HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR LORD AND SAVOIR

This is a beautiful day everyone. Some days show the birth of the false messiahs. (Dec. 25th, April 26th, etc.) But today, January 7th, is the true day of worship for all who practice Cagenism. May he continue to save us from the bees for another year.

Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)

In response to The Best of Times, we are shown another side of high school through Amy Heckerling's Fast Times at Ridgemont High starring Sean Penn. The story is a slice of life at Ridgemont High, showing Sean Penn's character doing what he does best- getting high, surfing, and skipping American History. The film also looks at the lifestyle around sex, drugs, and rock n' roll. Just kidding- only sex. The story of a young girl who is constantly hooking up with boys realizes that although every guy she hooks up with turns her away- there was always one boy who truly cared for her. The third story being told is that of Brad, the brother of the promiscuous girl who seems to have trouble holding a job- until he stops a robber towards the end of the film. Finally, the film ends with a school dance, where everyone seems to be enjoying themselves.

Nicolas Cage had a very brief but very meaningful role, He plays the character Brad's bud who works at the burger joint Brad is fired from (1:21). At first glance one might believe his character serves no purpose and is only included in the film to make it seem as if people actually worked at this place. But once you look deeper into his character, you can see Cage is afraid. Because as soon as he sees his manager coming to fire brad for threatening a customer, he hides. He hides because he's afraid of losing his job, which he must believe is more important than his friendship with Brad. This leaves us with the question "Is Nic Cage really Brad's 'Bud'?" Brilliant character development Nic, brilliant.

Pros- Actually a really funny movie. The script is well written and there are some classic "babe" scenes which spawned from this film. Also Sean Penn is a hilarious stoner.
Cons- Not nearly enough Cage.

Overall, it's worth watching, even if our Lord's appearance is brief.

Best of Times (1981)

Remember what is was like being a teenager? Best of Times (starring Crispin Glover) has an innocent approach to adolescence, showing the daily lives of teenagers in a small town. All of the characters are living their daily lives doing what they enjoy. Some of the kids are working jobs, while others are trying to pick up chicks (as is life). Occasionally, all of the kids will stop what they're doing and start dancing to whatever music is being played (a fiddle, hitting random objects in a convenience store, or the new Talking Heads album). As an actual teenager, I can say this happens just about every day.

More importantly, one of these kids is Nicolas Cage, or as he was called at the time "Nicolas Coppola". He plays the creatively named character Nic who is the big muscle head best friend of Crispin (Crispin Glover's creatively named character). In the majority of the scenes you will see Nic working out on the beach wearing only jorts and giving advice to his much smaller and awkward friend on how to pick up women. Towards the end of the film Nic has a monologue about going into the military. He wasn't fond of the idea of having to go to El Salvador, and would have preferred to have a war somewhere more pleasant.

Pros: Nic Cage has plenty of stage time and shows off his hot bod
Cons: The actual films was pretty incorrect on the idea of being a teenager in the 80's, and the writing was horribly cheesy

Overall, Nic Cage's first film was very dated, very incorrect, and very funny.

Welcome

Our Lord and his glory

My name is Aldon. Over the course of the year I plan on watching every film in which Nicolas Cage has starred. I didn't think it was enough to watch every movie, so I will be writing reviews for each film. It will be difficult, as I will see the good, the bad and Wicker Man. 76 films- let's do this.