(Credits: Far Out / Alamy)
If someone were to describe a film by saying, “It’s that one where Nicolas Cage acts a bit weird,” it narrows his credits down by about 5%. When he appeared on Saturday Night Live alongside Andy Samberg doing an impression of him, he laid out the two qualities that make for the perfect Nicolas Cage movie. “Number one, all the dialogue is either whispered or screamed […] Number two, everything in the movie is on fire.”
While those descriptors are clearly written for comedic effect, it has to be said that they aren’t far removed from what you can expect in a Nicolas Cage movie. Throughout his career, he has made a name for himself as being one of the most exaggerated actors in Hollywood, with an ability to completely push his character to the edge with both comedic and devastating effects.
It’s interesting to see how far he has come as an actor. It feels like he hasn’t changed; instead, the industry has shaped itself around him. Previously, given how good he was at screaming and over-the-top acting, he was cast in action roles such as Face/Off. This undoubtedly made perfect sense to producers, who thought the idea of a film where he and John Travolta constantly tried to one-up each other would be deeply entertaining.
Cage played many other roles in which his character assumed similar comedic madness. Who could forget his (in)famous run as the Marvel antihero Ghost Rider, which saw him wear a lot of leather, ride a motorcycle, and occasionally burst into flames? However, alongside the ridiculousness of these movies, other interesting roles steadily started to present themselves.
For instance, Cage fit well into the world of horror towards the end of the 2010s. Roles in films such as Colour Out Of Space and Mandy saw him adopt a similar acting style but in different circumstances, making his ridiculousness almost quantifiable. No longer were his outbursts the result of comedic acting; instead, they were the byproduct of a man having his reality questioned and lost in the midst of grief-induced psychotic breaks. It’s a combination that worked incredibly well.
He continues to have one of the most versatile lists of movies attached to him, which is interesting given he has one of the more consistent acting styles. It seems as though we may have Werner Herzog to thank for this. Many actors will recount advice given to them earlier in their careers, but these words passed to Cage from the German filmmaker can be seen in nearly every role the actor has taken since.
“Werner Herzog used to say to me, ‘Now, Nicolas, let the pig loose.’ That was before I made Pig,” said Cage, still seemingly confused by Herzog’s words of wisdom. “’Well, I’m not a pig. I’m more like a shark. What do you mean, I’m a pig?’ ‘Let the pig loose! You know, the bliss of evil’.” Years down the line, it’s safe to say the pig has been let loose, whether Cage intended it or not.
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