Line #53 Film/TheUnbearableWeightOfMassiveTalent


1	%%
2	%%Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1650679211087767800&page=1
3	%%Please don't change or remove without starting a new thread.
4	%%
5	[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nickcage1.png]]
6	[[caption-width-right:300:"A grounded, adult drama about two tough, sensitive men and their unlikely friendship."]]
7	%%
8
9	->'''Javi Gutierrez:''' Our movie would start out as a beautiful character piece and then, slowly change into a more thrilling...\
10	'''Nicolas Cage:''' Hollywood blockbuster. Then there's something for everyone.
11
12	''The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent'' is an action-packed 2022 BromanticComedy starring Creator/NicolasCage as [[AsHimself a fictionalized version of himself]]. The film is directed by Tom Gormican, co-written by Tom Gormican and Kevin Etten, and produced by Nicolas Cage, Mike Nilon, Kristin Burr, and Kevin Turen.
13
14	Creatively unfulfilled, a cash-strapped Nick Cage must accept a $1 million offer to attend the birthday of wealthy cinephile Javier Gutierrez (Creator/PedroPascal). The gig takes an unexpected turn when Nick is recruited by CIA operative Vivian (Creator/TiffanyHaddish), who has been investigating Javi's connections to the international drug trade. Caught between two huge fans of his movies, Nick finds himself balancing his efforts to entertain Javi with his attempts to uncover evidence of Javi's alleged crimes. Matters are further complicated when a genuine friendship develops between Nick and Javi, the latter of whom has an idea for a future Nicolas Cage vehicle. Even Nick's loved ones get involved in the self-referential action.
15
16	''The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent'' also features Creator/SharonHorgan, Creator/IkeBarinholtz, Alessandra Mastronardi, Jacob Scipio, Lily Sheen, and Creator/NeilPatrickHarris. The picture premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival on March 12, 2022, before receiving a wide theatrical release on April 22, 2022. The main trailers can be found [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OT_aDZc3vXY here]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OT_aDZc3vXY here]]. The red band trailers can be found [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8VuWhvk87o here]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2YHPZMj8r4 here]].
17
18	Compare ''Film/{{JCVD}}'', a similar action-dramedy about a similarly memed-on larger-than-life action star, Creator/JeanClaudeVanDamme.
19	----
20	!!This film provides examples of:
21
22	* ActorAllusion:
23	** Inevitably, the movie delivers [[https://collider.com/every-nicolas-cage-role-referenced-in-the-unbearable-weight-of-massive-talent/ an onslaught of references]] to Creator/NicolasCage's career highlights.
24	** Nick slips a nod to one of Creator/PedroPascal's best-known TV roles, ''Series/TheMandalorian'', when he quips that the only surefire bets at the box office include Creator/MarvelComics adaptations[[note]]Nicolas Cage had three under his belt, the ''Film/GhostRiderDuology'' and ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManIntoTheSpiderVerse'', when this movie premiered.[[/note]] and ''Franchise/StarWars''.
25	* AdamWesting: Nicolas Cage as portrayed in the movie, [[https://variety.com/2021/film/news/nicolas-cage-unbearable-weight-of-massive-talent-trailer-1235133044/ according to the actor himself]], is much more neurotic and anxiety-ridden than the real Cage was during that period of time.
26	* AmicableExes: Nick and his ex-wife Olivia seem to be this from their first scene, at least as amicable as they can be when Nick is... Nick. She mostly just understandably wants him to get his shit together. [[spoiler:Whether or not they are actually together again at the end of the movie, she comes to the premiere of his movie he made with Javi and then they go home for family time together with Addy.]]
27	* AnimationAgeGhetto: Discussed in-universe: When Vivian first meets Nick, she praises his performance in ''[[WesternAnimation/TheCroodsANewAge Croods 2]]'', claiming to have recently seen it with her nephew. Martin later admits that he hasn't seen ''Croods 2'', since he feels too old for it at 44.
28	* AsHimself: Played with. Nicholas Cage portrays the character of Nick Cage (duh), while the credits list his younger imaginary version - Nicky - under his real name, Nicholas Kim Coppola.
29	* BaitAndSwitchComment: Javi has a statue of Castor Troy, Nick finds it "grotesque" wants to know how much it cost. And then offers to pay more to buy it.
30	* BattleCouple: [[spoiler:Javi's assistant/ex-fiancé, Gabriela, helps him hold off Lucas and his goons.]]
