Sunday Signal May 1, 2022

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M AY 1, 2022

E N T E R TA I N M E N T

In ‘Unbearable,’ Nicolas Cage is … well … Nick Cage

family and friends commenting on the “real life” of Nicolas Cage, it’s also a fairly standard Nicolas Cage action ‘The Unbearable Weight of film, with international locations, poMassive Talent’ litically charged kidnappings, drug (out of four) cartels, fights, shootouts and corny A Lionsgate film directed by Tom messaging about how nothing is more Gormican and written by Gormican important than family. and Kevin Etten. Rated R. In theaters. Therein lies the strength but also the mild disappointment of direcn one of the many meta motor and co-writer Tom Gormican’s ments in the intermittently hiaction-packed romp. It’s a kick to see larious and entertainingly goofy Cage joining the long parade of actors “The Unbearable Weight of who have played versions of themMassive Talent,” Nicolas Cage is tryselves in the last few decades, from ing to make the argument he’s NOT Neil Patrick Harris in the “Harold actuallyClarita in the CIA, and he says the atres • Santa Signal adsource@exhibitorads.com & Kumar” movies to Bill Murray in only organization he belongs to is p. 888.737.2812 f. 203.438.1206 5.9” “Zombieland” to the cast of “This Is the Screen Actors Guild — and also the End” to Keanu Reeves in “Always AFTRA, but he’s not reallyMay sure what PHOTO COURTESY IMDB 1-5, 2022 date: Sunday-Thursday, Be My Maybe.” Early on, there’s hope that is: “I think it has something to delivery date: Tuesday, April 26, 2022 at 10:57:28 AM CASCS_LEM0501-0505.qxp this film will achieve something along do with radio.” writing this review) all belong to the That’s a funny throwaway line, refsame union. It’s also an indication this the lines of Spike Jonze’s mind-bending “Being John Malkovich,” but it erencing the Guild merging with the is the kind of movie that will be filled plays things relatively safe most of American Federation of Television and with Easter eggs and inside jokes, and the time. Just because Nicolas Cage Radio Artists in 2012, meaning movit’s OK if you don’t get all of the refis playing himself and we get myriie stars and TV journalists and “The erences, because even as “Unbearable Morning Zoo Crew” (and the joker Weight” features Nicolas Cage and his ad references to his greatest roles as well as a few we might have forgotten about, and just because the characters comment about how certain plot TM developments are driven by marketing concerns and have been done to death, that doesn’t obfuscate the fact we’re still seeing those very plot develop22500 Lyons Ave. info Line 310.478.3836 ments play out. Still, it’s worth the journey due to the sheer star power of Cage’s perforDOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS C mance, his willingness to commit to Thu: 4:20 7:20 this Funhouse Mirror silliness, and a Journey into the unknown with Doctor Strange, who, with the help of mystical allies both old and new, traverses the mind-bending and dangerous alternate realities of the Multiverse to confront a mysterious new adversary. half-dozen moments that are comedic THE SOUND OF VIOLET C 1:00 PM gold and yet somehow absurdly touchDesperate to find a wife, Shawn goes on one awkward date after another until he meets Violet. He thinks she’s his soulmate, but his autism and trusting nature keep him from realizing she’s actually a prostitute. ing, e.g., when a character delivers a heart-wrenching monologue detailing THE BAD GUYS B 1:20 4:20 7:20 After a lifetime of pulling legendary heists, five notorious bad guys attempt their most challenging job yet - going good. Nobody how the 1994 film “Guarding Tess” has ever failed so hard at trying to be good as The Bad Guys. was the catalyst for one final moment THE NORTHMAN E Sun & Mon: 1:00 4:10 7:10; Tue: 4:10 7:10; Wed & Thu: 1:00 4:10 7:10 of bonding with his dying father, and The Northman is an action-filled epic that follows a young Viking prince on his quest to avenge his father’s murder. Cage humbly accepts the man’s gratiTHE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT E 1:30 4:30 7:30 tude before launching into a dissection Nicolas Cage stars as...Nicolas Cage in the action-comedy THE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT. Creatively unfulfilled and facing financial ruin, the fictionalized version of Cage must accept a $1 million offer to attend the birthday of a super fan. of the complexity of his character, SeFATHER STU E Sun to Wed: 1:15 4:15 7:15; Thu: 1:15 7:15 cret Service agent Doug Chesnick. God needed a fighter, and He found one. Father Stu is based on the true-life story of boxer-turned-priest, Father Stuart Long, whose Nicolas Cage is playing “Nick Cage,” journey from self-destruction to redemption inspired countless people along the way. which is the filmmakers’ way of acSONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 B 1:10 4:10 7:10 After settling in Green Hills, Sonic is eager to prove he has what it takes to be a true hero. His test comes when Dr. Robotnik returns, knowledging this is a fictionalized verthis time with a new partner, Knuckles, in search for an emerald that has the power to destroy civilizations. sion of the ubiquitous pop culture icon EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE E Sun: 3:55 7:00; Mon: who has been acting for some 40 years, 3:55 PM; Tue & Wed: 3:55 7:00; Thu: 3:55 PM “Everything Everywhere All at Once” is a hilarious and big-hearted sci-fi action adventure about an exhausted Chinese American reaching the absolute heights of his woman (Michelle Yeoh) who can’t seem to finish her taxes. profession with an Oscar and a slew of GALLANT INDIES Mon: 7:30 PM; Tue: 1:00 PM blockbuster hits before slamming into By bringing together urban dance and opera singing, director Clément Cogitore reinvents Jean-Philippe Rameau’s baroque masterpiece, Les Indes Galantes middle-aged meme-worthiness and FOR 5/1/20225/5/2022 ONLY WWW.LAEMMLE.COM starring in one B-movie after another. By Richard Roeper Signal Contributing Writer

