The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent - More than any Cage fan deserves

In recent cinematic history it's been hard to believe that once upon a time Nicolas Cage was a massive Box Office draw and a major A-list actor who even won Oscars for his performances.  Yet, no matter how great an actor he is, he obviously wasn't too savvy when it came to his finances.  He spiralled into debt and was forced to take one B-list straight-to-DVD film after the next, just to pay off his massive bills.  Then came 2022 and he made it quite clear that he was now... debt free!

And the oddly-titled 'Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent' seems to be one of his first films made now he can properly choose his projects, rather than just using them to cash a pay cheque.  Nicolas Cage plays Nicolas Cage.  Now, when an actor plays themselves, there's a tendency for them to exaggerate their performance in order to make it clear that, although they're playing themselves, they're not really like this in real life.  In this film, I'd almost beg to differ.

Nicolas Cage plays a role that, if not directly based on him, is certainly based on his fans' perception of him.  He's a washed up actor who riddled with debt and takes a gig attending some rich Spanish man's  (Pedro Pascal) birthday party just to pay the bills.  However, what he doesn't know is that the man in question - besides being an uber-fan of Cage's work - is also the prime suspect in a CIA investigation for kidnapping a politician's daughter.

What transpires is a 'bromance' between Cage and Pascal - and it works really well.  I know it's not supposed to be a 'laugh out loud' comedy, but I certainly found myself letting loose more than a few chuckles in the empty cinema I was watching it in.  The two actors definitely have chemistry and most people should appreciate that, even if they don't get every moment of 'fan service.' And there is plenty of fan service contained within.  Hopefully general audiences will enjoy this, but, if - like me - you're a fan of Nicolas Cage throughout his highs and lows then you'll get so much more out of it.

The first two thirds of the film contain the laughs whereas the final act kind of goes a little more serious, while straying from 'comedy/bromance' to straight out action with less comedy.  I found this the only (minor!) let-down in the film as it did feel like a bit of a shift in tones.  However, this was just a minor gripe and shouldn't take away the fun you can get from this film.  If you're a fan of Nicolas Cage then you HAVE to watch this film.  Although, hopefully it will appeal to a wider audience as well.  It certainly deserves to.

8/10 The Force is definitely strong with this one