31	* BecomingTheMask: Nick must go from fighting evil in movies, to fighting evil for real. Additionally, when he appoints Javi as co-writer of his next movie, he only does so as an excuse to continue searching Javi's estate for Maria. However, Nick ends up genuinely enjoying the process of writing with him.
32	* {{Bookends}}: When Nick introduces himself to Javi, they exchange palm-hold-fist salutes. They do this again [[spoiler:before Javi goes to hold back Lucas; the last time Nick and Javi appear together until their movie premieres.]]
33	* BrickJoke: When Nick is asking Javi what his top 3 favorite movies are, Javi very uncomfortably names ''Film/Paddington2'' as number 3 to the initial derision of Nick (though Nick is reduced to tears by the end of it when he watches it with Javi). [[spoiler:At the end of the movie, Nick asks his daughter Addy what movie she wants to watch for once (instead of choosing for her), and she very uncomfortably mentions ''Paddington 2'' as well.]]
34	* BrokenHeel: When a pack of enemies chases Nick and Javi through a forest, Nick starts complaining that the loafers Javi gave him lack proper ankle support for running. The duo ends up needing to take a short break, but they ultimately make it back to Javi's truck.
35	* ButNotTooGay: During the third act, [[spoiler:Javi passionately kisses Gabriela on the lips, but only hugs Nick]].
36	* CallBack: When the BigBad asks if Nick has any last words, Nick proudly quotes a movie role he lost before accepting Javi's invitation.
37	* TheCameo: Creator/DemiMoore plays [[spoiler:the wife in the movie Nick and Javi write]].
38	* CarFu: Gabriela hits [[spoiler:Lucas' right-hand man Carlos]] by backing up the Land Rover to knock him unconscious.
39	* TheCartel: Javi is believed to be running a powerful drug cartel. [[spoiler:Except the true mastermind behind the cartel is actually Lucas.]]
40	* CassandraTruth: Nick argues that Javi can't be the leader of a powerful drug cartel, as Nick's thespian instincts tell him Javi is innocent, while Vivian and Martin insist that their intel identifying Javi as the mastermind is correct. [[spoiler:It turns out Nick is correct and Javi is innocent]].
41	* ChekhovsGun:
42	** Taken literally with the golden pistols Javi keeps among his ''Film/FaceOff'' memorabilia. [[spoiler:When Vivian orders Nick to kill Javi, Nick takes the pistols for the task, but ends up firing them at some of Lucas' goons instead. After Javi recovers them, he later uses them to hold back Lucas and his gang.]]
43	** The knife that one of the goons drops in the back of Javi's jeep [[spoiler:is used by Nick during the climax to kill Lucas.]]
44	* ChekhovsSkill:
45	** Nick's wife Olivia is a makeup artist who [[spoiler:uses her skills in the final confrontation to create a disguise for Nick to sneak into the BigBad's compound]].
46	** Javi often reminds Nick that he did many of his own stunts (citing the running in ''Film/NationalTreasure'' and the driving in ''Film/GoneInSixtySeconds2000'' as particular examples) to point out that Nick ''does'' have the skills to survive their current situations.
47	* ClothingSwitch: Nick and Javi switch shoes [[spoiler:while stalling orders to kill each other]]. When Nick compliments Javi's suede Gucci loafers, Javi suggests that they would look nicer on Nick, then swaps his right loafer with Nick's right taos taupe checkerboard Vans slip-on. After each guy admires how stylish his shoe looks on his friend, Nick asks if Javi wants to trade away his loafers for the complete pair of slip-ons, which Javi delightedly agrees suits himself.
48	* ConspicuousConsumption: The conversation Nick has with his agent early on in the movie reveals that Nick has been living at the Sunset Tower -- a high-class hotel in West Hollywood -- for over a year, and has racked up a $600,000 bill just from there.
49	* CoversAlwaysLie: The first officially-released still picture of Javi came from a scene in which he wears a Speedo by the pool, but photoshopped [[https://ew.com/movies/nic-cage-the-unbearable-weight-of-massive-talent-first-look/ some trunks]] onto him, to make it [[DigitalBikini safer for work]]. (Some viewers have noticed that Javi's reflection, and advertisements put out [[https://twitter.com/nickcagemovie/status/1518666081388298240?s=21&t=H3OrMzOfMhx2uA-_lUvETQ after the premiere]], still show him wearing a Speedo.)
50	* DecoyLeader: [[spoiler:Javi is ultimately revealed to be this; his father's criminal organization was taken over by his cousin after his father's death and Javi just acts as the public face of the group.]]
