The Humanity Bureau

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Sarah Lind, Jakob Davies, & Hugh Dillon 

Director: Rob King - Rating: R - Score: 2 1/2 Stars

In the not too distant future a second civil war has taken place. In the aftermath, with limited resources, the productive members of society are protected. Those who are not, are investigated by The Humanity Bureau. If deemed unproductive, they are sent to live in the wastelands, where life is difficult. Noah Kross (Nicholas Cage) is one of the Bureau's top investigators, but when he discovers a secret about the wasteland, he decides it's no place for a single mother and he son, and decides to risk everything to bring them to freedom. It seems like every week a direct-to-video film like this comes out starring either Nicholas Cage or Bruce Willis, and they are always somewhat entertaining, due to the talent of the lead actor. Some, such as The Humanity Bureau, are better written than others, but that doesn't necessarily mean they are better films. The backstory here is highly imaginative and there were so many different directions for this story to go in, but it took the easy way out and simply became another chase movie. The good guys on the run, the bad guys always on their heels, and keep watching to find out who wins. I loved the story here, the characters all had backstories and secrets, and this film could have absolutely been something special, but it wasn't. Instead we got one big chase, filled with a lot of inexperienced actors, who quite frankly were in over their heads. Nicholas Cage was terrific, the writing was really good, but in the end, The Humanity Bureau fails to live up to the hype.