The second film directed by Joe Gormican stars Nicolas Cage as a fictionalised version of himself, who must accept an offer to attend the birthday party of crazed super fan Javi Gutierrez (Pedro Pascal). But, when the CIA get involved and reveal Javi is part of a dangerous drug cartel, Cage must channel his most iconic characters in order to save himself and his loved ones.
This is certainly a film where the more familiar you are with/ more you like Cage’s filmography, the more you’ll get from it. There are countless references throughout to his most iconic roles and films, (with Con Air, Face/ Off, The Rock and National Treasure just to name a few that I was most happy were in there). While not all the jokes land, the majority do, and it was so refreshing to see Cage play with some of the choices made in his career, both good and bad, in a self aware, self deprecating way.
Despite being an homage to some of Cage’s zaniest characters, I was really glad to see this movie work in and of itself as an action/buddy comedy. Given it is a self proclaimed “character driven adult drama”, it is heavily reliant on the chemistry between the leads, but Cage and Pascal delivered in spades, with their dynamic being comfortably the best element of the film. Despite some of the CIA/ cartel subplots around them feeling a bit generic and convoluted, a really well written, meta script gives the two leads free reign to create an instantly memorable duo.
Also, even though I found the CIA/ cartel related subplot a bit messy at times, I thought the family element with Nick, his daughter and his ex wife was very engaging and genuinely affecting, and the self aware way it was approached was legitimately moving. For a film that could have just coasted on its bizarre premise, it doesn’t just play it safe and puts more care into its characters and themes than expected, which can only be commended.
Overall, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is a charming breath of fresh air, a nostalgic throwback to Cage’s 90’s heyday and most of all is a fun and fitting tribute to the whacky brilliance of an often misunderstood actor.
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