did with the early Jesus story especially in a genre setting. It’s grim journey that really tests Jesus and his future. The special fx and overall look really shine the most when it comes to the visuals. If you are open minded and a fan of Nicolas Cage, this is a must watch. It’s not for everyone and if you are deeply religious it might rub you the wrong way but it’s not cliche or typical to this familiar subject. I didn’t know what to expect before going into The Carpenter’s Son but it’s way better than I thought it would be. RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and special features from Magnolia Pictures! This 1080p (2.39:1) transfer looks amazing on home video. I would love to see a possible 4K in the future but that might not happen considering this is a much smaller production. It has stylish cinematography, beautiful locations, eye popping production design, and impressive special fx for it’s sharp appearance. It has an English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track on the disc. The Carpenter’s Son is more of a slow burn but it does have it’s intense moments when it comes to the audio but mainly the score stands out for it’s audio. It has English SDH subtitles. It has the almost 3 minute “Deleted Scene Animatic: Clay Birds” done through storyboards. It has the almost 2 minute “Shots From the Deleted Scene Clay Birds” from the cutting room floor. It has a variety of “Trailers” from both Magnolia Pictures and Magnet Releasing on the home video release. It’s available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!