SXSW FILM FESTIVAL 2024 REVIEW! In Benjamin Brewer’s sci-fi/horror, Arcadian, Nic Cage takes on the aliens in a not-so-distant dystopian future. Cage plays Paul, a single father to two boys, Joseph (Jaeden Martell) and Thomas (Maxwell Jenkins). The trio’s only job is to survive day-to-day on their remote country farm. During the day, they tend to the farm and hunt for scraps for survival. At night, their farm home must be meticulously boarded up to keep out the carnivorous alien invaders, who can not survive in the sunlight.
What kind of life is this? Against his father’s best judgment, Thomas hangs out each day with a girl, Charlotte (Sadie Soverall), and her family. When the sun sets, the boys must return home to board up the house, except on this day. Thomas is missing. Paul decides to brave the night and look for Thomas, leaving Joseph to protect the house by himself until morning.
Everything I’ve told you here is only the first act. When morning comes, Paul and Thomas return, and Paul is severely injured, leaving the boys to fend for themselves. To make matters worse, the aliens have evolved without warning and become more deadly.

“…their farm home must be meticulously boarded up to keep out the carnivorous alien invaders…”
Before you start making comparisons to A Quiet Place, there are more than enough unique elements to this tale to give it a fresh feel. There are two stories here. The first is about surviving the monster, and the second is about what the monsters have done to degrade society.
When Paul is injured, no one, not even Charlotte’s family, wants to help. Medicine is scarce, so there is no sharing. Also, at night, the aliens need one small point of entry into your home, and you’re dead. Anything that alters your nightly lockdown procedure, like adding people, increases the likelihood you’ll miss a step.
Arcadian is one of the best examples of indie sci-fi/horror storytelling that I’ve seen in a long time. It’s smart in how it sets up its dystopian future. The alien invasion has rules and seems plausible. It also has heart. Nic Cage is about as typical a father as he’ll ever get in a movie. His sole purpose in life is protecting his sons. He teaches them that they need to get along and that they are “MEN.” To his credit, there is one “Nic Cage” moment in the film, and it comes at the perfect moment.
As much as this is a Nic Cage movie, the film’s focus is rightfully on the two boys. Joseph is the smart one who has been studying the aliens behind his father’s back. His night home alone has a moment that is so great it must not be spoiled. Thomas struggles with his father’s strict discipline and his brother’s apparent weaknesses. Moving in with Charlotte is incredibly tempting.
Unlike A Quiet Place, Arcadian is very much an indie feature. The budget wasn’t big, but it made the most of the minimal special effects throughout the primarily practical movie. Arcadian should be the sleeper hit of the year.
Arcadian screened at the 2024 SXSW Film Festival.