By Robert Scucci
| Published
The Humanity Bureau is a perfect example of how a solid idea bolstered by a strong cast can still fall flat if the screenplay has a massive identity crisis. While I can’t fault Nicolas Cage (who can?), Sarah Lind, or Jakob Davies for understanding the assignment, I can most certainly fault the assignment itself, which is a dystopian sci-fi thriller that’s sentimental and contemplative one second, but only before becoming a high-octane action outing that attempts to explore and unpack the existential crisis that’s found at its core. Though we’re talking about a single movie with a single overarching plot, each passing scene made me feel like I blacked out before coming to and finding myself watching an entirely different film on more than one occasion.
So, is The Humanity Bureau worth streaming? As long as it’s available for free on Tubi, you really don’t have much to lose other than 94 minutes of your time.
A Dutiful Bureaucrat Conflicted By His Conscience
The Humanity Bureau centers on Nicolas Cage’s Agent Noah Kross, who works for the titular government agency to help spearhead their efforts in deporting the masses to a safe haven known as New Eden to start a new life. Tasked with evaluating citizens on their overall usefulness and ability to be functional and contributing members of society, Noah goes through the motions, and ships families off to an uncertain future for the sake of the better good that he sincerely believes in. Noah’s belief in the system is rocked when the former governor of Colorado, Chester Hills (Mel Tuck), refuses to ship out to New Eden after failing his evaluation because he “knows the truth,” resulting in a violent altercation that claims his life.
Under the impression that America is a coast-to-coast barren landscape rendered inhabitable as a result of nuclear fallout, Noah continues his work. After driving out to the country to evaluate Rachel Weller (Sarah Lind) and her son, Lucas (Jakob Davies), Noah has second thoughts about deporting them to New Eden, which incenses his superior, Adam Westinghouse (Hugh Dillon), who puts Noah under investigation without his knowledge.
Having reason to believe that Lucas is his estranged son, and learning that New Eden is actually a concentration camp where American citizens are burned to death as a means to control the population, Noah resolves to flee the country with his two subjects, who are now fugitives in the eyes of the Humanity Bureau.
Works Until It Doesn’t
The Humanity Bureau suffers from a severe identity crisis, which I don’t think is any fault of the acting talent involved. Nicolas Cage does a great job coming off as a trustworthy but existentially conflicted hero, which is instrumental in helping Noah convince Rachel and Lucas to join him in fleeing the country. Sarah Lind and Jakob Davies also deliver great performances, but if they’re simply reading the script as written and going through the motions like Cage, then there’s not much their acting talent can do to save this movie. The screenplay is simply too all-over-the-place to tell The Humanity Bureau’s story effectively.
The same can be said for every character in The Humanity Bureau.
For example, when Hugh Dillon’s Adam Westinghouse comes to the realization that Noah found out the truth about New Eden, he utters “we’re on the wrong side of history,” and then doesn’t change his behavior at all. Aside from this single line of passing dialogue, his behavior doesn’t change, and his pursuit of the fleeing family under Noah’s guidance never lets up. In fact, he becomes more aggressive in his pursuit as if he didn’t just have a moment of clarity that should have made him rethink his position of authority and switch sides to help them along the way.
Streaming The Humanity Bureau
I don’t want to say that I’m mad at The Humanity Bureau, but I’m definitely disappointed because it has all of the elements to make a solid dystopian sci-fi thriller. But thanks to its inability to pick a lane and stay in it, I can’t say that I’d recommend this one to anyone other than die-hard Nicolas Cage fans like myself who want to see the man, the myth, the legend use his immense acting talent to try saving a movie that was doomed from the start.
As of this writing, you can stream The Humanity Bureau for free on Tubi.
