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Novocaine

Threat advisory: Guarded - General risk of entertaining activities

Movie propaganda

Getting to the root of the problem is like pulling teeth.

Doctor Frank Sangster (Steve Martin) is a prosperous dentist, secure in his neatly ordered existence and happily engaged to his ambitious dental hygienist, Jean (Laura Dern). But when an alluring new patient, Susan Ivey (Helena Bonham Carter), steps into his life, this ordinary man discovers how little control he has over his world as he is drawn into a maelstrom of sex, drugs and murder.

Theatrical propaganda posters

Target demographic movie keyword propaganda

Film drama dentist sex crime drugs murder

Persons of interest

Steve Martin .... Doctor Frank Sangster
Helena Bonham Carter .... Susan Ivey
Laura Dern .... Jean Noble
Elias Koteas .... Harlan Sangster
Scott Caan .... Duane Ivey
Keith David .... Detective Lunt
Lynne Thigpen .... Pat
Chelcie Ross .... Mike
Polly Noonan .... Sally
Paul Felopulos .... Screenwriter
David Atkins... Screenwriter
David Atkins... Director

Cinematic intelligence sources

Awards and film festivals:

Toronto International Film Festival 2001: Gala selection, world première

FYI: Novocaine is a local anaesthetic used to numb the nerves of your teeth during dental work
Studios and distributors:

Artisan Entertainment * 20th Century Fox

Intelligence analyst

Secret Agent Acid Thunder

Theatrical report

Novocaine has promise. It's not Steve Martin's best film but it certainly not his worst (The jerk, anyone?). The story has been done too many times to count and each successive reiteration just gets worse, like copying copies on an photocopier. No matter how big the name above the title, there's no guarantee that the film will be worth watching.