It may, at times, be awfully generic and simplistic, but The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is Nicolas Cage cranked up to eleven — and that alone is entertaining enough.
Overall Score: 8/10
Image: Lionsgate
Nicolas Cage plays Nicolas Cage in a film about Nicolas Cage. Confused? Well, it really is as “wait, WHA…?” as it sounds. Nicolas Cage really does play himself — albeit a fictionalized version — in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.
When I first heard about this movie a couple of years ago, I couldn’t help but feel intrigued. “This can go two ways,” I had initially thought. “One, the film could turn out to be a huge disaster, or two, it could become one of the greatest cinematic creations ever.” Now, the end product, while definitely not as great as I’d hoped, is fortunately pretty decent and delivers on most of its promise.
In the movie, the fictional Nick Cage is a washed-up actor who’s in desperate need of money and a job. So, for a million dollars, he agrees to attend the birthday party of a billionaire, Pedro Pascal’s Javi Gutierrez, who also just so happens to be Cage’s number one fan. Soon afterwards, the two men form a deep bond and become the closest of friends. However, things go awry when Cage is tasked by the CIA with spying on Javi, who they claim is “the head of a violent international arms cartel.” Therefore, to ensure his and his family’s safety, Cage, according to the film’s official synopsis, “must take on the role of a lifetime: Nicolas Cage.”
As strange and ridiculous as the premise may seem, the movie itself is actually a lot of fun, and this is due in no small part to the terrific chemistry between Cage and Pascal and the bromance between their respective characters. I can’t explain exactly why it works. All I can say is that it just does and that the two of them make for an unlikely but really well-paired and lovable duo.
The acting in this film is also so appropriately over-the-top. This is, perhaps, most evident with Pascal’s portrayal of Javi, who steals every scene he’s in and oozes irresistible fanboy-ish charm, allowing you to fully buy him as a Nick Cage superfan. As for Cage, while I wouldn’t really say that he gives a wildly outstanding performance, he is undeniably great as this fictionalized version of himself. Furthermore, it’s just nice to see him be comfortable with and have a blast at making fun of himself.
Additionally, despite its inherent silliness, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is surprisingly thoughtful. What I mean by this is that one of its central themes is about family. Throughout the movie, Cage learns of the importance of being there for his loved ones and of the harm that can ensue if he were to continue to neglect them. It’s a surprising inclusion of an important moral, but one that serves the film and its characters well.
However, while the movie does largely function well, that doesn’t mean that it’s free from any flaws. The first thing that comes to mind is how so much of the story is kind of generic and sometimes outright predictable. The whole thing with the CIA mission, for instance, feels rather uninspired and comes off as a little lazy. Another problem I have is with how Tiffany Haddish’s comedic ability is sadly underutilized, making me wonder why she was cast in the first place. And, finally, my last complaint is that the humor doesn’t always work as well as it should. But, considering just how delightfully weird and crazy the film is overall, I think that these are issues that most people won’t really mind in the end.
To conclude, I believe that The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is a mostly good movie. And although it may be formulaic and somewhat simplistic, it’s nonetheless extremely entertaining and highly memorable. This is Nicolas Cage in the Nicolas Cage-iest of films, and if you’re a fan of over-the-top and goofy comedies, I’m sure that this is one you’ll enjoy.
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