Tom Gormican
Cast
Nicolas Cage - Nick Cage
Pedro Pascal - Javi Gutierrez
Sharon Horgan - Olivia
Lily Sheen - Addy
Tiffany Haddish - Vivian
Ike Baronholtz - Martin
Paco Leon - Lucas Gutierrez
Neil Patrick Harris - Richard Fink
Nobody can Nicolas Cage better than Nicolas Cage. He's so Nicolas Cage that he can be both verb, noun, and adjective all at once. Chuck Norris can't even do that.
Though I've seen my fair share of Nick Cage flicks, I've never considered myself a fan. And, really, I still don't.
Though I've seen my fair share of Nick Cage flicks, I've never considered myself a fan. And, really, I still don't.
I think he emanates a cloud that smells like excessive conceit, and it's just too pungent for me. That's not to say he hasn't made any movies I like. He is, in mind, a celebrity's celebrity. If I had to paint the stereotypical Hollywood superstar actor, my image would resemble Cage very closely. Or, it would just be Nick Cage himself.
After having seen Nick Cage in his recent film "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent" (a title I can only guess came from the mind of Nick Cage, but clever none the less), released in April, I've eased up my generally negative opinions about Nick Cage. I found myself enjoying a Nick Cage movie in which Nick Cage plays Nick Cage. Well done, Nick Cage.
"Nicolas Cage... is incredible." "This guy's a fucking legend." Those are the first lines spoken in this movie. Actually the movie opens with dialogue from the 1997 Nick Cage movie "Con Air." A young couple watching that movie then throw out lines of praise to Nick Cage.
In this movie, Hollywood actor Nicolas Cage (Nick Cage) finds himself caught in a CIA mission to find and rescue Maria (Katrin Vankova), the daughter of a Catalan anti-crime politician who's kidnapped at the start of the film.
Before he's pulled into this operation, Nick Cage is struggling to land a new role in a movie as his name is being passed over by a major movie producer.
His ex-wife Olivia (Sharon Horgan) is fed up with how engrossed in his acting life he has been. And his daughter Addy (Lily Sheen) feels like she has been emotionally neglected by her dad.
After Nick Cage looses out on a major movie role, he embarrasses himself at Addy's birthday party.
So, he decides to quit acting.
Still, even Nick Cage needs money to pay the bills and clear some heavy debts. His agent, Richard Fink (Neil Patrick Harris) offers him an anonymous gig for $1 million. It involves travelling to Majorca to spend time with an extremely wealthy Nick Cage fan named Javi Gutierrez (Pedro Pascal) and be the guest of honor at his birthday.
Nick Cage agrees to go. But little does Nick Cage know that the CIA suspects Gutierrez, whom they claim made his fortune through arms dealing, is responsible for Maria's kidnapping and may likely be keeping her on the property.
Agents Vivian Etten (Tiffany Haddish) and Martin Etten (Ike Barinholtz) contact Nick Cage about Gutierrez, asking him to spy and see what he can find out about Maria's whereabouts.
Nick Cage reluctantly agrees as he and Gutierrez have become good friends. He doubts whether he can go behind his new pal's back.
Gutierrez wants Nick Cage to reconsider his decision to quit acting, and offers him a script he wrote. He hopes Nick Cage will consider it for production. And Nick Cage does.
When I was forced against my will to watch the trailer prior to the movie I paid to see, my initial thought was "of course this is a Nick Cage movie."
"The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent" is a tongue-in-cheek, somewhat cynical love letter to Nick Cage. It's one Nick Cage Easter egg after another. Not the bees!
So much so that mashable.com published a list of every movie name dropped in this film, including all the Nick Cage movie titles.
After having seen Nick Cage in his recent film "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent" (a title I can only guess came from the mind of Nick Cage, but clever none the less), released in April, I've eased up my generally negative opinions about Nick Cage. I found myself enjoying a Nick Cage movie in which Nick Cage plays Nick Cage. Well done, Nick Cage.
"Nicolas Cage... is incredible." "This guy's a fucking legend." Those are the first lines spoken in this movie. Actually the movie opens with dialogue from the 1997 Nick Cage movie "Con Air." A young couple watching that movie then throw out lines of praise to Nick Cage.
In this movie, Hollywood actor Nicolas Cage (Nick Cage) finds himself caught in a CIA mission to find and rescue Maria (Katrin Vankova), the daughter of a Catalan anti-crime politician who's kidnapped at the start of the film.
