Joshua (2007)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

George Ratliff

Writers:

David Gilbert (written by) and
George Ratliff (written by)

Release Date:

19 September 2007 (Philippines)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

The story of a perfect boy who had a perfect plan.

Plot:

The arrival of a newborn girl causes the gradual disintegration of the Cairn family; particularly for 9-year-old Joshua (Kogan), an eccentric boy whose proper upbringing and refined tastes both take a sinister turn.

Plot Keywords:

Newborn | Baby | Stockbroker | Museum | Eccentric

Awards:

4 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Sam Rockwell	...	Brad Cairn
Vera Farmiga	...	Abby Cairn
Celia Weston	...	Hazel Cairn
Dallas Roberts	...	Ned Davidoff
Michael McKean	...	Chester Jenkins
Jacob Kogan	...	Joshua Cairn
Nancy Giles	...	Betsy Polsheck
Linda Larkin	...	Ms. Danforth
Alex Draper	...	Stewart Slocum
Stephanie Roth Haberle	...	Pediatrician
Ezra Barnes	...	Fred Solomon
Jodie Markell	...	Ruth Solomon
Rufus Collins	...	Henry Abernathy
Haviland Morris	...	Monique Abernathy
Tom Bloom	...	Joe Cairn

Also Known As:

Joshua: The Devil's Child (Australia)

MPAA:

Rated R for language and some disturbing behavior by a child.

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 | Germany:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/Manitoba/Ontario) | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | USA:R (certificate #43401) | Australia:MA (2007) | Finland:K-15 | Argentina:13 | New Zealand:M | Portugal:M/16 | Netherlands:16 | South Africa:16LV | France:-12

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

ATO Pictures

Trivia:

The role of Joshua's young sibling was played by the real-life newborn sibling of Jacob Kogan.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): The video tape Joshua pulls from the drawer to watch is dated 2/29/1997. 1997 was not a leap year.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Joshua Cairn: [sung] I only ever really wanted to be with you.

Movie Connections:

References Bronenosets Potyomkin (1925)

Soundtrack:

See the World

Problem Child

With very little foreknowledge, I tuned into this movie expecting some kind of kid-possessed-by demon Exorcist/Damien rip-off, but although the film tells of a kid from hell there is no supernatural element to it. I was initially quite surprised by how well-written the screenplay was, although the plot loses some of its impetus half-way through as the writer is forced to create progressively unlikely incidents in order to build upon the tension he has already created.

Joshua is a strange boy, bordering on genius, who likes nothing more than pulling the stuffing from his toy panda's nose in emulation of the Ancient Egyptian's method of preparing dead bodies for embalming. He's also pretty good at copying Dad's grief when he mourns over the dead body of the old family dog (who Joshua may or may not have offed while walking in the park). Joshua knows he's weird, and you sense he's frightened that his parents don't love him – or at least won't love him as much now that a baby sister has arrived in the scene. Sneaking a peek at videos of his constant wailing as a baby also does nothing for his frame of mind, and it's not long before he's sneaking in to little sis's room to make her cry the way he used to.

All these scenes are intelligently scripted and handled – as is Joshua's unique piano recital – fooling you into believing you're in for something really special but, while the film is still impressive (and far better than much of the stuff coming out of Hollywood these days), the plot developments become increasingly predictable, while the aim of Joshua's quiet campaign of terror on his parents is something of a mystery initially, and a little far-fetched when revealed in the final scene (which, naturally, leaves the way open for a sequel).