Luce

I liked the movie - but was kind of confused about exactly the point. This would be a good movie for an English Class to dissect the different themes going on. I would say it hits upon the pressure parents and teachers put on teen role models (especially African American role models). Everyone wanted this kid to succeed so badly that it led to many instances of lying and deceit on the part of students, teachers, parents and administration. It also is a commentary on issues around foreign adoption and the difficulties both the parents and kids can go through. It touches on school politics and how things can get swept under the rug when people or their actions don't fit into the image they are trying to project. I wish the movie would have just touched on one of these issues and stuck with it...I was kind of bouncing around trying to figure out the main point. As I said earlier...this would be a great case study for an English or Theater class.

I was with "Luce" all the way until the end. After all the twists and turns, the ending was a complete let down. I still do not know what was the point of this film. If it wasn't for the actors, I would have rated this a 1.

This film had me gripped, I loved it at first, saw a lot of potential in it! But i was left with so many unanswered question's, plot holes and motives. This would be a good film for a first episode to a series! But not as a film. The plot build up is extremely slow yet the ending is no different. Not worthy of the word 'film' but a good plot and amazing acting! Too many unanswered questions though.

Adapting his own play of the same name, playwright/screenwriter J.C Lee teams up with director Julius Onah to deliver a talk driven and character lead thriller that will most certainly get you talking afterwards but despite its weighty themes and controversial plot points, Luce may leave many cold come its closing credits as we are left too ponder many unanswered questions, that in some instances remain frustratingly unresolved.

Collating a well-rounded cast that includes the always good Naomi Watts, Tim Roth and Octavia Spencer and featuring a star-making turn from It Comes at Night actor Kelvin Harrison Jr as the titular Luce Edgar, Onah's film is the very definition of a slow burning affair as we are thrust into a seemingly small-scale school drama that slowly but surely moves towards a much larger issue in the lives of those it's affecting.

The less known about Luce's plot developments the better but suffice to know that from Spencer's teacher Harriet Wilson concerned meeting with Luce's adopted mother Amy after she discovers a potentially dangerous item in Luce's locker following an alarm raising report his handed in to her, the film takes us on a ride that tackles issues of race, identity and stereotyping as we begin to understand more about each of the characters within Luce's world and what is motivating them to make life-changing decisions in light of alleged issues.

Front and centre to all of this is Luce, a character that is incredibly hard to pin down, drifting from likeable star student to possible deviously motivated trouble maker and Harrison Jr wondrously plays with our emotions and feelings here as he brings this on paper perfect adoptive son to life.

Watching Harrison Jr play off against Watts and Roth is a joy to behold, while his interactions with Spencer's nosey but well-meaning teacher is a huge reason why Luce is such a gripping film for a majority of its dialogue heavy runtime and for the most part Onah and his cast keep us on edge throughout as we try and predict just what will come out and who will play their true cards first.

Unfortunately for the film, come the endgame you can't help but feel as though a little too much has been left only half-explored, there's a lot of themes, issues and ideas at play here and for a film that borders on a near two hour runtime, Onah and Lee had enough time to explore these to a more satisfactory level and the unsure nature of exactly who comes out of this film as the good and the bad makes us feel short-changed as bystanders, making the journey of Luce far more entertaining that its destination.

Final Say -

A uniquely constructed family/high school drama that explores more than its fair share of weighty themes, Luceis a tightly wound thriller with some great performances and ideas but not the final execution to make it the killer offering it could've been.

3 bags of fireworks out of 5

A confusing, conflicting & cryptic thriller that plays with our perceptions to challenge our preconceptions, Luce clearly intends on starting a conversation but it also does the bare minimum to make it happen as the film expects the audience to figure out the mystery yet doesn't provide a starting point to get them going.

Co-written & directed by Julius Onah (The Cloverfield Paradox), the film is certainly an improvement over his previous dud and is captivating in its narration that tackles parent anxieties, assumption, suspicion, biases & guilt, but much of what it wants to say is lost in translation, and the ambivalent ending doesn't help the cause either.

There are a lot of things that are left unresolved by the end, and even the cast does too well to not let anything slip away. Kelvin Harrison Jr. chips in with a multifaceted input that keeps us guessing at all times. Both Naomi Watts & Tim Roth do good as his concerned parents. Andrea Bang easily steals her scenes, and Octavia Spencer is brilliant as usual.

Overall, Luce is a deliberately complex yet sufficiently engaging drama that asks a lot of questions but refuses to answer any of them. What keeps the interest alive is our very own curiosity to discern the truth, and the anticlimactic end leaves behind an underwhelming aftertaste. Still, for its strong performances & thought-provoking treatment, Luce is worth a shot.