The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is an incredible love letter to Nicholas Cage that’s full of all the references and in-jokes you’d expect of a film with this premise but also has genuine warmth and heart with a clear love for its star.
Unfulfilled and facing financial ruin, actor Nick Cage accepts a $1 million offer to attend a wealthy fan’s (Pedro Pascal) birthday party. Things take a wildly unexpected turn when a CIA operative (Tiffany Haddish) recruits Cage for an unusual mission. Taking on the role of a lifetime, he soon finds himself channeling his most iconic and beloved characters to save himself and his loved ones.
Much of the movie’s potential has a lot to do with the acting, the ridiculous lines, and oversimplified dialogue, which is fantastically delivered. Every character is fun in their own way, which makes the movie even more fun to watch even if they all don’t get equal screen time. Sadly, Haddish is ironically not the strongest but surprisingly makes it work with the theme of the movie. Haddish is not loud-mouthed or ridiculous but instead manifests her character in a way that balances the fun and feels that the film brings, which adds a nice twist to things. Pascal is brilliant as he unleashes a comedic whirlwind into this film and manages to play off of Cage very well making the performance funnier and better. The passion, naivety, and just the struggle with his words make for a great buddy comedy and I just loved how naturally funny he was as he heckled along with the star. Nicholas Cage is, of course, the star of the movie and he definitely brought his A-game. Cage seemed to be having a lot of fun and just went with the flow of this meme-worthy movie, taking all the jokes and really selling the ridiculous nature of this movie. His screaming was hysterical, his ability to have inner monologues was awesome, the heart-to-heart moments felt genuine, and as an added bonus capturing the multiple styles of comedy extremely well.
The writing of this movie is super clever despite the ridiculous nature of the film. Massive Talent is indeed talented in how many things they managed to put into this film as they explored a lot of subjects in a 1.5-hour movie. One part identity crisis, one part family drama, one part trust issues, one part mystery/crime drama, one part movie, and one part satire, with all of these themes in one movie it’s amazing that it all works, but somehow it does. It’s very witty, and if you have a combination of dry and wet humor, the writing is solid.
Much like the writing, the comedy works both in your face and subtle. Again, there are multifaceted hits at the psyche of a movie star, digging at quite a few things and trying to cram them into that smart stab we love to see. The movie has plenty of in-your-face moments, buts also sneaks in a lot of slapstick, crazy lines, and gimmicks that will please everyone. Both styles play very well with each other and manage to find the perfect opportunities to spring their styles on you to get enough variety of both.
Overall, Massive Talent is indeed a very ambitious film. It’s odd for sure, but the blend of comedy styles, the clever writing and dialogue, and all the focus on the legacy of Cage really does shine in this film. That smart writing was delivered with great acting, and the pacing of the film helps to keep things feeling chaotic, random, and fun. Of course, the film has its holes, and even though the movie isn’t the most unique tale, they definitely had fun making this movie and I had so much fun watching it.
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is now playing only in theaters.
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