Mindcage

Mindcage is a 2022 horror-thriller filmed in northwestern Arkansas. Starring Martin Lawrence, Melissa Roxburgh, and John Malkovich, the movie centers upon law enforcement’s efforts to track down a serial killer through consulting with an earlier serial killer whose style is now being copied.

The movie opens with a priest discovering the body of a woman made up like an angel, complete with wings. Mary (Roxburgh) and Jake (Lawrence) arrive at the church to examine the body. The style of the killing recalls that of serial killer Arnault Lefeure (Malkovich), known as The Artist, who, five years prior, kidnapped, killed, and preserved multiple sex workers, using paint, feathers, and metal frames to make them look like angels. A second body is found almost immediately afterward, positioned on the engine of a train parked at a depot, and the preservative used on both corpses proves to be an exact match of the kind used by The Artist.

Lieutenant P. Owings (Robert Knepper) wants to send someone to meet The Artist. Since Jake arrested him, he thinks Mary should go alone, especially since The Artist was responsible for the death of Zeke, Jake’s former partner. So Mary goes to the psychiatric institution where The Artist is being confined prior to his execution in two weeks. In exchange for his help, he wants his death sentence commuted and his art supplies restored to him.

A fisherman discovers the third body, floating in a boat on a lake. Mary discovers a compass needle beneath a fingernail, and Jake recognizes it as having belonged to Zeke, who always carried an antique compass. A fourth victim is discovered in a museum. Mary discovers Zeke’s compass beneath a chalice placed before the body. The needle, when added, points to drawing on a wall, behind which is an inscription in Dutch reading, “The Inferno Landscape.” The next victim is kidnapped while out riding. This turns out to be Lieutenant Governor Diaz (Nelli Sciutto). The killer sent pictures of Diaz to The Artist, whose sentence is commuted provided that Diaz is found alive.

In conversation with Mary, The Artist reveals that his mother was a sex worker, and he would copy the works of the Old Masters, especially religious imagery, while she was servicing clients. He claims that the killer is a forger of Renaissance paintings and directs them toward a local antiques shop, where they seize a painting of a crucifixion as evidence. A fingerprint on the painting is of a woman once arrested in a prostitution sting. They go to her residence and discover the desiccated body of a woman and an artist’s studio. It turns out that the dead woman was The Artist’s mother. Mary confronts him, and they talk while he sculpts a bust of her, which he gives to her, saying, “The truth is found in oneself.” As she and Jake are driving away, she digs into the clay and finds a paper with an address on it.

At the address, Mary locates Diaz, alive. However, Jake attacks her, possessed by the mind of The Artist. Through Jake, The Artist explains that, when he was a child in a wheelchair, he discovered that, after capturing someone’s likeness in a drawing, he could leave his own body and enter theirs temporarily. Mary then shoots Jake. At the end of the movie, she encounters Dr. Loesch (Neb Chupin), the head of the psychiatric prison. He turns out to be The Artist and informs her that she is his next victim. However, she tells him that she saw him chewing on his pencils during their conversations and had delivered to him some pencils tipped with same poison used to kill his mother. Back in his cell, The Artist dies.

The movie never specifies its location, using stock footage of larger cities at times. However, filming took place in Fayetteville (Washington County) and Springdale (Washington and Benton counties), as well as surrounding areas. Old Main on the campus of the University of Arkansas was used as the setting for the psychiatric institution. Other sites used include Springdale High School, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Fayetteville, the Arkansas and Missouri Railroad, Dickson Street in Fayetteville, parts of Cane Hill (Washington County), the taproom at Black Apple Hard Cider, and Evergreen Cemetery.

During production, the SAG-AFTRA union briefly issued a “Do Not Work” order for the production, claiming that the producer “failed to demonstrate its compliance with SAG-AFTRA’s required Covid safety standards and protocols for a safe set.” However, two days later, the union rescinded the order.

The A.V. Club gave Mindcage a “D” rating, with reviewer Brent Simon lamenting that the movie failed “to take advantage of the local environment and any of its distinctive flavors” and was filled with flat characters and “howlingly bad dialogue.” Likewise, Julian Roman of Movieweb complained that Mindcage “bundles tiresome serial killer clichés into a lackluster thriller with strained pacing.” Mindcage was not released domestically, going straight to video-on-demand, but did earn $459,522 internationally, with more than half of that amount coming from Italy.

For additional information:
Hoepfner, Fran. “‘Mindcage’ Review: Martin Lawrence Thriller Gets Stuck in Its Own Logic Trap.” The Wrap, December 14, 2022. https://www.thewrap.com/mindcage-review-martin-lawrence-john-malkovich/ (accessed June 30, 2026).

“Mindcage.” Internet Movie Database. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14147224 (accessed June 30, 2026).

Robb, David. “SAG-AFTRA Rescinds ‘Do Not Work’ Notice for ‘Mindcage’ Pic Starring Martin Lawrence & John Malkovich—Update.” Deadline, August 13, 2021. https://deadline.com/2021/08/citing-covid-safety-concerns-sag-aftra-issues-do-not-work-notice-for-martin-lawrence-movie-mindcage-1234813059/ (accessed June 30, 2026).

Roberts, Adam. “Martin Lawrence Filming Thriller ‘Mindcage’ in Northwest Arkansas.” 40/29 News, August 4, 2021. https://www.4029tv.com/article/martin-lawrence-filming-thriller-mindcage-in-northwest-arkansas/37213612# (accessed June 30, 2026).

Roman, Julian. “Mindcage Review: Silence of the Lambs Rehash Lacks Chemistry.” Movieweb, December 15, 2022. https://movieweb.com/mindcage-review/ (accessed June 30, 2026).

Simon, Brent. “Mindcage Review: No-Frills Thriller Boasts Strong John Malkovich, but Not Much More.” A.V. Club, December 15, 2022. https://www.avclub.com/mindcage-film-review-malkovich-lawrence-roxburgh-1849893174 (accessed June 30, 2026).

Staff of the CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas