The Totally Bonkers 'Mandy' Is The Nicolas Cage Movie To End All Nicolas Cage Movies.

I imagine the pitch for Mandy, the gonzo new Nicolas Cage movie, went something like this... Studio Exec, "It's the 'Not The Bees' scene from The Wicker Man, but like.. for an entire movie."  That being said, I mean that in the best way possible.  Nicolas Cage, afterall, is an Oscar winning actor.  However, in the past decade or so, he's become something of a punchline.  His direct to DVD catalog is beginning to rival the likes of Steven Segal and Van Damme.  The once juicy (and well-acted) roles have gone the way of cheese as Cage delivers more and more crap to our doorsteps.

There have been flashes of past brilliance in recent years, most noticeably in his Bad Lieutenant sequel and his Oscar nominated performance in Adaptation.  Mandy, while not quite Oscar caliber, reminds us that Cage can deliver the goods when called upon.  This movie serves up the right amount of "wink wink" cheese with a side dish of real anguish.  Cage's performance is mostly a silent one, but I'm fairly certain that there aren't many actors on the planet who could have pulled this performance off.  It sure is a sight to behold.

Mandy starts off in an almost David Lynchian dreamlike state.  The first third of the movie drones on with tones and colors that could have come straight out of a Twin Peaks outtake.  We follow Cage and his girlfriend as they meet a cult who movies into town and threatens their peace and tranquility.  Soon after they set their sights on Mandy (the titular character), she is brutally killed in front of Cage.  This isn't really a spoiler since it serves as the tipping point in this revenge story.  Soon enough, Cage makes his way back to his "old life."  We don't really get an explanation to what that life was, but it's clear that he is some sort of reformed hit man.

The final two thirds of this film is equal parts Tarantino style bloodbath and B-movie shlockfest.  Cage's character tries to exact punishment in the most brutal ways possible.  Cage has minimal dialogue in this portion of the film, but he makes maximum work of the lines he gets to deliver.  You'll never hear "you ruined my shirt" in the same way again after seeing this one.

Mandy is an absolute B-movie delight.  Check it out if you can stomach the gruesome violence.  If you're a Cage fan, it's a must-see!