Review by
Eric Hillis
Directed by: Michael Sarnoski
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Alex Wolff, Adam Arkin, Nina
Belforte, Gretchen Corbett
When the marketing materials emerged for director Michael Sarnoski's
feature debut Pig, it seemed we were in for another of Nicolas Cage's many recent
oddball choices. In that sense it certainly delivers, as it's as
unconventional as any of Cage's movies. But anyone expecting the John Wick
style revenge thriller its setup and the promo images of a bloodied and
beaten Cage might suggest are in for a shock.
Yes, Cage takes a beating or two early on, but that's where the violence
ends. Here Cage plays an almost Christ-like figure who prefers to educate
his antagonists with philosophising monologues rather than take them out
with headshots. Set in the Pacific Northwest capital of hipster pretence,
Portland, Oregon, Pig is a critique of a culture that
encourages us to focus so much on impressing others that we lose sight of
our own happiness.
Cage plays Robin Feld, a recluse who lives in the sprawling forests outside
Portland. With the aid of his pet pig, Robin mines the woods for truffles
which he trades for basic supplies with Amir (Alex Woolff), a
pretentious young man who sells the delicacies to high end restaurants in
the city. Dressing like Sonny Crockett and driving an expensive sportscar,
Amir is clearly getting the better side of this particular bargain. But
that's okay by Robin, who is quite happy to live a life free of
clutter.
Robin's content existence is shattered when thieves steal his pig in the
middle of the night. Convincing Amir to drive him into the city (the pig is
as prized economically by Amir as it is emotionally by Robin), Robin trawls
through Portland's underworld of cuisine in search of the animal he
loves.
In Jules Dassin's 1949 thriller
Thieves Highway, the apple trade is portrayed as such a cut-throat world that it's almost
enough to put you off fruit consumption. Pig does something
similar for truffles. The world of rare delicacies is portrayed here in
similar fashion to the drugs trade. At the bottom of the ladder are people
like Robin and the white trash junkies who live a hand to mouth existence
searching for truffles in the woods. At the top are the restaurateurs and
suppliers who live in mansions built on the appetites of the rich. It's all
perfectly legal, but as exploitative and back-stabbing as the narcotics
game.
The people Robin encounters on his quest seem to have lost something of
themselves in their quest for culinary perfection. In one scene we watch as
Robin - who we learn was once the city's most acclaimed chef - reminds a
former student of his aspirations to open an English style pub serving
simple but tasty fare. Instead the man now runs a laughably pretentious
restaurant with the sort of servings that vanish in a single bite. Robin's
former student has the respect of the Portland restaurant scene, but he's
living someone else's dream. In contrast, Robin lives a life most would
scoff at, but he's living on his own terms. I know which one I'm envious
of.
Cage gives one of his quietest performances in quite some time. Even
quieter than
Willy's Wonderland, and he played a mute in that movie! It's a reminder that behind the
madness and the memes, Cage is a fine actor. His performance here is
genuinely moving, especially when Sarnoski lets him simply react to triggers
like the smell of a salted baguette or a cassette recording from a lover
long departed.
Cage's prolific output of recent decades was initially due to his crushing
financial debts, but in the last few years he seems to have been picking
movies he actually cares about. Like the physically bedraggled but
intellectually astute man he plays here, Cage appears to now be living and
working on his own terms, to the great benefit of movie audiences.
Pig is in UK/ROI cinemas now and on
VOD from August 23rd.
