Novocaine film review

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NOVOCAINE

Mild-mannered dentist Dr Frank Sangster (Steve Martin) should be content with his lot in life: he has a successful practice in Illinois, a good home, and a loving fiancee (Laura Dern) who also works as his hygienist.

Unfortunately, Frank is bored, and he desperately some excitement - preferably between the sheets - to nudge him out of his rutt.

Frank's humdrum routine is thrown into disarray by the sudden appearance of his no-good brother Harlan (Elias Koteas) and friend Susan (Helena Bonham Carter), who needs emergency root canal work.

The young woman flirts with Frank, who is only too glad of the attention, and manipulates him into giving her a prescription for five Demerol pills.

By the time she reaches the pharmacy, the prescription has increased to 50 pills - an obscenely large dose which could give DEA agents serious cause for concern. Especially when Frank foolishly tries to cover up his blunder, rather than admitting the truth.

Before you can say "open wide", Frank finds himself embroiled in drugs, deception and murder, with seemingly no way out.

Novocaine is a quirky black comedy, which is a little long in the tooth, but still has plenty of bite.

Martin's low key performance is a pleasant surprise, and he shares a potent screen chemistry with Bonham Carter, especially when Susan seduces the good doctor in the dentist's chair, of all places.

Koteas is suitably repellent, Dern is delightfully quirky, and Scott Caan ups the ante as Susan's psychopathic brother Duane, whose appetite for illegal substances knows no bounds. Look out too for a great cameo from Kevin Bacon, playing a big name actor who is shadowing the local police force to research his role for a new TV show.

The plot uncoils with effortless precision, culminating in a neat final twist, which should be familiar to anyone who saw the misfiring Matthew Perry comedy The Whole Nine Yards.

For once, visiting the dentist is a relatively painless, and actually quite enjoyable experience.