Only A Real Weirdo Can Name These Nicolas Cage Movies
- by Ben Sherlock
- – on
- in Movies and TV
Can we all finally admit to ourselves that Nicolas Cage is a great actor? Sure, some of his movies suck, but that's not because he's a poor actor, it's because he literally never says no to a role. But his acting technique, his unique and unparalleled delivery style, and his idiosyncratic screen presence make him one of the greatest and most watchable actors of all time. In the '90s, he was on fire. He did a string of action movies crossed with contemplative dramas that all ranked among the best ever made. He's a highly decorated and celebrated performer, having been awarded an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild Award throughout his long career. A couple of weeks ago, Nic Cage turned 54. That's 54 years of freaking people out, enlightening people's lives, and gracing the silver screen with his electric presence. Like him or not, there is no way that you can deny that Nicolas Cage is one of the most beloved and popular actors who has ever lived. His movies are among some of the highest grossing of all time and he's not stopping any time soon. But how many of those movies can you name? Are you the biggest Nic Cage fan in the world? Take this quiz to find out!
What is this John Woo action extravaganza?
John Woo is one of the greatest directors of action movies who ever lived, and he managed to spin the absurd premise of this film into an action masterpiece. John Travolta is the FBI agent whose son was killed by sadistic terrorist Nicolas Cage and he’ll do anything to get revenge. And then, through various circumstances, the two of them end up surgically switching faces, so then Travolta’s the terrorist and Cage is the FBI agent. What movie is it?
What Satanic Marvel superhero movie is this?
In this movie, which would eventually get a sequel entitled Spirit of Vengeance, Nicolas Cage plays Johnny Blaze, a motorcycle stuntman who makes a deal with the Devil that gives him Satanic superpowers. It’s, frankly, a fair bit darker than your usual Marvel superhero movie. This character has since joined the MCU, played by an actor other than Nic Cage, in the TV series Agents of SHIELD. The movie was panned by critics upon its release. What movie is it?
What patriotic adventure movie is this?
This adventure movie is a kind of low rent Indiana Jones in which Nic Cage starred alongside the great Jon Voight (star of Midnight Cowboy and estranged father of A list starlet Angelina Jolie). It grossed over $300 million worldwide. It was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and ended up getting a sequel called Book of Secrets, although we’re still waiting on that third one. Harvey Keitel, Diane Kruger, and Christopher Plummer also star in the movie. Which one is it?
What is this Alcatraz action thriller called?
This action thriller directed by Michael Bay stars Nicolas Cage alongside Sean Connery and Ed Harris. A bunch of rogue soldiers take over Alcatraz and threaten San Francisco with nerve gas. It’s one of the best action movies ever made. The script was touched up by the likes of Aaron Sorkin and Quentin Tarantino, and yet it still has corny lines like, “Do you like the Elton John song Rocket Man?...I only ask because it’s you. You are the rocket man.” What movie is it?
What kidnapping comedy is this?
This Coen brothers comedy movie came as the duo wanted to make a less serious and sillier, wackier movie after their dark noir homage Blood Simple. They cast Nic Cage in the lead role as an ex-con who wants to adopt a baby with his cop wife, but can’t because of his record. So, of course, they kidnap a baby from a rich man who has too many to handle. This doesn’t end well. What classic caper movie is it?
What 9/11 firefighter drama is this?
When there’s a real life tragedy, Hollywood begins itching to make a movie about it, because it triggers something for people and that means the money will roll in. However, you can’t do it too soon or it’s in poor taste. With Titanic, they waited about a hundred years to make a movie about it. With Pearl Harbor, it was about sixty or seventy years. This movie, directed by Oliver Stone and starring Nic Cage, was released five years after 9/11. What movie is it?
What is this dark superhero satire?
Matthew Vaughn directed this dark satire of the superhero genre, adapted from the comic of the same name by Mark Millar, and it’s great. It was very controversial upon its release in 2010, because there’s a character played by Chloe Grace Moretz, who at the time was like 13, who uses the C word halfway through the film. But, like, who even cares? Nic Cage plays her dad, a Batman-like superhero vigilante character named Big Daddy. What movie is it?
