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Midnight Special

PG-13 Released Apr 8, 2016 1h 51m Sci-Fi Mystery & Thriller TRAILER for List
83% Tomatometer 241 Reviews 67% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
The government and a group of religious extremists pursue a man (Michael Shannon) and his son (Jaeden Lieberher), a young boy who possesses special powers.
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Midnight Special

Midnight Special

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Critics Consensus

Midnight Special's intriguing mysteries may not resolve themselves to every viewer's liking, but the journey is ambitious, entertaining, and terrifically acted.

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Critics Reviews

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Nigel Andrews Financial Times The heavens keep splitting to deliver forked tinsel masquerading as sci-fi lightning. Rated: 2/5 Dec 28, 2016 Full Review Jason Bailey Flavorwire Nichols does so many things so well, and all at once, that it sort of takes your breath away. Nov 17, 2016 Full Review Sara Michelle Fetters MovieFreak.com There is an adrenaline-fueled elasticity to events that is as smooth as it is exhilarating, all of it given extra potency thanks to the emotional complexities driving things to their conclusion. Rated: 3.5/4 Aug 11, 2016 Full Review JD Duran InSession Film As an allegory for parental sacrifice, words cannot begin to describe my experience with this film. Midnight Special moved me in ways that very few films ever have. Aug 8, 2024 Full Review Sean Axmaker Stream on Demand Jeff Nichols, the writer and director, keeps [a] sense of mystery throughout Midnight Special, always raising more questions with each answer. Oct 6, 2023 Full Review Jordan Brooks Vague Visages It has an emotional core compelling enough to draw in massive crowds of cinemagoers, a sci-fi grandeur showy enough to pull in the Marvel/DC crowd and a visual acuity worthy of the interest of even the most hardened cinephiles. Aug 1, 2023 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Dave B A series of cliches that have been done before with considerably more panache, more engaging characters and better acting (Firestarter, Stranger Things, Hanna, Raising Dion, Looper just to name a few of the recent ones). Plot: Child with miraculous powers pursued by The Gub'mint and (to add some variety) a few religious fruitcakes. The religious types make a few inconsequential cameo appearances before they seem to lose interest and wander off, leaving the standard chased-by-the-Deep State action sequences to get out of the way before the movie grinds to a halt. Performances were universally awful. All the protagonists just looked bored & irritated, as if they were stuck in a laundromat on Sunday afternoon and their phone had gone flat. You had no idea of any of their motivations from the outset, and an hour + later you just didn't care. They seemed to think what they were doing was important enough to shoot people but that was never explained, even in the end. Frankly, I am shocked that the consensus score is as high as it is. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 08/25/24 Full Review David H I'm a sucker for Jeff Nichols films and this didn't disappoint me. Great film. I'd recommend it those that like non fantastical, down to earth Sci Fi movies. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 06/28/24 Full Review Alec C Sometimes, what we think we know about the universe has a habit of biting us in the back! On the run from the government and a cult, a father and his son travel across the American frontier as the boy begins to exhibit powers that boggle the mind, implying that the boy is not from this earth. What makes it such an intriguing story is that we do not fully understand what this alien power is, making it a mystery that leaves us guessing! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 04/03/24 Full Review Jack B Okay, I had to edit this one and give a higher rating than I did initially. I'm a sucker for Sci-Fi and this counts. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/29/24 Full Review Alec B It's an interesting genre piece. Nichols has made an early Spielberg/comic book movie hybrid, only he's successfully gutted it of clunky exposition and heavy handed sentimentality. Proof that these kinds of movies can have that fat trimmed away and still successfully sell their premise and characters. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 12/14/23 Full Review Dani G In Jeff Nichols' style, and it reminded me of Take Shelter, only this a little more to pass time if you don't have much better options. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 08/08/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

The Signal 61% 39% The Signal Project Almanac 38% 45% Project Almanac Captive State 42% 40% Captive State TRAILER for Captive State Rememory 25% 43% Rememory TRAILER for Rememory Super 8 81% 75% Super 8 TRAILER for Super 8 Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis The government and a group of religious extremists pursue a man (Michael Shannon) and his son (Jaeden Lieberher), a young boy who possesses special powers.
Director
Jeff Nichols
Producer
Sarah Green, Brian Kavanaugh-Jones
Screenwriter
Jeff Nichols
Distributor
Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co
Tri-State Pictures
Rating
PG-13 (Some Violence|Action)
Genre
Sci-Fi, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 8, 2016, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Jun 7, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$3.7M
Runtime
1h 51m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital
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