Welcome my fellow Cage-heads and Cageophiles, you’re in the right place.
It’s an impossible task to rank the best of Nicster’s career; from stealing the declaration of independence to screaming his lungs out covered in blood, Cage has collected some seriously eclectic roles over four and a half decades.
Here are six of the best Nic Cage roles you might have missed.
Wild At Heart (1990)
“My snakeskin leather jacket is a symbol of my individuality and my belief in personal freedom”
Few remember David Lynch’s road movie Wild At Heart, an explosively sexy film and perhaps Cage’s finest performance. His wild, radical, energy perfectly suits the absurdity of Lynch, a match made in absurdist heaven.
Cage plays the character of Sailor, freshly out of prison for self-defence manslaughter, who immediately sets out on a mission to get his girl back. Lulu, played by Laura Dern, comes from a prim and proper family, who, naturally, despise the rebellious Sailor.
The pair set out along the highways of California, with Sailor’s assassin and Lulu’s father hot on their trail. The cast is littered with Lynch regulars and indie darlings, Lulu’s father played by Harry Dean Stanton and Isabella Rossellini cameo-ing.
Speaking of surprise cameos, Willem Dafoe also appears as an absolutely horrific gangster – with a stocking over his head and false gums taking up a majority of his mouth. The image will stay with you long after the credits roll.
But, as they say, this whole world’s wild at heart and weird on top.
Somehow, Cage’s signature intensity balances out Lynch’s strangeness, culminating in a spectacular performance from Cage, which he credits for getting him out of method acting. The many rewrites and odd characters allowed him to become more spontaneous and playful.
And let’s not forget the myriad of quotable lines gifted to us by Cage. Fans will already be well aware of his snakeskin leather jacket, which was Cage’s own personal jacket that he wore as a reference to James Dean’s iconic red jacket in Rebel Without A Cause (1955).
Raising Arizona (1987)
Following their breakout debut Blood Simple, the Coen Brothers began looking for their next leading man to star as a hapless crook, when they happened upon the largely undiscovered Nicholas Cage.
Having previously starred in box-office flops and his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola’s, films, Cage was an unknown entity, but the Coen Brothers liked his boyish, raggedy charm.
And so, Cage was cast as H.I McDunnough, a role that, in hindsight, was made for him. After a series of arrests, H.I charms his mugshot photographer Ed (Holly Hunter), eventually marrying her and moving into a caravan in the middle of the desert.
It’s all peachy, until they discover they cannot conceive children and cannot adopt because of H.I’s criminal past. So, they decide to kidnap a kid of a rich businessman who won’t even notice the little tot is missing… until H.I’s prison bunk buddies pop in for a visit.
Raising Arizona has risen to cult comedy status, famously Edgar Wright’s favourite film and referenced in Hot Fuzz, and solidified Cage’s career. As a hapless, reformed criminal, Cage lights up the screen with his Texan drawl and goofy, frayed hair.
Raising Arizona also marks the first time Cage and John Goodman appear on screen together, an odd couple to rival that of Cage and Laura Dern.
Snake Eyes (1998)
Hot off the success of Face Off (1997), Cage was coming into his own. Similarly, Brian De Palma was riding the high of Mission: Impossible (1996) and decided Cage would be his next Tom Cruise. Close enough.
Cage plays Rick Santoro, a crooked cop living it up at a boxing match, until the Secretary of Defence is assassinated and he is the only witness.
What follows is a sprawling conspiracy bigger than Santoro could’ve ever conceived, as he locks down the stadium and launches an investigation, chasing red herrings, beautiful women and security camera footage.
De Palma expertly directs the frenetic Cage, who carries the weight of the film and uncovers its truth alongside the audience.
Bringing Out The Dead (1999)
Cage and Goodman return, this time as paramedics, following their 48 hours on the job, travelling from crime scene to ambulance to hospital, surrounded by depression and insanity.
The film is helmed by another power duo: director Martin Scorsese and writer Paul Shrader, who had previously teamed up for Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980) and The Last Temptation of Christ (1988).
It’s easy to miss Bringing Out The Dead in Scorsese’s career, rejected by critics and forgotten by the box office upon release, eventually coming into its own in later years.
Scorsese felt the film was more a therapy exercise, responding to the medical emergencies that haunted his own youth.
And that is certainly felt. Cage is haunted by the ghost of a patient he was unable to save, manifesting in drinking, insomnia and unending depression.
It’s a rare Cage performance in which his erraticness isn’t used for action or comedy, but a more grounded, justified performance.
Rumble Fish (1983)
Remember the Coppola thing? Rumble Fish was one of Cage’s earliest films, cast by his uncle Francis Ford Coppola.
Did either of them know Rumble Fish was going to tank Coppola’s reputation? Probably not.
Following Coppola’s wildly successful 70’s golden age, his career started to dip at the turn of the 80’s, thanks to One From The Heart.
He would then direct The Outsiders, which features an uncredited Cage as an extra, going on to cast him as a gang member in Rumble Fish.
Cage appears on the periphery of the story of Rusty James, who is eager to revive his older brother’s gang against the good advice of his father, played by Dennis Hopper.
The film’s non-linear unconventional storytelling and stark black and white photography was not embraced by cinema-goers, leaving Cage’s charming performance as Smokey largely forgotten.
The Wicker Man (2006)
Did you know they re-made the cult horror film The Wicker Man? And did you know Nicholas Cage stars in it? And did you also know that almost nobody liked it when it first came out?
Well, you probably could’ve guessed that part.
In one of his loudest roles, Cage stars as Edward Malus, a sheriff investigating the disappearance of a young girl on a remote island, but accidentally becomes embroiled in a cult.
Many horror fans rejected it for its ridiculous nature, citing Cage’s hysteria (please see: The Bees) and labelled it a so-bad-it’s-good. Regardless, I believe it deserves a spot on the list, just for its pure charming insanity.
And now, for some honourable mentions…
Peggy Sue Got Married (1986)
Coppola took another chance on his nephew, this time in a starring role, as the ever-charming Charlie, a 1960’s rock’n’roller out to win Peggy Sue’s heart.
Moonstruck (1987)
The film that put Cage directly in the limelight, starring alongside Cher in a critically acclaimed rom-com.
Mandy (2018)
A blood-soaked psychedelic nightmare, Mandy is perfect for any Cage and cult fans alike.