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Nick hits an all-time low after he makes a spectacle of himself at the 16th birthday party for his daughter, Addy, (played by Lily Sheen, daughter of actors Kate Beckinsale and Michael Sheen), after which his long-suffering but still sympathetic ex-wife, Olivia (Sharon Hogan), tells him he’s got to get his s--- together. Meanwhile, Nick is broke and is facing a $600,000 tab from his yearlong stay at the Sunset Towers, so he reluctantly accepts a $1 million offer just to show up and be Nick Cage at a birthday bash for olive-oil magnate Javi Gutierrez (Pedro Pascal) at Javi’s lavish compound on the Spanish island of Mallorca. Oh, and there’s also this: A couple of bumbling CIA operatives (Tiffany Haddish and Ike Barinholtz) believe Javi is the leader of a powerful drug cartel and is behind the kidnapping of the teenage daughter of a Catalan presidential candidate. Unable to penetrate Javi’s fortress, the agents ask Nick to spy on Javi and Nick accepts the assignment, because after all, he’s PLAYED action-movie antiheroes like this many times before, so he’s got this! Ahem. Javi geeks out around Nick like an overgrown superfan at Comic Con, but there’s something endearing about his puppy-dog earnestness. Nick can’t help but fall into a classic, mismatched Buddy Movie relationship with Javi, which leads to all manner of action-comedy hijinks. Also, Nick has hallucinatory conversations from time to time with a manic, unhinged, “Wild at Heart”-era version of himself, and have we mentioned Javi has a shrine to Cage’s movies, complete with a lifesize statue of “Face/Off ” Cage that even Nick/Nic finds disturbing? With a late touch that will seem original only for viewers unaware of Robert Altman’s “The Player” and a final chapter that is more Nicolas Cage Action Movie than Nicolas Cage Meta Trip, “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent” becomes less a commentary on Hollywood stardom than a reminder of how Cage truly is a movie star, whether he’s in a near-masterpiece such as last year’s “Pig” or another forgettable piece of schlock — or an interesting yet familiar project such as this one. 

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Sunday Signal May 1, 2022 by Signal - Issuu