#MovieReview: Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent – the Cage-issance continues
In a winking performance, Cage is willing to laugh at himself and his larger than life persona, a buy-in without which the movie would fall completely flat.
Self-parodic and dialled up to 11, Nicolas Cage delivers an entertaining portrayal of himself in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.
Once a genuine bona fide star and Oscar winner, an entire generation of moviegoers has come to know Cage as a B-movie specialist, churning out straight-to-DVD, low-budget fare.
Whether playing the biker who made a deal with the devil in Ghost Rider, or the man tortured with bees in the much ‘memed’ Wicker Man, he has become an expert at picking roles poorly.
In the past few years, however, in among the continued production of the unwatchable, there has been something of a Cage-issance.
Mandy (2018) and Pig (2021) were both well received critically and forecast a more self-aware and picky Cage, bringing back some of the magic that made him a huge star initially.
Unbearable Weight brings this moment in his career full circle and it is both funny and strangely touching.
Mild spoilers to follow.
Cage plays ‘Nick Cage’, a slightly washed up actor who is trying to find his next big break in a bid to return to star status.
Although a role of this type materialises, Cage wants it too much, giving the director an over-the-top impromptu performance, after which another actor is chosen.
This leaves Cage listless and he is forced to take a million dollar appearance fee from a Spanish billionaire who wants him to come to his birthday party.
Javi Gutierrez (an immensely likeable and charming Pedro Pascal) is a Cage super fan and is basically paying him in the hopes that they will become best friends.
From this point, Unbearable Weight jumps through about four different genres, mirroring the chaotic energy of Cage’s career.
This works to its detriment however, as too much is forced into one movie for it to be legitimately coherent and cohesive.
Still, it is very enjoyable and some of the biggest laughs of the year come from the Cage/Gutierrez relationship.
It is far from a perfect movie, but should satiate both longtime Cage fans and newcomers to the singular position he holds in modern film culture.
Go for the laughs, stay for a well-handled and affecting portrayal of an aging actor trying to regain his youth.
Rated 16 for language, violence and drug use.
3.5/5.
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