Nic Cage: National Treasure - A Razzie Rebuttal

Catherine recently (as in, a mere few hours ago) outlined how Nic Cage was "snubbed" for the "Worst Actor of the Decade" award from the Razzies. However, Nic Cage's supposed ineptitude doesn't even begin to compare to the other actors who were nominated for the award (Ben Affleck, Eddie Murphy, John Travolta, Mike Myers, Rob Schneider). Let's look at the differences:

- Nic Cage has only been nominated for three Razzie awards. Among the five nominated, the closest is Mike Myers, who was nominated for four in the 2000s.
- Nic Cage has never "won" a Razzie. All of those nominated have won at least one Razzie
- Nic Cage has won an acting Oscar. None of the people actually on the list have won an Oscar for acting...ever. Only Ben Affleck (while leeching off Matt Damon) has an Oscar among those nominated, for the Good Will Hunting screenplay.
- Nic Cage was nominated for an Oscar in the 2000s (Adaptation). Only Eddie Murphy, among those nominated, was nominated in the 2000s for an Oscar (Dreamgirls).

Those facts alone show why he isn't the "Worst Actor of the Decade." Plus, no one is ever going to win an argument with Nic Cage's Bird Hair.

On a side note, I actually liked Knowing. Yes, Nic Cage had a couple of waaaay over the top moments, but overall it's actually an unusually reserved performance for late-2000s Nic Cage. It was especially refreshing considering everyone else in the movie seemed to be sleepwalking through their roles.

The movie, despite its horribly illogical plot, does a decent job of keeping the tension built, and far exceeded even my meager expectations. I don't recommend it for anyone looking for a "good" movie, but if you like Nic Cage or over-the-top sci-fi movies, it's worth a rental.

Nic Cage: National Treasure - "Snubbed" by Oscars AND Razzies

The nominations for the Razzies (which "honor" the worst movies every year) for films released in 2009 and the entire decade of the 2000s were announced yesterday (Feb. 1), and Knowing, which has continued Nicolas Cage's string of ridiculously bad movies this decade, didn't even get a nomination. Cage also failed to get a spot on the highly un-coveted list of nominees for Worst Actors of the Decade, which consists of Ben Affleck, Eddie Murphy, Mike Myers, Rob Schneider and John Travolta. All of those men are worthy contenders, but I honestly would have predicted Cage to be on that list, perhaps in place of Myers or Schneider (who only had a supporting role in about half of the films they mentioned). I mean, who else could claim the title of most ridiculous action-adventure star of the decade? He had a flaming skull (Ghost Rider), punched out a woman while wearing a bear costume (The Wicker Man) and kidnapped the president (National Treasure 2). The amount of ridiculous one-liners in most of his films this decade, especially The Wicker Man, could fill volumes. I was also saddened by the absence of that film amongst the Worst Movie of the Decade nominees, as it would definitely belong in my worst five films of the 2000s. (Warning: The following video does contain spoilers and bear-man vs. women action.)

The last part of 2009 brought a better Cage to the screen in director Werner Herzog's Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans. He even received a couple of nominations here and there for Best Actor with some of the critics' organizations. I don't think it was quite worthy of that praise; I personally think Cage is at his best when he's a little more low-key (Leaving Las Vegas, Bringing Out the Dead, The Weather Man). While it wasn't a huge shocker that his name was omitted from the Best Actor Oscar nominations this morning (Feb. 2), his name was circulating out there as a possible dark horse.