Nicolas Cage, 57, is back on the big screen with Pig, a critically acclaimed dramatic thriller. The actor himself was astonished by the reception received by the film, he who has accustomed us to chaining the girls for a good decade.
Long hair, shaggy beard, scowl … Nicolas Cage once again sports an improbable look for his new feature film, Pig. This time the comedy slips into the costume of a truffle hunter living as a hermit in the Oregon wilderness. The kidnapping of his truffle sow pushes him to return to civilization in Portland where he will have to face the demons of his past.
BIG SCREEN RETURN NIC
This is the first time that a film starring Nicolas Cage has been released in theaters since Joe in 2014. There was indeed Snowden in 2016, but the actor only appeared for a few minutes. Indeed, the Oscar winner for Leaving Las Vegas has not ceased to chain direct-to-video girls for more than ten years, slowly sliding towards an end of career Bruce Willis style.
Unlike the latter, Nicolas Cage seems to have been reborn from his ashes for some time, as witnessed by this Pig, who caused a sensation at the last Deauville Festival.
“On paper, Pig has everything to be a vengeful B-series and the theater of the excesses of its main actor in the wilderness. On the contrary, the first feature film by Michael Sarnoski makes an impression with its sensitivity and the restraint shown. the actor Sometimes we think of a less dark version of Joe.
While the independent branch struggles to exist in an increasingly cautious industry, Michael Sarnoski reminds us that nuggets are still emerging regularly. And that simplicity is sometimes good, especially since it does not prevent emotion. “, wrote Maximilien Pierrette, our journalist who was able to see the film in Deauville.
Nicolas Cage himself was amazed at the positive reviews on this film, he who was used to getting shot at every nanardesque production that came out directly in streaming or video.
SIGNIFICANT PERFORMANCE
“It’s very nice to have an enthusiastic response. It’s a little surprising, but very pleasant”, he told The Hollywood Reporter. On Rotten Tomatoes, Pig reaches 97% positive reviews. When asked if the feature film echoes John Wick, in which Keanu Reeves’ dog was stolen, Nicolas Cage is adamant:
“I couldn’t think of a film more removed from John Wick than Pig. I don’t know if I’ll ever go back to typical Jerry Bruckheimer shows, because I think there is a cult of fear in studios and so on. is pretty stuffy. I don’t feel that when I do an independent film “, underlines the actor of 57 years.
“With Pig, I understood this deep connection that we could have with our animal siblings. I know that I rely a lot on my friendship with my cats and I haven’t seen a lot of movies on this subject, on these. relationships between humans and their animal friends “, adds Nicolas Cage, obviously very involved in this atypical story directed by Michael Sarnoski.
“It’s crazy because it’s like people only realize now that Nicolas is a really good actor, when I thought we had all been aware of that for a long time. I know he does roles that are a bit pompous sometimes. , but he’s a great actor and always has been. I feel like a fool for giving myself any credit, but I’m glad people recognize him in this movie. “, explains the director.
CONTINUATION OF NANARS
It is true that the actor has given us gigantic turnips for ten years. From Ghost Rider 1 and 2 to Burglary through The Last of the Templars, Tokarev, Chaos, Pay the Ghost, Crusades, Mom and Dad, Kill Chain or Jiu Jitsu, Cage has chained the bad films with phenomenal regularity. It’s hardly his vocal interpretation of Spider-Man Noir in New Generation in 2018 that saves the actor’s filmography a bit.
The native of Long Beach will he continue on this slope leading him irremediably to end up like Bruce Willis? For some time now, hope has been reborn, Cage appearing to be making bold choices, as can be seen in Pig. But the actor will surely surprise us in his next roles. For example, Prisoners of the Ghostland, by Japanese Sion Sono, looks rather quirky and original.
Cage is also the headliner of the western The Old Way, in which he plays Colton Briggs, a former bandit. He now runs a grocery store and lives peacefully with his family. When a gang of outlaws murders his wife in cold blood, Briggs returns home, digs up his gun, and surrounds himself with an unlikely partner: his twelve-year-old daughter …
