The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent review: Nicolas Cage and Pedro Pascal ham it up in this silly bromance

2.5/5

Story: Former star and now washed-out actor, Nick Cage (Nicolas Cage) is desperate to be back in the game. What he gets, though, is a celeb appearance gig in Mallorca. His host, Javi Guttierez (Pedro Pascal) is his biggest fan boy, who not only has a shrine of the actor’s film memorabilia, but has also written a script that he hopes Nick will act in. By all accounts, Javi appears to be a good soul, who likes Nick a wee bit too much, but according to the CIA’s intel, gathered over five years, he is a ruthless gangster, who has kidnapped the president’s daughter to force him out of an election race and have someone more cartel- friendly in the chair instead. The CIA wants Nick to help them save the girl and avert this situation. Can “Nick f****ng Cage” deliver?

Review: The trailer of The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent may fool you into thinking that this might actually be a fun film to watch. It had Nicolas Cage playing, well, himself, and facing his own demons, including his financial issues, doing some below-average films, etc., in a comedy. Truth be told, I was fooled. That the film is only playing in a sum total of five multiplexes across the city should have been warning enough. But no, I went in expecting a laugh riot and barely managed a couple of chuckles.

At the start of the film, Nick Cage is not only completely out of work and contemplating retirement, but he’s also neck deep in debt that he’s been locked out of his makeshift home – a hotel, where he’s run up a massive bill. He’s so desperate to be back in the game that he’s even begging directors for roles. The only way out of this mess is for him to take up a celebrity appearance gig at a billionaire’s birthday party in Mallorca. Turns out, said billionaire is a die-hard Nick fan and believes the actor has a lot more to offer the world before he calls it quits. Hell, he’s even written a script for Nick to star in.

According to the CIA, though, the billionaire, Javi Guttierez (Pascal), is a ruthless mobster, who has kidnapped the President’s daughter, who, hold your breath, is also a big-time Nick Cage fan, to turn the political tide in his favour.

The film is actually not half as bad when it focuses on the bromance between Nick and Javi, as they drive across town, tripping on acid, or jump off cliffs. It takes a turn for the worse when it then becomes a standard action flick with car chases, gun fights and the works, with Nick Cage emerging hero, after all. Nicolas and Pedro are fun to watch; they have ‘chemistry’. But the film falters when Nick is faced with saving not one but two girls, when his daughter also gets caught up in the whole mafia angle.

Verdict: The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent surely does not warrant a trip to the movie hall. Wait a few weeks, it will drop on OTT. Even then, watch it only if you have absolutely nothing else that catches your fancy.