51	* DisneyDeath: [[spoiler:During the final chase sequence, Javi chooses to stay behind [[YouShallNotPass to hold off Lucas and his men]], resulting in him getting shot. He later makes a recovered reappearance on the night his movie premieres.]]
52	* DramaPanes: When Vivian asks if Nick can find any firearms [[spoiler:to kill Javi with]], Nick goes to swipe some from the Castor Troy statue. As he silently turmoils over the task, his reflection in the display case overlaps the statue's visage, illustrating his imminent opportunity to live out an action movie.
53	* DrivingADesk: Some of the driving scenes actually consist of the actors sitting in front of LED screens.
54	* FamedInStory: As expected of a world-famous movie star. The plot is kicked off when one of Nicolas Cage's wealthy superfans offers him a million dollars to attend his birthday party. Nick's best-known movies are either name-dropped or excerpted throughout the film, and Vivian [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWkdYnAvg0g stops him for a selfie]] while planting a tracker on him.
55	* FictionalFanRealCelebrity: Almost every named character loves Nicolas Cage.
56	* {{Foreshadowing}}: At Javi's birthday party, he describes learning to reconnect with his estranged and dying father by watching Cage's film ''Film/GuardingTess'' and how he compared himself to protagonist Doug Chesnic, feeling a duty to safeguard his father, whom he saw as Tess. Nick describes Doug as "a complicated guy" who "had competing allegiances." Nick is feeling personal conflict between helping the CIA and remaining a good friend to Javi. [[spoiler:Javi later develops "competing allegiances" between Nick and Lucas.]]
57	* GenreShift: Played with in a meta way. Nick and Javi are workshopping a concept for a movie about the friendship between two men that is a smart and lowkey story, no big explosions or chase scenes, which represents the movie up to that point. Then Nick, at Vivian's insistence, recommends possibly adding a kidnapping subplot to "hook in casual viewers" which frustrates Javi, as he believes this is both a bad idea and coming from Nick's unresolved issues with his daughter. [[spoiler:He then proceeds to bring Nick's daughter and ex-wife all the way to Spain to resolve said issues... which indirectly leads to her being kidnapped, leading to a genre shift to a more action-y thriller.]]
58	* GilliganCut: Nick can't believe Javi's confession that ''Film/Paddington2'' is his third favorite film of all time, because it made him cry throughout the whole thing, but when Nick agrees to watch it himself, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEckT94M7qg the scene]] cuts to the movie making him cry as well.
59	-->'''Nick:''' ''Paddington 2'' is incredible.\
60	'''Javi:''' [[IToldYouSo I fucking told you.]]
61	* HamToHamCombat: Nicolas Cage and Pedro Pascal both have a history of ChewingTheScenery, which the movie demonstrates through their yelling and facial contortions.
62	* HeroicBSOD: [[spoiler:After Lucas and Javi learn about Nick spying for the CIA, Lucas assigns Javi with killing Nick, threatening to kill Javi for harboring a traitor otherwise. Between Javi's unwillingness to eliminate his friend and idol, Lucas' loss of trust in his cousin, and Nick's family's frustration with Javi's tricks, Javi collapses and cries before attempting the task.]]
63	* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Vivian, and later Javi. The latter turns out to be a DisneyDeath, however.]]
64	* HighDiveHijinks: [[invoked]] During a surprise exercise in improv and MethodActing, Javi tells Nick that they must escape his enemy by diving into the sea. When they resurface, Nick admits that he didn't expect the cliff to be so tall.
65	* HigherUnderstandingThroughDrugs: Javi shares some with Nick to help begin brainstorming the new script.
66	-->'''Javi:''' Nick. I realized that if we are going to create a work of art, we can't just sit and stare at a screen. We have to open our minds to the infinite possibilities of what the cosmos has to offer.\
67	''(Javi pulls out a small brown bottle)''\
68	'''Nick:''' What have you got there?\
69	'''Javi:''' Divine inspiration. LSD.
70	* HomoeroticSubtext: Nick and Javi's bromance is almost painted in a romantic light. They engage in several intimate conversations, share personal items, and eventually admit that they love each other [[spoiler:while holding each other at gunpoint]]. Efforts that the advertisers made to exacerbate the homoeroticism include playing Music/TheTurtles' "Happy Together" over a montage of the men emotionally bonding, posting [[https://twitter.com/Aude13220/status/1493312564033433604?s=20&t=RZsbJA7Q06rk9aemvRmTtw their confessions of love]] on Instagram on Valentine's Day 2022, and referring to them as "soulmates" in a [[https://twitter.com/nickcagemovie/status/1534252206836199424?s=21&t=X65LPOV0Ikc7cxQcWfrnmw trailer]] for the Digital HD release.
