The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent features Nicolas Cage. The actor plays a version of himself that must confront embarrassing indignities piled upon performers and also the extraordinary circumstance of stumbling into a CIA sting operation that seems like a Nic Cage movie. There are a lot of references to great movies, many with Nicolas Cage at their core, as this action-comedy travels from Hollywood to a mansion of an alleged kingpin.
We brought your notebook to the theater. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent contains a guide to every movie name-dropped. We tracked down where to watch every one of them.
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A young couple watches a 1997 hit. Con Air had Cage playing a good guy who got locked up for a crime he did commit. A former Army Ranger is on his way home to his wife and baby daughter when his flight is hijacked by a band of baddies. The hulking hero of Cage won't stand for that. The cast includes John Cusack, Steve Buscemi, Dave Chappelle, Danny Trejo, and Ving Rhames. If there isn't enough to queue this up, then how about Cage saying "put the bunny back in the box"?
Con Air is available on Prime Video.
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The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is one of the movies that Nicolas Cage declared to be his personal favorites in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. The film was directed by Robert Wiene and stars Werner Krauss and Conrad Veidt. Being a silent film from 1920, this might be the least accessible of the bunch. It's easy to fall under Dr. Caligari's spell because of the sensational German expressionism imagery, the slim run-time of 74 minutes, and performances that still pack a punch 100 years later.
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is available on Shudder.
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The kind of mid-budget comedy that Hollywood studios don't bother with much anymore is what makes Guarding Tess worth the treasuring. The quirky 1994 buddy-comedy pairs Golden Hollywood's smirking queen, Shirley MacLaine, with contemporary hunk Nicolas Cage. She is a former first lady who demands her way all the time. Even though she is driving him up every wall, he is the Secret Service agent tasked with keeping her safe and happy. It is a battle of wills that is delightful. Nic would revisit it in his downtime in Unbearable.
You can watch Guarding Tess on the internet.
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This 1997 action epic gets name-dropped but also becomes a plot point as a pair of flashy prop weapons come out to play once more in Unbearable. John Travolta and Nicolas Cage play two roles in John Woo's Face/Off, one of which is a terrorist, and the other a snarling FBI agent. Ignore the plot's impossibilities and enjoy Woo's masterful action set pieces, which bring in gun battles, speed boats, cars chasing planes, and the most violent use of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" to ever hit the big. Face/Off is one of the most crazy movies in Cage's filmography, and it is one of his greatest performances.
Face/Off can be rented on Prime Video.
Nicolas Cage isn't in the Paddington franchise yet, but this superb sequel gets lots of love, not only from Pedro Pascal's earnest fan, Javi, but also Nic's onscreen daughter. The love fest in Unbearable might seem like a joke if you haven't seen Paddington 2. Trust the hype. Following the adventures of a lovable bear framed for a theft by a villainous actor, Paul King's critically championed kids movie offers a jaunty adventure, colorful characters, and feel-good vibes so intense you'll laugh.
Paddington 2 is on Tubi.
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Nicolas Cage has a shrine to him, and there is a chainsaw from the movie "Mandy." Now, imagine Cage wielding a chainsaw, and you will only have a vague idea of how truly wild this movie is. The film is co-written and directed by Panos Cosmatos and hasMandy Cage playing a logger who lives a quiet, blissful life with his girlfriend. That is, until a cult abducts her and leads him down a path of death and destruction. This one is not for the faint of heart or stomach.
Shudder has a streaming service called Mandy.
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The 1987 Coen Bros gem is not a name-drop. If you look closely in the shrine scene, you will see a packet of huggies. You know if you know. H.I. McDunnough is a thief who would do anything to make his police officer wife Ed happy, even if that meant kidnapping a rich man's baby to raise as their child. The Coens have a knack for creating funny and wacky stories, and they bring that to the crime caper.
You can rent Raising Arizona on Prime Video.
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The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is an action film by Michael Bay. The Rock was a smash hit at the box office, received good reviews, and was coupled with Nicolas Cage and Sean Connery for a one-two punch that has movie-lovers reeling. Ed Harris, a military man who was abandoned by the nation he sacrificed to serve, commits a heinous crime after a familiar Bay plotline, in this instance holding tourists of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary as hostages and threatening the use of chemical weapons unless his demands are met. The government turns to a bookish yet buff FBI agent and a notorious criminal to save the day. The Rock is a classic Cage offering that is always worth a rewatch.
The Rock is on Prime Video.
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The 1987 romantic comedy, Unbearable, starring Nic Cage, gets a good mention when characters clamor to list Nic Cage movies. A rising star at the time, Cage appeared opposite an Oscar-winning Cher, playing her hot-blooded would-be beau. Moonstruck was written by John Patrick Shanley and directed by Norman Jewison, and features a cast that also includes Danny Aiello. Cage captures with compelling and chaotic charm the madness of falling in love. The phrase "you ruined my life" sounded so sweet.
You can watch Moonstruck on Hulu.
This Cage movie is treated as a joke in Unbearable when Agent Vivan pretends to be a fan to drop a tracking device on Nic. We are not as cool as Agent Martin in Croods 2. The caveman family continued their adventures in this sequel as they found some new friends who are a bit more evolved. The director offers fresh action, eye-catching colors, new creatures, and a broadened world, which already boasted Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds, Catherine Keener, Cloris Leachman, Clark Duke.
The Croods: A New Age is available to watch.
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In Unbearable, a pivotal plot point hangs on Nic's fictional ex- wife being a skilled make-up artist, because they first met on the set of this 2001 film. This new movie takes liberties with the rest, but one of Cage's ex- wives was a make-up artist. The John Madden romantic World War II drama Captain Corelli's Mandolin was a flop, but Nicolas Cage looked great as the man in uniform.
Captain Corelli's Mandolin is available for rent on Apple TV+.
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Nic tries to get his bearings through the language he knows best when trying to make sense of the CIA's plan to make him an undercover operative. He compares his situation to the movie. This film does not have Cage in it. Donnie Brasco was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for his film, "Donnie Brasco".
Donnie Brasco is now available on the internet.
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When Javi and Nic need to go somewhere fast, the fan wants his idol to drive like he did in the movie. They are under the influence of substances that cause vehicular shenanigans. The auto-action of Gone is 60 Seconds was more serious. The movie was directed by Dominic Sena and starred Nicolas Cage and It-GirlAngelina Jolie. It walked so the Fast and Furious franchise could race. Is it possible that Cage is at the steering wheel? Buckle up.
Gone in 60 Seconds is on Prime Video.
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The first in a series of action-adventure films, this 2004 romp from director Jon Turteltaub establishes Benjamin Franklin Gates (Cage), a historian and cryptanalyst who is on the quest for a long-lost treasure. National Treasure is an action-packed movie that has a lot of plot points that include stealing the Declaration of Independence. The bad guys will not. Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, Harvey Keitel, Sean Bean, and Christopher Plummer co-star, bringing oomph to this fresh spin on Indiana Jones meets Da Vinci Code entertainment.
National Treasure is on Disney+.
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This 1988 cult classic is not mentioned as much as it could be. Nic imagines a younger, kookier version of himself, and who gives him pep talks, when in doubt. Based on the floppy haircut and over-the-top energy, we think Nicky is from the 80's, when Cage began forging his reputation for go-for-broke performances. The Robert Bierman film, in which Nicolas Cage plays an executive who believes a one-night stand has turned him into a vampire, is one of the fans favorites of this time. Vampire's Kiss was an outrageous comedy that poked fun at the fear of casual sex in the 80s. Who delivered? Nic is a great guy.
You can watch Vampire's Kiss on Philo.
The film The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is in theaters.
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