What is this prehistoric animated adventure?
Nicolas Cage hasn’t done a lot of animated movies, but this one truly is a terrific one. It’s about a family of cavepeople headed by the patriarch Cage, who wants his daughter Emma Stone to stay away from hunky Ryan Reynolds, because he doesn’t trust him, but he eventually learns to let her go and be free, and becomes a better person for it. The film is massively underrated and should be seen by a bunch more people. What is it?
What plane-bound prison movie is this?
Nic Cage stars alongside John Malkovich, Steve Buscemi, Ving Rhames, and oddly enough, standup comic Dave Chappelle in this action movie directed by Simon West about a bunch of convicts on board a doomed airplane. Cage’s character has been found guilty of killing a drunken man who tried to attack his pregnant wife, and he’s caught up in the middle of a deadly situation as the conflict of the film escalates. It’s a beloved action flick. What movie is it?
What car thief action thriller is this?
In this action thriller remake of the classic movie of the same name, Nic Cage plays a master car thief who has retired and left the game who is, in the style of Michael Corleone, pulled back in, as he has to steal fifty cars in a single night in order to save his brother’s life. As you can tell, the stakes of this story are extremely high. When lives are at risk, movies are interesting. So, what is the name of the movie?
What is this magical Disney adventure?
Jay Baruchel has carved out a little bit of a niche in kids’ entertainment. He stars alongside his fellow Canadian comedy actor Seth Rogen in movies like Knocked Up and This is the End, as well as doing his own, more indie comedies with the likes of Goon and its sequel (which he also directed), but all of his big bucks come from kids’ movies, like the two How to Train Your Dragon movies and this Disney adventure where he starred alongside Nic Cage. What movie is it?
What horror remake is this?
“NOT THE BEES!!!” This remake of a classic British horror film starring Edward Woodward starred Nicolas Cage in the lead role, and it was universally panned by both audiences and critics. It is somewhat famous and beloved for Cage’s delivery of the line “NOT THE BEES!!!” as he is tortured by the villagers in an unusual way as they fill a box on his head with live bees. So, what is this remake of a classic spooky British horror movie?
What Martin Scorsese-directed ambulance driver movie is this?
Nicolas Cage became Martin Scorsese’s new Robert De Niro for one movie only before he changed his mind to Leonardo DiCaprio. Scorsese reteamed with Taxi Driver writer Paul Schrader to craft a movie that had the same tone, same style, and same premise – a driver who works late nights and slowly loses his mind – but with an ambulance driver instead of a taxi driver. It’s not as strong a film as Taxi Driver, but still good. What movie is it?
What is this Bin Laden-hunting comedy?
This comedy movie did not get a huge release, and that was because it would probably anger the terrorists of the world. It sees Nicolas Cage as a regular guy who hears the voice of God, played by Russell Brand, telling him to go out into the Middle East and find Osama Bin Laden, who at this time, was still at large. Oddly enough, this is actually a true story. It’s a weird one, from the director of Borat. What movie is it?
What 3D household pet adventure is this?
“The world needs bigger heroes,” read the tagline. This movie was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer for Walt Disney Pictures as his first ever 3D production. It made more than $290 million on a production budget of $150 million, and most of that budget seemingly went toward paying the salaries of the cast, which included Sam Rockwell, Tracy Morgan, Penélope Cruz, Jon Favreau, Steve Buscemi, Zach Galifianakis, Bill Nighy, Will Arnett, and of course, the great Nicolas Cage. What movie is it?
What end-of-days sci-fi thriller is this?
In this movie, directed by Alex Proyas of I, Robot and Gods of Egypt, Nic Cage plays an MIT professor who discovers a list of numbers inside a time capsule and starts to link the numbers to a series of disasters that have occurred both in the past and the future, and he uses these numbers to put together the clues to prevent the end of the world before it’s too late. It’s pretty darn good. What movie is it?
