The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

“Olivia and daughter Addy exert clear-cut boundaries and avoid the gendered pitfall of having to ‘fix’ the man in their lives.”

Title: The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (2022)
Director: Tom Gormican 👨🏼🇺🇸
Writers: Tom Gormican 👨🏼🇺🇸 and Kevin Etten 👨🏼🇺🇸

Reviewed by Weiting 👩🏻🇨🇳🇺🇸

Note: This review was commissioned by Lionsgate. The content and methodology remain 100% independent and in line with Mediaversity's non-commissioned reviews.

Technical: 3.5/5

Director Tom Gormican and co-writer Kevin Etten’s action comedy The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, starring Nicolas Cage as a fictionalized version of himself named Nick Cage, was bound to become a festival favorite at this year’s SXSW.

The heartfelt tribute to Cage’s vintage megastardom compels its viewers to get behind the actor’s controversial career choices and over-the-top style, starting strong by interweaving its main narrative with perfectly-timed references to his versatile filmography. Despite forebears such as the esoteric Being John Malkovich (1999), which uses a similar device of self-awareness, Gormican’s film completely avoids feeling derivative thanks to its embrace of entertaining genre conventions, including a buddy road trip, well-orchestrated gunfight, and car chases. The result is wholesome and rambunctious: One of the most famous, interesting, and productive actors in Hollywood history gets to have a blast reenacting his most iconic scenes from the pinnacles of his career.

However, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent falls flat in its third act after the filmmakers exhaust their Cage references. Seemingly disoriented within their own metanarrative, the supposed climax—driven by clichéd shootouts and explosions—struggles to live up to its premise. But this imperfection never stops us from cheering on our beloved protagonist, a transplant from the ‘80s and ‘90s who brings with him a nostalgic vision of when filmmaking was mystified, revered, and larger than life.

Gender: 3/5
Does it pass the Bechdel Test? NOPE

Though Cage’s Nick is at the core of the film, the women close to him have strong voices. Like mother, like daughter: Both Nick’s wife Olivia (Sharon Horgan) and their teenager Addy (Lily Mo Sheen) are intelligent, independent, and never hold back from critiquing him. Better yet, the family dynamics feel balanced and neither of Olivia or Addy’s lives revolve around Nick.

For example, still hung up on a career failure, Nick drunkenly appears at Addy’s birthday party and steals her thunder by playing a cringey song on the piano. Olivia and Addy immediately call him out on his inability to be there for other people, and his need to always make everything about himself.

In the aftermath of this party, Olivia and Addy start exerting clear-cut boundaries and avoid the gendered pitfall of having to “fix” Nick. Despite still caring for him, they make the difficult decision to separate for good. Sure, their strength and independence eventually pushes Nick over the edge to solve his personal and professional problems by prioritizing them over his career. But this coherent redemption arc demonstrates a healthy contention of male ego, rather than falling under its spell.

However, other female characters are not as well written. It may be cool to see a local Mallorcan woman Gabriela, played by Italian actor Alessandra Mastronardi, join Olivia to rescue Addy and a teen girl Maria (Katrin Vankova) by running over and gunning down male villains. But this “girls with guns” trope, despite looking badass, is never as meaningful as deeper characterization.

I also take issue with Tiffany Haddish’s scarce screen time as the competent CIA agent Vivian. This character has so much potential as the rescue mission’s commander, but she remains a disembodied voice behind Nick’s earpieces. As the only Black woman in the film, she feels isolated from the above ensemble and starts to lean towards tokenism. While Haddish’s signature blend of wit, sass, and confidence makes up for two-dimensional writing, the film still fails to do her justice.

Race: 4/5

Chilean American actor Pedro Pascal stars opposite Cage as the sweet, charming, yet unpredictable Javi Gutierrez, Nick’s billionaire superfan whom the CIA suspects of being a drug kingpin and Maria’s kidnapper. Gormican endows Javi with a humorous duality between good and evil, as we constantly question if he really is an international criminal hiding behind the facade of an innocent and goofy fanboy.

As a result, Javi is a complex and multidimensional character who allows plenty of creative space for Pascal to flex his acting talents. As Nick and Javi’s earnest bromance blossoms through their mutual love for cinema, Pascal even upstages Cage in moments of ingenious comedic timing and mercurial screen presence.

It’s also pleasant to see the filmmakers avoid using Javi as a debased foil to make Nick seem more intelligent. Heart and craft has clearly gone into Javi’s characterization as Nick’s frenemy—an opportunity that, to this day, actors of color seldom receive in mainstream Hollywood movies when paired with such star power as Nicolas Cage.

Mediaversity Grade: B- 3.50/5

In praise of Cage’s classic films, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent does impressive double duty by also tackling the problematic side of the movie industry, such as the narcissism of megastars like his character Nick. The title appears grandiose at first but quickly reveals an ironic bent: By showing Nick’s change for the better in the end, it pushes back against the myth of white male “genius” and reminds us that great art does not have to come at the cost of others’ well-being.

Like The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent? Try these other films featuring buddy duos.

*Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar (2021)*

Grade: BLiApril 22, 2022