The days are counting down until one of the best movies in recent years leaves Netflix, with no indication of when the flick might return. So you better go and watch it before it's too late.
Released back in 2022, you may know the film without even realising it. And that's because of social media.
In particular, we are on about memes. Who doesn't love them? Well, millions have enjoyed this one - but the source of said funny bit is actually from this very film that boasts 87 percent scores over on review platform Rotten Tomatoes. That's with both audiences and critics alike on RT's 'tomatometer' and 'popcornmeter'.
Advert
We're talking a miserable-looking Nicolas Cage in the passenger seat of a car next to none other than The Last Of Us star Pedro Pascal, whose character is very much enjoying his experimentation with the dangerous psychedelic drug, LSD, while driving.
Those who have watched it will know it well. But for those who don't, say hello to The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.
A bit of a weird concept, the film has Cage playing a fictionalised version of himself in a very satirical and extreme take on real life, in which Cage is a struggling actor who can't land a decent role.
Advert
Deciding to quit acting, he is offered $1,000,000 from billionaire Javi Gutiérrez, played by Pascal, who is a super fan of Cage. Heading to Gutiérrez's birthday party, it is after here that the chaos commences in a plot involving the CIA, kidnapping, drugs, and money laundering.
Cage is forced to once again become his biggest and best characters from previous films to keep Gutiérrez satisfied as the CIA put pressure on him to investigate the billionaire.
At one hour and 46 minutes, it's a relatively easy watch for any evening. Just make sure it's before its Netflix end date, which is 16 April for US customers.
Advert
"Great movie for a weekend morning when you're feeling too lazy to get up. Two lead actors with great chemistry and a feel-good goofy plot that I enjoyed more than I expected," one Rotten Tomatoes viewer wrote, giving it a four out of five star review.
Another said: "Just best to say it's a wild fun ride. Nick Cage is at his over the top best. Pedro Pascal makes a great sidekick."
And a third wrote: "Definitely an oddball movie, but I liked it. It was fun to watch Nicolas Cage spoof himself."
Advert
As for official reviews in the media, Paul Emmanuel Enicola from The Movie Buff wrote: "As an attempt to lovingly parody the central character’s filmography, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent makes sure to tap Cage’s unbridled energy and dial it up to eleven."
As for the meme that went viral back when the film was released, TikTok couldn't get enough of it.
The meme is actually from around 45 minutes in to the film as Pascal's character wants to 'open our minds to the infinite possibilities of what the cosmos has to offer'. In other words, sample psychedelic narcotics.
In the film, a song by Jimmy Rushing called 'Blues in the Dark' plays in the background.
Advert
But the meme is best known for having Cass Elliot song 'Make Your Own Kind of Music' playing over the top of the polar opposite facial expressions shown by Cage and Pascal.
Lionsgate, which created the film, even meme'd its own movie back in 2023 during the viral spell, asking why sales were spiking during the TikTok meme trend and not during the initial cinematic run (see it above).
"The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is a really good movie. I’m glad that it’s getting more attention," one fan concluded. Amen to that.
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is available on Netflix - but not for long!
Topics: Netflix, Film and TV, Pedro Pascal, Nicolas Cage, Rotten Tomatoes
Tom Earnshaw