Overview
A family's idealized image of their son is shattered by a shocking revelation.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- tense
- cerebral
- paranoid
- serious movie night
- discussion-driven viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the intense ensemble performances, especially Kelvin Harrison Jr., and the film's provocative racial commentary, while some found its dramatic threads repetitive or insufficiently cohesive.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Luce is presented simultaneously as an exemplary student and as a figure whose private writings and conduct invite suspicion.
The teacher, parents, and student interpret the same evidence through assumptions about race, adoption, achievement, and threat.
The high school setting turns discipline, academic success, and teacher authority into mechanisms for negotiating structural power.
The film withholds a stable judgment about Luce and the adults around him, forcing viewers to reassess motives and evidence.
Films like Luce, and why
The Hunt
psychological ambiguity, racial power dynamics, and escalating conflict within an affluent family
The Bad Seed
socially charged domestic thriller built around competing perceptions of a young person
Doubt
tense institutional drama examining race, authority, and contradictory moral viewpoints
American Beauty
unsettling suburban social drama with deceptive characters and unresolved ethical questions
Movie Details
- Director
- Julius Onah
- Release Date
- 2019-08-02
- Runtime
- 109 min
- Rating
- 6.4 / 10 (333)
Cast
- Kelvin Harrison Jr.
- Naomi Watts
- Octavia Spencer
- Tim Roth
- Norbert Leo Butz
- Andrea Bang
- Marsha Stephanie Blake
- Omar Brunson
- Noah Gaynor
- Stro
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Luce about?
- An acclaimed, unsettling school drama turns an adopted star student's exemplary image into a battleground over race, power, and parental belief.
- What is Luce like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Luce as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Luce violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Luce as mild.
- What did critics think of Luce?
- Critics broadly praised the intense ensemble performances, especially Kelvin Harrison Jr., and the film's provocative racial commentary, while some found its dramatic threads repetitive or insufficiently cohesive.
- Which films are like Luce?
- Films with a similar feel include The Hunt, The Bad Seed, Doubt, and American Beauty.
- How long is Luce?
- Luce runs 109 minutes.
- Where can I watch Luce?
- In United States, Luce is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
