Director: Dan Berk, Robert Olsen
A routine dental checkup spirals into a citywide manhunt in Novocaine, a 2025 American comedy-crime-thriller directed by Dan Berk and Robert Olsen.
What is Novocaine about?
Jack Quaid stars as an unassuming dentist whose quiet office life is upended when a new patient, played by Amber Midthunder, charms her way past his defenses and disappears with the practice's entire drug supply. Within hours he becomes the prime suspect in a violent robbery he had nothing to do with, and clearing his name means chasing down the people who set him up. Ray Nicholson and Jacob Batalon round out a cast caught between slapstick mishaps and real danger as the search widens across the city. The film leans into the gap between its hero's ordinary profession and the escalating chaos around him, mixing dark comedy with tense set pieces rather than playing the premise strictly for laughs.
Cast & crew
Jack Quaid anchors the film as the dentist dragged into the plot, opposite Amber Midthunder as the patient whose disappearance kicks off the pursuit. Ray Nicholson, Jacob Batalon, Betty Gabriel, and Matt Walsh fill out the supporting circle of investigators, accomplices, and bystanders swept up in the fallout.
Context & significance
Novocaine sits at the crossroads of crime thriller and comedy, a combination Berk and Olsen use to keep the tone unpredictable as the story moves from office-set farce to street-level danger. At 95 minutes, the pacing stays tight, with the mismatch between the protagonist's day job and his sudden predicament driving much of the film's tension and its humor.
Where & how to watch
Novocaine is available to watch on K-Time with a free account login, presented with a Farsi-friendly interface and both Persian dubbing and Persian subtitles for viewers who prefer either option.