Nicolas Cage is an icon in the film industry, and that’s greatly because he has such phenomenal range. This veteran actor believes “film enthusiasts” have trusted his movie choices for over four decades because he always aims to inject as much emotion and originality into each role as possible. The fans have surely stuck with him and, as a result, many have their favorite Cage movies, as does the actor himself. The Oscar winner — who has over a hundred film roles under his belt — listed his top five movies from his filmography. And if you can believe it or not, Face/Off is not one of them.
A nephew of Academy Award-winning director Francis Ford Coppola, Nicolas Cage has put in some great work and understands film. His is arguably what’s guided him as he’s made professional decisions over the years. That’s led to a number of the great movies under his belt. While appearing on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Cage spoke about which of his movies he views as standouts. Take a look at the intriguing video from Twitter below, which sees the actor leave out Face/Off as he breaks down the list:
Nicolas Cage reveals his top five Nicolas Cage films. 🎞️ pic.twitter.com/L6O0Qe6NWOApril 14, 2023
I honestly can’t believe he left out John Woo’s classic action/thriller. This especially comes as quite a shock considering in 2015, Cage named it one of his four best movies. He even added that he used what he learned on his horror/comedy Vampire’s Kiss in order play the role of Castor Troy. But then again, that interview was conducted over seven years ago and, just in 2022, Cage mentioned some of his more recent films as some of his favorites. As you heard in this most recent clip, he appreciates Pig, Mandy, Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, Bringing Out the Dead and Joe, which is a good lineup.
But to me personally, it doesn’t make sense why the film wouldn’t be one of Nic Cage’s favorites. He gave such a transformative performance, playing both the roles of homicidal sociopath Castor Troy and FBI agent Sean Archer, the character receives a face transplant. Cage and co-star John Travolta were electric together, which is partially why many still discuss the movie today. But again, it’s hard to argue with the movies that he named. Cage received rave reviews for his performance in Pig, which is about a man’s search for his stolen hog. Joe, Mandy and Bad Lieutenant also focus on characters with singular missions and make for compelling stories.
While Nicholas Cage didn’t mention the flick as one of his favorite movies, it doesn’t mean it’s never on his mind. After all, he did reference it and other Cage flicks in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent by incorporating the movie’s signature golden guns. Also, Face/Off 2 is actually coming and has a wild plot that would see not only Sean Archer and Castor Troy going head-to-head but their children as well. So it sounds like Cage’s Troy will be brought back somehow, despite being killed off in the previous film. And I’m curious to see how that plays out.
Kudos to Nicolas Cage for being honest with his picks, as he could’ve definitely just played to what fans might’ve wanted to hear. Those who love Face/Off or want to watch it for the first time can check it out using an Amazon Prime subscription or a Paramount+ subscription.