Movie Review: The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

 

Michael's Movie Grade: B

A really fun action-comedy.

The idea of Nicholas Cage playing himself in an action-adventure film is in itself a delightful idea and this movie has a lot of fun with it. Even if some of his movie choices have been questionable, Cage has always been a great actor, who brings his all to every role he plays. Here he is at the top of his game. He manages to play himself in a way that pokes a lot of fun at his public image, while showing why movie fans love him so much and bringing an incredibly likable presence to this fictionalized version of himself.  He is also obviously having such a good time making this film. In there lies the reason this film works. We get the feeling that everyone making this movie had a great time making it and therefore we have a lot of fun watching it. What also comes through is director/co-writer Tom Gormican's passion for movies. As much as this movie may parody celebrity culture and Hollywood, it has the upmost respect for film as an artform. References to great movies abound and range from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) to Paddington 2 (2017) and of course so many of Nicholas Cage's films. Listening to the characters talking about movies provides the film with some of its most charming and funniest moments. These scenes are especially delightful to film buffs but will entertain those who not familiar with the movies as well because the passion comes through, and they are just so dang funny. Not all the humor is perfect though. There are some jokes that miss and there are times when I wish the humor would have gone more over the top. But still the moments that are funny are very funny and I certainly laughed out loud multiple times watching this movie. There is also a comedic energy to this film that is delightful and kept a smile on my face for most of the runtime. 

The downside is that while our main characters are very likable and fun, some of the side characters simply aren't that interesting. The CIA agents who hire Nicholas Cage are bland and not very funny. 

All in all, while this is not a perfect movie, it is a lot of fun.