You'll probably have seen the 'PISSED BLOOD' scene at the pharmacy even if you haven't seen the film, which is about two shifty con artists played by Cage and an ever-energetic Sam Rockwell. Cage's Roy has Tourette's, panic attacks and OCD, so it must be said this is one of his most mannered performances, and I'll say he mostly pulls it off into a rather entertaining portrayal of this shady man with so many phobias. His best scenes are however the ones he shares with an apparent daughter he never knew about (a terrific Allison Lohman, probably best known for Drag Me to Hell) as the two share a gradually burgeoning chemistry that's both funny and oddly sweet.
9. Bringing Out the Dead
One of Martin Scorsese's most experimental films, it must be said that while I'm not a huge fan of the film overall (not that I dislike it), it's certainly got a great cast. Cage in many ways acts as the rock centre of the film, sure he has scenes where he goes off the bender as paramedic Frank Pierce, but it's mostly a rock-solid reactionary performance that bounces off his succession of partners. Cage plays off each one of them - John Goodman, Ving Rhames, Tom Sizemore - with aplomb in their varying degrees of madness. Though the film is one of Scorsese's most stylistically heavy films Cage is never lost behind that vision and gives a terrific turn.
8. Face/Off
It's a shame Cage doesn't seem to enjoy playing villains in general since he's damned good at playing one. Castor Troy is one of the most arch archvillains in Hollywood history, amplified by the over-the-top direction of John Woo, but it all adds up to some of his nuttiest work as the ridiculously over-the-top terrorist. One wonders how it took so long to capture such a hammyindividual but I digress. Once the titular 'switch' of the film takes place between Troy and FBI agent Sean Archer (John Travolta), while Travolta struggles a bit with transitioning into the Cagey villain (though his performance is not without merit), Cage is great at playing the sudden 'hero' of the story, with a particularly amazing scene where he shows the madness, tragedy, and dark hilarity of a good man trapped in a bad man's body.
7. Joe
Warning: this is not a pleasant film to watch. It's very bleak and blunt, and even though at its centre is the burgeoning friendship between Cage's titular foreman and a young boy who comes to work for him (Tye Sheridan), along the way there's a deadbeat alcoholic abusive father, dangerous criminal ties, and unpleasant clashes involving policemen and dogs. Having said that, Cage is captivating to watch in a particularly subdued turn, giving a very internalised portrayal of a man with a dark past, but also a softer side to him that feels very much earned, and is particularly great in his final scenes where he finally decides to take action for the greater good.
6. Raising Arizona
It's a shame the Coen Brothers and Cage haven't collaborated together since one of the earlier films, for both parties' filmography, in this zany crime comedy about ex-convict 'Hi' McDonough (Cage) and his wife, police officer Edwina (Holly Hunter). Cage and Hunter are quite the charming pair and make their romance really work, their struggle to conceive rather moving, and their exploits to kidnap a baby from wealthy magnate Nathan Arizona (Trey Wilson) rather hilarious. Cage's work is constantly on the move as the situation continually escalates and grows madder, and he makes it all the funnier with how consistently he keeps his character's laconic, laidback nature. 5. Mandy
The utterly bonkers grandeur of what can be best described as a cinematic drug-fuelled trip, let me make note that Cage's performance here is as one of the more 'normal' elements of the film initially where his Red and onscreen titular spouse Mandy (Andrea Riseborough) lie a happy idyllic life together before it's torn apart by some particularly loathsome cultists led by Linus Roache's Jeremiah Sands, and some particularly gruesome biker demons. In his slow descent into madness and revenge in the second half of the film, is mostly scenes of him reacting and going mad against the psychedelic imagery and madness surrounding him as a man on a mission. He gives a largely silent, but rather powerful portrayal of such a transformation, and finds some incredible scenes to work with, particularly in the incredible bathroom breakdown after witnessing a life-shattering tragedy that may well be his best-acted scene of his career.
4. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
What should probably be seen as Cage's definitive 'Nic Cage' performance over stuff like The Wicker Man, quite frankly, because this is actually a good film, an intentional comedy, while still having a lot of classic nutty Nic Cage moments that gives the people what they want. As the titular lieutenant whose port of call is in, you guessed it New Orleans, Terence McDonogh. Not 'bad' as in sinister and evil, or wholly incompetent, but more of in the sense that he's casually corrupt and addicted to drugs. Cage's entire performance is a tight wire performance between a fairly commanding cop and a completely off-the-hook druggie, and it's a big, broad performance for sure, but what makes it work is how damn funny he is in the role, whether it's his excessively hostile interrogation at an old people's home, catching suspects in his own manic way, and watching a soul break dance into the afterlife with an iguana in toll. 3. Adaptation
What's better than Nic Cage? A pair of Nic Cages, playing the film's screenwriter Charlie Kaufman in a fictional portrayal of himself and his fictional doofus twin brother Donald. Individually he plays both brothers impeccably from the neurotic, insecure artist trying to make something 'important', to the naive yet endearing doofus energy of his twin who wants to emulate his brother, resulting in some particularly hilarious exchange of ideas about their respective screenplays, while also creating some powerful moments in the end as the brothers learn life lessons from one another. Watching how this pair of Cages interact with other characters, one another, and go through the film's gradually more insane plot is a sheer delight, and I highly recommend this film to all. 2. Wild at Heart
Cage at his most directly charismatic, quite frankly, as he once again like in Raising Arizona plays a charming Southern ex-con, Sailor Ripley, but in a much different type of film this time around with David Lynch taking the reigns. Cage is perfectly at-one with the bizzaro world that Lynch creates him of the seedy underworld his character has to manoeuvre through. He's never sleazy even though he is most certainly peculiar and dangerous in his own way, and instead has such charm in his interactions with Laura Dern's Lula Pace Fortune; the two have an insane amount of chemistry and every scene with them together is an absolute treat, and no matter how weird the film gets (and it gets very weird), the two are astonishing in the power they create through their romance. Then there's the Elvis impersonation of the character that is an inspired choice that drives his whole performance, and grants us some memorable moments of Nic Cage breaking into Elvis in two most unexpected song numbers.
1. Leaving Las Vegas
Cage won an Oscar for his best performance thus far as alcoholic Ben Sanderson in this adaptation of John O'Brien's semi-autobiographical novel. Alcoholism having destroyed everything in his life back in L.A., Ben embarks on a trip to Las Vegas, where he plans to drink himself to death. Cage gives a hard-hitting portrayal of a functioning alcoholic hitting rock bottom and finding ways to go even further. It's a difficult performance to watch as Cage is just so good at hitting the extreme notes of a man for whom alcohol is a way of life, whether it's in the BIG scenes like the outburst at the bank, or quieter scenes as he drunkenly checks into a hotel and silently realises how far he's fallen. There are brief respites in the form of his relationship with Elizabeth Shue's prostitute Sera, as the two characters find a strange kinship in the different forms of abuse and torment they experience. Just taken from a few random clips out of context this might just seem like a Cage freakout performance, but it's an extraordinary, powerful and deservedly acclaimed performance, period.