Before he's pulled into this operation, Nick Cage is struggling to land a new role in a movie as his name is being passed over by a major movie producer.
His ex-wife Olivia (Sharon Horgan) is fed up with how engrossed in his acting life he has been. And his daughter Addy (Lily Sheen) feels like she has been emotionally neglected by her dad.
After Nick Cage looses out on a major movie role, he embarrasses himself at Addy's birthday party.
So, he decides to quit acting.
Still, even Nick Cage needs money to pay the bills and clear some heavy debts. His agent, Richard Fink (Neil Patrick Harris) offers him an anonymous gig for $1 million. It involves travelling to Majorca to spend time with an extremely wealthy Nick Cage fan named Javi Gutierrez (Pedro Pascal) and be the guest of honor at his birthday.
Nick Cage agrees to go. But little does Nick Cage know that the CIA suspects Gutierrez, whom they claim made his fortune through arms dealing, is responsible for Maria's kidnapping and may likely be keeping her on the property.
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| Nick Cage as Nick Cage, and Pedro Pascal. |
Nick Cage reluctantly agrees as he and Gutierrez have become good friends. He doubts whether he can go behind his new pal's back.
Gutierrez wants Nick Cage to reconsider his decision to quit acting, and offers him a script he wrote. He hopes Nick Cage will consider it for production. And Nick Cage does.
When I was forced against my will to watch the trailer prior to the movie I paid to see, my initial thought was "of course this is a Nick Cage movie."
"The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent" is a tongue-in-cheek, somewhat cynical love letter to Nick Cage. It's one Nick Cage Easter egg after another. Not the bees!
So much so that mashable.com published a list of every movie name dropped in this film, including all the Nick Cage movie titles.
The film is like the cover of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," but with Nick Cage instead of the Beatles. And all the faces on the cover are all Nick Cage characters, especially from "Face Off."
Nick Cage is certainly aware of his eccentric and self-loving public image. He's aware of what fans expect.
I found myself not only laughing at the jokes, but at Nick Cage being himself, or as audiences generally see him as an actor and a personality.
Nick Cage is certainly aware of his eccentric and self-loving public image. He's aware of what fans expect.
I found myself not only laughing at the jokes, but at Nick Cage being himself, or as audiences generally see him as an actor and a personality.
One scene has Nick Cage stumbling upon the room where Gutierrez keeps his extensive Nick Cage paraphernalia collection.
Among his collection is a Nick Cage mannequin holding the golden guns from the movie "Face/Off" (*whispers* which stars Nick Cage).
Nick Cage stares at the likeness of himself and asks, "Is that supposed to be me? It's grotesque."
Then he offers Gutierrez $20,000 for it.
Nick Cage certainly has a lot of energy and interest in his previous film roles. It's often layered on rather thick, and I think that's the reason I don't get excited over Nick Cage movies.
That's most definitely true here, especially as he plays both himself and his alter ego. His alter ego shows up randomly in the form of a younger Nick Cage, whom he calls "Nicky." When Nicky does show up, he kicks his older self back into the game and reminds him that he's not just an actor, he's a movie star. Nicky is the Nick Cage persona audiences have seen time and time again, in movie after Nick Cage movie - self-absorbed, rowdy, and a bit crazy.
Nick Cage and Pedro Pascal work incredibly well together. The casting choices are superb.
Pascal plays his character as sympathetic, which he pulls off beautifully. Sometimes, its as though Pascal is the sidekick in this team. Other times, Nick Cage seems like the sidekick.
This is a buddy film with some originality thrown in. I hope to see Nick Cage and Pascal together again in a later film. I'd love to see these two earn a place among other famed comedy duos.
Pascal plays his character as sympathetic, which he pulls off beautifully. Sometimes, its as though Pascal is the sidekick in this team. Other times, Nick Cage seems like the sidekick.
This is a buddy film with some originality thrown in. I hope to see Nick Cage and Pascal together again in a later film. I'd love to see these two earn a place among other famed comedy duos.
"The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent" is certainly a Nick Cage fan-base movie. Regardless, I had fun watching it.
And on top of everything else, Cage and I both love "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari." Maybe Nick Cage is starting to grow on me a little.
And on top of everything else, Cage and I both love "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari." Maybe Nick Cage is starting to grow on me a little.
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