Hi-#%*!ing-ya! That's how I was introduced to this movie's existence for the very first time. Thank you, YouTube and a Follower of the site! So what brought about that kind of exclamation? Well, it all starts with an acting family that doesn't have the best record. The Coppolas are all spawned from the same seed that brought us Francis Ford Coppola. Sadly, most of them did not get the same amount of talent (Bram Stoker's Dracula aside). Everyone knows Sofia Coppola and her epic performance in The Godfather III, but very few remember Chris Coppola. He's the man behind this movie and, since he's related by blood, Nicolas (Coppola) Cage is here too! After over fifteen years in obscurity, the movie is suddenly getting a lot of viral attention. Why? A video highlighting Cage's over-the-top performance as a drugged-out conman. The scenes are the high points of a video called Nicolas Cage Losing His Shit- a video that Cage has actually seen. He's a fan. Now that everyone knows the moments, let's see if the movie is worth the attention. Get out your parachute as we go for a...
No, it's not. It's pretentious, monotonous and stupid. Of course, there are those Nicolas Cage moments though...
Cage plays a con man who works for a big-time guy (James Coburn). He's set up to work with our hero (Michael Biehn) who is doing so in the wake of a personal tragedy. The key thing to know is that Cage's chacter does a lot of blow.
Oh yeah, he drinks a lot too. That's pretty obvious, huh? He has crazy quirks and is prone to outbursts. He's the best part of this movie, bar none. I suppose it's nice to see random cameos by people like Coburn and Talia Shire, but a drugged out Cage is always center stage. The best moment- a rant in a strip club where he beats up a random guy and yells 'Hi-$%^!ing-ya!' Why? Just because, dammit.
It certainly would help to be a little 'enhanced' while watching this movie. The plot is alright, but it is presented in a really pretentious way. The narration is forced and nothing is all that creative. If you didn't reinvent the wheel, why act like you did? Without Cage, this movie would be just another generic crime movie. Even with Cage, it's a generic crime movie with one crazy guy in it. A bunch of people make appearances here, but I think that it's just due to the family connection. Did Chris promise you that Francis would cast you in another movie? After all, this was a year after Bram Stoker's Dracula- I'm just saying! So is the movie worth the attention that it is getting now due to the YouTube video. No. It's just not that interesting when anyone but Cage is on screen. Look at the bright side though- they all got paid. That's enough for you, right Mr. Coburn?
Next up, a movie with zombies and Mexican wrestlers...but not George A. Romero. Well, you win some and you lose some. Stay tuned...
No comments:
Post a Comment