71	* IShouldWriteABookAboutThis: Nick agrees to help Javi write a screenplay about their friendship. [[spoiler:It gets made into a real crowd-pleaser.]]
72	* ImaginaryFriend: On a few occasions in the film, Nick receives advice from Nicky, an imaginary personification of his younger, more successful self.
73	* KilledOffForReal: By the end of the movie, [[spoiler:Vivian and Martin are both killed by Lucas's men.]]
74	* KilledOffscreen: [[spoiler:Martin, Vivian's partner, is shown already dead when Lucas kidnaps Addy and uses Vivian to lure Cage and Javi into a trap.]]
75	* KitschCollection: Javi has enough Nicolas Cage merchandise and props to neatly fill a shed.
76	* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: There are multiple times in the movie where Nicolas Cage will have a conversation with someone about what the movie he and Javi are planning on making should be about. Most of these ideas are direct references to either plot points in the movie that have already happened or are about to happen; things like a scene for the trailer, a kidnapping plot line, and a big Blockbuster finish for the third act.
77	* LockedOutOfTheLoop: [[spoiler:Lucas ordered Maria's kidnapping without telling Javi, making it impossible for the CIA to learn from him where she went.]]
78	* LoonyFan: Javi is a huge Nicolas Cage fan, to the point of having several pieces of memorabilia with Nick's likeness. He also takes movies too seriously for someone who doesn't professionally make any, as shown in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JC_zCCv40U this scene]] of him trying to convince Nick not to quit acting.
79	-->'''Javi:''' Whether you like it or not, you have a gift! And that gift brings light! And joy to an increasingly... dark and broken world! And to turn your back on that gift... is to turn your back on the en -- entire human race!\
80	'''Nick:''' The human race?\
81	'''Javi:''' I'm afraid so.
82	* MetaCasting: Nicolas Cage [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXWyHT8o9iU fanboy]] Pedro Pascal as Nicolas Cage fanboy Javi.
83	* MexicanStandoff: Nick and Javi end up in one [[spoiler:after Vivian and Lucas respectively order them to shoot each other. Neither friend can stand to pull the trigger. Ultimately, vengeful Lucas' gunners chase both men off of the dueling grounds.]]
84	* MissingChild: The movie begins with the kidnapping of Maria Delgado, the Catalonian president's daughter, whom the CIA suspects Javi's gang of abducting.
85	* MushroomSamba: Downplayed. At one point, Javi convinces Nick to take some acid with him for the sake of inspiration for their screenplay. There's nothing trippy, the two are just incredibly laid back for a while, until they suddenly become very paranoid that [[BeingWatched people are following them]], and they end up panicking and [[DrivesLikeCrazy driving like crazy]] to get away.
86	* NeverTrustATrailer:
87	** The second trailer makes it seem like after Javi learns about Nick working with the CIA, he chases Nick with a shotgun, angrily scolding him for lying. In the actual movie, that confrontation takes place before Javi knows about the CIA recruiting Nick, when he takes a break from shotgun practice to incorrectly guess Nick's reason for adding a kidnapped girl into the script. Lampshaded shortly earlier, when the film cuts from Vivian reminding Nick that his next movie needs "a trailer moment," to Nick firing the shotgun at a clay pigeon.
88	** PlayedForLaughs in [[https://twitter.com/nickcagemovie/status/1534252206836199424?s=21&t=X65LPOV0Ikc7cxQcWfrnmw the Digital HD trailer]], which makes the story of Nick and Javi seem like a RomanticComedy.
89	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Vivian tries to indirectly trick Javi into revealing Maria's location, by suggesting that Nick add a kidnapping to the script. When he proposes to Javi that "bad guys" abduct his daughter, Javi begins worrying that Nick's family issues have begun limiting his creativity, so he unexpectedly invites Addy and Olivia to work out their problems with him in Mallorca. [[spoiler:This leads to Lucas' goons kidnapping Addy.]]
90	* NoodleIncident: Martin vaguely cites an incident in Lisbon as a reason Vivian shouldn't involve such civilians as Nick in her missions.
91	* NoPeripheralVision: While an acid-tripping Nick and Javi outrun some suspicious onlookers, a car driving in from the left abruptly knocks Javi down, requiring him to complete the run while suffering from pain in his leg.
