Nicolas Cage’s rise to fame
Nicolas Cage is one dedicated and passionate actor in the movie and television industry within whom resides the very spirit of Hollywood. Born as Nicolas Kim Coppola, he went to the Beverly Hills High School before he dropped out of this school to feed his passion for acting by attending the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television in California. As Nicolas slowly started to leave his mark on the many television series and movies in roles ranging from minor to second leads, he decided to change his name to that of Nicolas Cage. This decision was intentionally made to eradicate any future accusations of nepotism in the form of riding on the coattails of his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola, who was a famous Oscar-winning director and screenwriter of the time. Nicolas’ self-given surname was also a nod to the actor’s favourite Marvel superhero Power Man, aka, Luke Cage. In the present day, most of Nicolas Cage movies have become box office giants, and movie critics have listed Nicolas’ name among the best examples of an actor indulging in method acting in the history of acting.
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5. Face/Off (1997)
When referencing movies which turned out to be financial giants at the box office on top of earning a long list of positive reviews from critics, a mention goes out to Face/Off which casts Nicolas Cage and John Travolta in opposite leading characters in what can be only designed as a movie meant to mess with the viewers’ brains. Face/Off is one of the popular Nicolas Cage movies in the action film genre which is also categorized as a science fiction because of its complicated plot which involves a terrorist and an FBI agent, both undergoing chemical face transplants and physical surgeries to impersonate each other in their respective businesses. John Travolta/Nicolas Cage starring as Sean Archer/Castor Ploy have given existence to the masterpiece of Face/Off which was created within a budget of $80 million but proceeded to gross a whopping total of $245.7 worldwide, becoming one of the top trending movies of 1997, and earning a nomination at the 70th Academy Awards.
4. Con Air (1997)
The film Con Air is extremely famous for ranking extremely high among all of the Nicolas Cage movies ever, succeeding in earninga high digit box office revenue of $224 during its theatrical run in 1997. Con Air also acquired high critical acclaim diverted directly towards Nicolas Cage, and his portrayal of an ex-US Army Ranger who boards a prison ship headed towards Alabama, unbeknownst of the hijack of the transport ship planned by fellow criminals aboard the Jailbird. The character of Nicolas Cage is subjected to bear witness to many atrocities committed by most dangerous criminals of the country while playing along with their plan to reroute the plane to a non-extradition country as a fellow criminal, all the while devising a plan to foil their plan and return all the inmates to the custody of the United States.
IMDb 6.8 / Release Date: 1997
Trailer / Director: Simon West
3. The Rock (1996)
When talking about The Rock – no, not Dwayne Johnson’s The Rock, the 1996 thriller movie – the first thing that comes into discussion is the phenomenal acting of Nicolas Cage and Sean Connery in portraying their roles of a former captain of the Special Air Service and an FBI chemist as the duo receive their mission of infiltrating Alcatraz Island and diffusing the bomb threats coming from a rogue bunch of US Force Reconnaissance Marines. The Rock follows the plot of the leader of a renegade group of US Marines who have overtaken Alcatraz and threatened to bomb San Francisco with rockets containing nerve gas, unless the government agrees to pay a retribution of $100 million to the families of deceased Recon Marines who had been denied a compensation, as part of a ransom deal. In such a threatening situation, when all seems lost, Nicolas Cage and Sean Connery’s partnership is brought in to save the day. The Rock was dedicated to producer Donald Simpson, who had passed away five months prior to the release of the movie due to a heart failure. Besides earning a nomination at the Oscars that year, The Rock surpassed four times its production budget value by becoming a major box office success upon grossing over $335.1 million worldwide.
IMDb 7.4 / Release Date: 1996
Trailer / Director: Michael Bay
2. City of Angels (1988)
City of Angels is one of the most popular Nicolas Cage movies which gained its reputation of being one of the best movies attempted by Nicolas in the romance genre. Loosely based on the 1987 German film Der Himmel über Berlin, the 1998 rendition of City of Angels retains the plot of angels watching over the world, with Nicolas Cage’s character Seth being the angel responsible for guiding people near their deaths into afterlife in Los Angeles. Seth soon falls into a massive predicament when he falls in love with a mortal surgeon in the hospital he has been watching over and decides to take his Fall to be with her forever. City of Angels was one of the most successful movies by Nicolas Cage which earned the box office revenue of $198.7 million upon the low budget of $55 million.
IMDb 6.7 / Release Date: 1988
Trailer / Director: Brad Silberling
1. National Treasure Franchise (2004-2007)
When anyone tries to point out the best Nicolas Cage movies or the best movies in the adventure heist genre, the first production which comes to the mind is the National Treasure franchise. The original National Treasure released in 2004 follows the life of Benjamin Franklin Gates, portrayed by Nicolas Cage, in his mission to uncover the legendary treasure of the United States of America, which had been hidden away by the Founding Fathers after the end of the American War of Independence. Hints to the exact location of this treasure had been placed in strategic locations around the country, with the final key being written at the back of the original Declaration of Independence. A rift between the group occurs midway through the film when the viewers realise that the main plot of the movie isn’t intended to answer whether the treasure hunters find the Templar Treasure or not, but whether which of the treasure hunters finds the treasure. Released upon a $100 million budget, National Treasure became an instant box office success after grossing a grand total of $347.5 million worldwide.
IMDb 6.9 / Release Date: 2004-2007
Trailer / Director: Jon Turteltaub
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