I imagine whenever the kids today hear that Nicolas Cage once won an Academy Award they find it hard to believe. But he did, back in 1996, for Leaving Las Vegas, in which he played a man at the end of his rope who travels to Las Vegas with the intention of drinking himself to death, only to meet a woman whose own problems rival his and they form a strange bond. It’s an interesting look at people’s inability to escape their vices and the loneliness that comes with this lack of power or control over one’s own life. Cage is a real tragic figure here, at once repugnant but pitiful in the sympathetic sense of the word. He’s all over the emotional map, and essentially intoxicated the whole time, but he really brings something special to the quieter moments. It’s a sad movie, but Cage’s work in it is remarkable, hence the award recognition. But this sort of thing feels like forever ago for him now.
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Published: Apr 9, 2013 11:14 pm