“Novocaine” is a comedic film noir but the makers seemed to have forgotten to add the comedy. Steve Martin (“Mixed Nuts”, “The Man With Two Brains”) previously spoofed the film noir genre with “Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid” and while I wasn’t exactly a fan of that film, I at least felt that it was trying to be funny. “Novocaine” is actually quite unsettling at times.

Frank Sangster (Martin) is a dentist that finds himself at the centre of a seedy plot after he is seduced by a new patient (Helena Bonham Carter “Fight Club”). With the drugs stolen from his practice, Frank tries to get the stuff back but soon becomes accused of murder. Now, he must prove his innocence by discovering who set him up.

Martin is a funny guy but he doesn’t even seem to attempt to be amusing here. He’s in a script that has as much joy as “Silence of the Lambs”. It’s not plausible that Helena Bonham Carter’s character seduces anybody because it’s so evident that she’s got problems right from the start. She never looks enticing here because she never successfully masks the fact that she is a substance abuser. Laura Dern (“Jurassic Park”, “Blue Velvet”) is in here but it rather disappointing. Kevin Bacon (“Tremors”) makes a brief appearance but adds nothing to the movie.

“Novocaine” has been marketed as a comedy and other people refer to it as one so I’m so shocked that it seems so comedically empty. As a film noir, it’s not especially engaging. It has a few intriguing ideas but that’s about it. The whole tone of movie is really dark and unpleasant. A shot near the end of this movie is so disturbing and graphic that it actually felt like a live-action version of a particularly uncomfortable sequence in “Ren & Stimpy” where Ren has problems with his teeth.