Have you ever felt numb? Not the kind of numb that happens after receiving bad news where you quietly process your emotions before being overwhelmed by sadness, remorse, or anger. I’m talking more about the Zen-like numb. That feeling of “being.” Some drugs, legal or otherwise, can do that to a person. It’s not bad either. It’s like quietly floating on a rubber raft in a swimming pool during a nice day. No cares, no worries, no hang-ups, no tension, nothing bad for that moment. But writer/director/producer Michael Ferris Gibson isn’t talking about feeling numb for a moment, he’s talking about spending one’s life in a state of drug induced apathy.

NUMB takes place in the not too distant future. It shows a world where all its inhabitants are addicted to “the drip,” a drug that numbs its users into complete emotional and mental indifference. Here the pushers are called “angels” and have become synthetic human beings of sorts, mindlessly applying the drips to the human patients. Bottom line, it appears as if the entire world has lost its sense of passion. Well, maybe not the entire world, because there are a handful of people who are not addicts. One of these free-willed souls is Claire, a determined woman searching for her father (who just happens to be the man originally responsible for creating the drip drug). Claire journeys into Yerba city, which seems to contain nothing but drug dens and aimless addicts, and meets Miles, a security officer genetically immune to the drip. Miles agrees to help Claire find her father, but to do that they have to travel to Tiburon, a secretive place that hopefully offers a solution to Claire’s quest. Trouble is can Miles, who clearly has his own agenda, be trusted? And what uncomfortable truths await Claire once she reaches Tiburon?

Filmmaker Gibson provides a slow-paced, study-your-navel, low budget Sci-Fi drama with NUMB. What’s weird is that in this case none of that is bad thing. Using grainy hyperbolic color for the flashback scenes and black and white for the present sequences, Gibson carefully and artfully creates an atmospheric tale that is intriguing to watch. Yes, the budget is small but Gibson takes care of that drawback by utilizing his imagination, creating cold but fascinating backdrops and an environment populated by bizarre-looking people. Had he gone the Hollywood conventional way and tried to fill the story with action scenes or MTV camera angles and quick-hit cuts, he would have ended up with a film more brain-dead than the drip users appear to be. By taking his time and allowing the viewer to digest the starkly empty new world, Gibson gives the viewers an off the beaten path film that also contains some social commentary. Maybe the only problem is that it all feels just a tad dated, probably because this is a project that took ten years to get made from its inception. Personally, that doesn’t bother me because the movie’s statements are every bit as relevant today as they were years ago. Besides, the professional execution by Gibson and his crew can’t be overlooked. It’s obvious that they know what they’re doing and carefully thought out the production from beginning to end.

Jennifer West Savitch stars as Claire and she does a good job. Savitch’s Claire is neither innocent nor cynical, and she’s definitely not looking to hurt anyone. In fact, she feels bad for those who have turned their lives over to the drip, partly because they are so pathetically lost in the drug but also because her father was responsible for the creation of the crisis. All Claire wants to do is find her father and get some closure. She needs to know why he disappeared and why he left her behind. What’s more, Claire has an antidote to the drip with her, which just might be the greatest gift she could bring to her father at this point. Dominik Overstreet is well cast as Miles, a security guard who keeps everything in order. However, his view of order is a selfish one. He more or less plays God, feeling superior to all the beings around him and doing whatever he wants, including having his way with any of the near catatonic women in Yerba. If that sounds like living a life of bliss, then think again. Miles is every bit as trapped as the druggies are, and he has moments where he seriously contemplates blowing his brains out. Sure, he gets what he wants, but he also misses a lot during his conquests. For example, who is around to offer him any engaging conversation? About the closest he can get to having a real relationship is a steady fling with April (played by sexy Anne Goldmann), who is one of the hybrid androids. April’s idea of conversation is to stare blankly at Miles when he talks to her and then to blindly do whatever he says. I imagine sex with April would be like sex with a transistorized inflatable doll. One other performance that should be mentioned is Peter Macon as Jerome. While he has brief screen time, Macon does a great job of adding texture to his character. He immediately becomes a likable drugged out patient, a guy that you hope can somehow escape the zombie-like hold of the drip.

The DVD from Heretic contains a Dolby 2.0 stereo soundtrack and decent picture quality. As I stated before, the color shots are grainy but I don’t think it’s an accident. The grainy look helps add confusion to the flashbacks, which are oftentimes presented in a purposely disjointed fashion. Then again, even the black and white present tense story jumps around. Don’t worry about any of that, though. Everything becomes clear by the third act. Extras include an informative director’s commentary, some good deleted scenes (that maybe shouldn’t have been deleted), and a bunch of trailers for other Heretic releases. As for the movie itself, I encourage genre fans to give NUMB a chance. It’s a well made science fiction thriller with good acting performances from the leads, competent production values, and some worthwhile social commentary.