What is this black comedy about a pair of con men?
There’s a strong case to be made that Sir Ridley Scott is the greatest director working in the film industry today. He revolutionized both science fiction and horror (and female characters) with Alien, he created the neo noir with Blade Runner, he made Ancient Rome cool again with Gladiator, he made a Mars movie that finally did well at the box office with The Martian (after the failure of movies like John Carter and Ghosts of Mars) – and he made this lovely little black comedy starring Nic Cage. What is it?
What is this medieval witch hunt movie?
The movie stars Nic Cage alongside Ron Perlman as a pair of knights in the 14th century who find their village destroyed by the Black Death. A bunch of church elders accuse a girl of being a witch responsible for the damage, and the knights are tasked with transporting her back to her trial. It’s a kind of medieval Midnight Run, except not as comedic or exciting or, well, good. So, what is the name of this witch hunt movie?
What is this bleak dark comedy about the news?
Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski took a step back to make a much smaller and more intimate film with this very bleak, very dry, very dark comedy about a man who works for a small news team and hates his life and goes through a depressing midlife crisis. Of course, Nic Cage is great in the role alongside the cameo appearances of real life news figures like Bryant Gumbel, Ed McMahon, Cristina Ferrare, and Wolfgang Puck. What movie is it?
What Hell on Earth action movie is this?
In this movie, there is a scene where Nicolas Cage is making love to a woman in a motel room and he dispatches a bunch of gunmen sent to kill him, while still having sex with her. It’s a pretty incredible sequence. It’s staged well, it’s exciting, it’s pretty awesome. Cage plays a dead men who has managed to escape Hell with Satan’s personal firearm, the Godkiller, and is on his way to murder a cult leader who killed his daughter. What movie is it?
What celluloid thriller is this?
In this dark, slick thriller, Nicolas Cage plays a private investigator who discovers a piece of celluloid film that appears to depict an actual murder. Roger Ebert liked the movie, calling it "a real film," rather than "a slick exploitation exercise with all the trappings of depravity but none of the consequences." However, he was in the slim minority of critics. Still, this thriller about the world of snuff films is as exciting and engaging as it is horrifying. What movie is it?
What corrupt cop movie is this?
This movie, directed by Werner Herzog, reteams the co-stars Nic Cage and Eva Mendes from Marvel’s dark, Satanic superhero movie Ghost Rider. The film shares its title with an Abel Ferrara movie that was released in the ‘90s and starred the great Harvey Keitel. However, the similarities pretty much end there. It’s the same producer who made both, but this one isn’t a sequel or a remake or a reboot, and the premise of both is a corrupt cop, but that’s about it. What movie is it?
What is this beautiful Oscar-winning drama?
Ah, this is the one. The reason that Nicolas Cage can call himself an Academy Award winner. This movie stars Cage as an alcoholic writer who drives out into the desert to drink himself to death and ends up falling in love with a whore with a heart of gold. It is not the easiest movie to watch, since it deals with violence, sexual assault, suicide, and other dark topics, but it is a truly brilliant film and definitely one to watch. What movie is it?
What meta Charlie Kaufman head-trip is this?
This movie, directed by Spike Jonze, is really freaky and weird. Basically, it started when screenwriter Charlie Kaufman was tasked with adapting Susan Orlean’s novel The Orchid Thief for the big screen and he hit a bump in the road. He then decided to, instead, tell the story of himself and his fictional twin brother Donald adapting the movie for a script. The brothers were played by Nic Cage and Orlean was played by Meryl Streep. What movie is it?
What is this gun-running Goodfellas rip-off?
This Andrew Niccol movie is kind of like a soft remake of Martin Scorsese’s masterpiece Goodfellas, with drugs swapped for gun-running. Nic Cage stars as Yuri Orlov, the son of Ukrainian refugees, who grows up to become the king of the gun trade. The movie was officially endorsed by Amnesty International, who praised it for bringing light to an important topic. The opening few minutes are the most powerful as they follow a bullet from the factory into the head of a child soldier. What movie is it?