Il talento di Mr. C

Caught an advance screening tonight and I thought it was super fun. I'm a huge Nicolas Cage fan, and it was over the top and crazy and chaotic and heartwarming. And there's definitely some cuckoo stuff mixed in, I'm actually a little surprised he didn't take the weirdness even further. And he yelled a lot but I would've taken even more. Haha Definitely a light silly night at the movies :) LONG LIVE CAGE.

Nic Cage plays a fictionalized version of himself in an enjoyable action-comedy that also stars a brilliant Pedro Pascal. Writers Tom Gormican and Kevin Etten strike a solid balance between fanboy moments and telling a fairly engaging story. While Cage excels in his dialogue-based humor, Pedro Pascal (who gets nearly equal emotional footing in the story) plays perfect foil to him. The underlying kidnapping plot is something that typically works in a Nic Cage action film, though Cage playing (a version of) himself makes all the difference here. The Easter eggs are organically placed, and the beautiful Spanish locales and production design present themselves as positives. The supporting cast also pitch in when needed, but Cage and Pascal do most of the heavy-lifting from a dramatic and comedic standpoint.

To give you insight into my relationship with Nicolas Cage, I will quote the end of my review for his movie Jiu Jitsu, which I gave 1 star:

"This is just a straight-garbage movie. Damn you Nick Cage!

... I wonder what movie of his I'll watch next."

I've been a fan of his for so long. I think he's very talented and has a certain crazy appeal that you don't see from other actors. And I keep watching most of his movies even as they plummet in quality and rarely make it to cinemas. He still makes them entertaining, even if they are awful. This is a huge contrast to other former A-list actors who have gone down the same path but with unwatchable movies. Like fellow Face/Off star John Travolta or Bruce Willis (we will miss you!).

So when they decide to make a movie that's essentially all about Nick Cage, of course I'm 100% in. And I have to say, this is his best movie in years. It's levels above the quality of his recent direct-to-video movies and is definitely cinema-worthy.

I laughed a lot. A couple parts had me crying from laughter. And when I wasn't laughing I was generally amused. It felt so refreshing to laugh with his movie rather than at it. And with the lack of comedy movies lately, this came at a perfect time.

Other than the comedy, this is a mostly well-made movie with a story and characters that kept me invested. I love the meta aspect. Nick Cage's performance in this role is perfect. It has a good supporting cast with the standout being Pedro Pascal. He's so likeable and has great chemistry with Nick Cage. Their relationship drives the movie. Pedro Pascal is a star.

I had a great time with this movie. I think most will enjoy it, but the ones who will appreciate it the most are the fans who are familiar with his work. (2 viewings, early screening 4/13/2022, 3/26/2023)

My favorite Nick Cage movies:

(1) Face/Off

(2) Kick-Ass

(3) Matchstick Men

(4) The Rock

(5) The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

(6) Con Air

(7) National Treasure

(8) Next

(9) Knowing

(10) Lord of War

I didn't know if I should count Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse since his role is so small.

The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. Nicholas Cage movie, about Nicholas Cage and his fight between his artistic aspirations and his chasing of the big bucks as a movie star. In other words there's lots of over acting, lots of action and it's very very clever and funny. A wonderful movie and well worth seeing . 8/10.

First of all, it is great to see Nick Cage working with such actors like Pedro Pascal who can not only keep up with Cage's screen presence but also enhance it. Secondly, as I have stated in the title, you'll enjoy this experience regardless if you are a fan of the man or not but if you are a fan, then you'll be very glad to see that the film has many nods to Cage's evolving filmography throughout the years. In the end, movie is both a cheesy (and well aware of itself) and a special thing that's not like any other comedy movie.