92	* PoolScene:
93	** Nick and his agent discuss the former's financial issues while sharing a soak at a spa's pool.
94	** A while after introducing himself to Javi, Nick lounges by the latter's swimming pool. Javi, Lucas, and Gabriela [[note]]dressed more modestly than the guys[[/note]] join him, and learn that he plans to retire from acting. He proceeds to [[Film/LeavingLasVegas drink some alcohol at the bottom of the pool]], until Javi pulls him out.
95	** Later, Javi plays Truth or Dare with Nick at the shallow end, and convinces him to read a script he wrote.
96	* RelationshipSalvagingDisaster: [[spoiler:Nick regains Olivia's and Addy's respect when he and Olivia work together to save Addy from Lucas.]]
97	* RomanceOnTheSet: In-universe, Nick and Olivia fell in love on the set of ''Film/CaptainCorellisMandolin'', in which he portrayed Captain Corelli, and she worked in the makeup department.
98	* RuleOfSymbolism: Javi pulling Nick up from the bottom of his pool foreshadows the billionaire helping the actor rise from the lowest point of his career. The movie drives it home by cutting not to Nick and Javi resurfacing at the poolside, but to Javi and Gabriela rekindling Nick's passion for storytelling.
99	* ScrewYourself: [[spoiler:During one of [[TalkingToThemself Nicky's pep talks to Nick, he ends up making out with him.]]
100	* SeamlessScenery: After Vivian wraps up a private phone call with Nick, the movie transitions to his return to Javi's birthday party, by sliding the bathroom walls to reveal the backyard.
101	* SelfDeprecation: In one of the funniest moments in the movie, Nick sees a $6,000 wax statue of [[Film/FaceOff Castor Troy]] and is horrified, calling it "grotesque"... but offers Javi $20,000 for it, in reference to Cage's bizarre spending habits.
102	* ShoutOut: Befitting of a Nic Cage parody, the climax [[spoiler:turns into a FilmWithinAFilm dramatization of the film's events, and the final shootout is shot and acted similarly to the final shootout in Film/FaceOff -- daughter in peril, wife rushing in, BigBad shot to death.]]
103	* SmallNameBigEgo: Nick, parodying his real-life counterpart's hamtastic moments and bizarre moodiness, has such an inflated view of himself that it manifests as a younger, unhinged version of himself demanding he be "more artistic" and [[ScrewYourself snogging himself]] as the ultimate form of narcissism.
104	* SmashCut: Nick's final battle against [[spoiler:Lucas]] abruptly cuts from Addy tossing a knife to Nick, to the ending of the movie Javi and Nick wrote, in which Nick's character stabs the cartel leader.
105	* SoundtrackDissonance: The movie opens with Maria, watching the ending of ''Film/ConAir'', getting kidnapped by the cartel members as the song "How Do I Live" plays from the movie.
106	* StealthPun: Javi's largest Nicolas Cage poster promotes ''Film/NationalTreasure'', the title of which could aptly describe what Javi thinks of Nick.
107	* SurprisinglySuddenDeath: [[spoiler:Martin is killed offscreen and Vivian bleeds out after shooting the hitman that is preparing to shoot Nick and Javi, but it happens so fast that you may not even realize they are dead until they never appear again.]]
108	* TakeMyHand: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-98T6KVWzF0 Parodied]]. At one point, Nick and Javi have to climb over a wall to escape potential stalkers. Javi props up Nick onto the top, but Nick fails twice to pull up Javi, who laments that he has "a very big head." They have a dramatic goodbye... only for Javi to realize that the wall is short, thin, and the corner is right next to him.
109	-->'''Javi:''' It turns out we could have just walked around.
110	* TheUnreveal: Before Nick arrives to Mallorca, Javi sends him a script he wrote himself, only for Nick's agent to throw it away unread. Javi later emails Nick another copy, but the audience never learns what it was like. The last time it comes up, Nick says at Javi's party that it's the greatest thing he's ever seen (though he presumably hadn't actually read it) but he'd rather write a new script with Javi instead.
111	* VisitByDivorcedDad: Nick attends Addy's birthday party early on, but ends up ruining it with his alcoholic antics.
112	* WhoWritesThisCrap: When Addy watches Nick's new movie, she scoffs that her counterpart sounds too schmaltzy when reminding Nick's character, "I love you, Daddy!" Nick tells her that Javi wrote the line.
113	----
114

Context Film / TheUnbearableWeightOfMassiveTalent