- A Man is Trapped in a Porta-Potty in HOLY SHIT! Trailer
- Teaser Trailer for PREY, Latest Predator Movie
- Teaser Trailer for Netflix's RESIDENT EVIL Series
- A tale of disappearance and horror in YELLOWBRICKROAD
- A tale of disappearance and horror in YELLOWBRICKROAD
- New EVENT HORIZON 4K Steelbook Available Now
- AVATAR 2: THE WAY OF WATER Trailer
- Stop-Motion Madness! Phil Tippett's MAD GOD Premieres on Shudder in June
- THE BOOK OF THE NEW SUN Series Blends Post-Apocalypse with Epic Fantasy
- THE BOOK OF THE NEW SUN Series Blends Post-Apocalypse with Epic Fantasy
- Re: Occupation, Australian Sci Fi movie
- Slice of Life, Blade Runner inspired short
- Is Snowpeircer a sequel to Willy Wonka?
- Re: Yesterday
- Re: Yesterday
- Yesterday
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- Re: White Night (or where do I get my 30 + from now?)
- First Poster for Anticipated Apocalyptic Thriller VESPER
- Teaser Trailer for Netflix's RESIDENT EVIL Series
- Here's What's On Blu-ray and 4K This Week! [May 10, 2022]
- THE BOOK OF THE NEW SUN Series Blends Post-Apocalypse with Epic Fantasy
- Turbo Kid Directors Apating THE ZOMBIES THAT ATE THE WORLD Comic Series
- Proto-Cyberpunk & Post-Apocalypse Meet in MONDOCANE [Trailer]
- Here's the WYRMWOOD: APOCALYPSE Trailer!
- Watch Richard Stanley's Rare Super 8 Version of Hardware called
- Epic Destruction in RESTART THE EARTH Trailer
- Carriers Directors David Pastor and Àlex Pastor Are Filming a BIRD BOX Spin-Off
- Richard Stanley's HARDWARE Continues as a Comic!
- VIFF 2021: THE IN-LAWS, MIRACLE, SALOUM, SECRETS FROM PUTUMAYO [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2021: SILENT NIGHT Review
- VIFF 2021: Documentary Preview [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2021: THE PINK CLOUD, THE HOLE IN THE FENCE [Capsule Reviews]
- TIFF 2021: JAGGED Review
- TIFF 2021: SUNDOWN Review
- VIFF 2021: Animation Preview [Capsule Reviews]
- SAINT-NARCISSE is Bruce LaBruce at His Most Accomplished [Review]
- TIFF 2021: DASHCAM Review
- TIFF 2021: THE DAUGHTER Review
- Trailer for Sci-Fi Prison Thriller CORRECTIVE MEASURES
- This Week on Blu-ray and DVD! [April 19, 2022]
- Disturbing Teaser for David Cronenberg's CRIMES OF THE FUTURE
- CHILDREN OF SIN Spooks up Amazon April 22
- Proto-Cyberpunk & Post-Apocalypse Meet in MONDOCANE [Trailer]
- This Week on 4K, Blu-ray and DVD! [April 12, 2022]
- Paul Schrader Penned THERE ARE NO SAINTS Trailer
- Full STRANGER THINGS Season 4 Trailer
- 3-Disc TOMBS OF THE BLIND DEAD Coming from Synapse Films
- This Week on Blu-ray & DVD [April 5, 2022]
- DOG SOLDIERS Collector's Edition 4K Blu-ray on the Way from Scream Factory
- Famous First Films: Robert Eggers' HANSEL AND GRETEL
- ‘Squid Game’ Director's Next is KLLING OLD PEOPLE CLUB
- Choose or Die: Netflix Movie Features a Killer Text Adventure Game
- New this week on Blu-ray and DVD! [March 29, 2022]
- Trailer for Horror Maestro Gustavo Hernandez's VIRUS:32
- V/H/S/94 Blu-ray Details Unearthed from RLJ
- Trailer for Atmospheric SHEPHERD
- Here's the WYRMWOOD: APOCALYPSE Trailer!
- The GOAT Returns! Panos Cosmatos' Next Is Sci-Fi Fantasy NEKROKOSM
Jack In
Latest Comments
Latest Forum Posts
PA News
Latest Reviews
Older News
Crew
Marina Antunes
Editor in Chief
Vancouver, British Columbia
Christopher Webster
Managing Editor
Edmonton, Alberta
DN aka quietearth
Founder / Asst. Managing Editor
Denver, Colorado
Simon Read
UK Correspondent
Edinburgh, Scotland
Rick McGrath
Toronto Correspondent
Toronto, Ontario
Manuel de Layet
France Correspondent
Paris, France
rochefort
Austin Correspondent
Austin, Texas
Daniel Olmos
Corrispondente in Italia
Italy
Griffith Maloney aka Griffith Maloney
New York Correspondent
New York, NY
Stephanie O
Floating Correspondent
Quiet Earth Bunker
Jason Widgington
Montreal Correspondent
Montreal, Quebec
Carlos Prime
Austin Correspondent
Austin, TX
Latest news







In the opening minutes of Painless writer/director Jordan Horowitz sets up the premise of his movie with no dialogue. Through aged video, we see a little boy getting into all sorts of pain inducing trouble with no response so when we meet the adult Henry Long, we already know his deal is: he can’t feel pain.
Henry has become obsessed with figuring out why he can’t feel pain and trying to fix himself. This, along with reading people’s ailments, are the only two things he cares about until a man comes knocking on his door offering to help him in his search for a cure. In exchange, Henry has to provide some of his DNA for sampling. And so Henry and Dr. Andrews come to work together even though the pair have different goals - Henry wants to feel while Dr. Andrews wants to develop a cure for pain - getting there is mutually beneficial. For a little while at least.
It’s not clear whether the science of Painless is good or simply made up for the movie though I expect it’s likely a mix of the two since it seems the movie took inspiration from M. Night Shyamalan’s Unbreakable (I mean, even Andrews and Henry have completely opposite illnesses; Henry feels no pain while Andrews is in constant pain), but Horowitz keeps the story grounded in a familiar reality which is one of the things which makes Painless so much fun to watch.
Though the battle of wills and intellect between Henry and Dr. Andrews is at the centre of the movie’s final act, for the most part, Painless is focused on the struggle of living without pain and how that affects day-to-day life. It’s not immediately apparent but living without feeling pain is far more dangerous than one might initially consider and the dangers run the gamut from uncomfortable to potentially deadly. It means not knowing whether you’re going to burn your tongue on that coffee or dinner, if it’s hot or cold out, or whether that fall left you with broken ribs. Your body still reacts to your surroundings and actions but you can’t tell if the outcome/injury is serious.
Some of the minutia is so well developed that it’s clear Horowitz has been developing this story for some time and it’s this attention to detail which sets Painless apart. The world feels lived in and real and whether the science is real or not, a world where a man suffers from this ailment feels real even if the villain feels larger-than-life. The one misstep is the music which feels completely overpowering, especially during some of the movie’s key emotional moments.
Cemented by a great lead performance from Joey Klein, Painless is a nice genre surprise, a movie that takes a grandiose idea but manages to keep the story intimate.
Recommended Release: Boy Wonder
You might also like






