Since 2006, Nicolas Cage has appeared in an average of four movies per year. I was caring., YouTuber Synthetic Man Demolishes HBO's The Last Of Us: "In Modern Woke Culture Subtlety Is Dead", 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania' Writer Jeff Loveness Rejects Negative Reaction To Film: 'Im Right! How Marvel went big with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. The movie still presents some degree of fun because that premise is enough to at least hold your attention if you're a fan of horror, Cageisms, or movie kitsch. [21] Nick De Semlyn of Empire gave the film a score of three out of five stars, concluding that, "though the dialogue and plotting are no great shakes, that commitment to the concept, combined with Cage's swaggering soda-swigger, is enough to make this a good time. Due to being delayed by the pandemic, it was released in Saudi Arabia on September 23, 2021. Still, it was a bold creative choice nonetheless. We want to hear what you have to say but need to verify your email. Cage talked about just how bad of a hole he was in financially and what it took for him to come out. Nicolas Cage makes anywhere from $1 million to $12 million USD per movie depending on his role. Lewis: I was really struggling with that. Theother likely inspiration for Nic Cage's silent Janitor in Willy's Wonderlandisthe silent video game protagonist. Nobody is going to watch this thing." Had something gone wrong, one thing to delay us a week or 10 days or whatever, it would have absolutely ended the film. 1," the first-ever comic to feature Superman, which he picked up for $150,000. And Nicolas Cage was just sitting there going, "No, this is exactly the kind of movie which needs to be made.". Other roles included Willys Wonderland, a film where Cage hunts down animatronic monsters without saying a single word in the film. Cage went through a period where all I he was "doing was meditating three times a day and reading books on philosophy" and found himself seeking out the places he had studied and read about. The absolute joy of 'Willy's Wonderland' is that it doesn't take itself seriously, but it pretends that it does. Liv: He's not trapped in there with them. In the vents, Arty chases Liv, but she escapes into a fairy-themed room where Sara kidnaps her. Is a film in which Oscar-winner Nicolas Cage battles a series of giant animatronic creatures just the thing to raise spirits as we head into the second year of the pandemic? In the restaurant, the Janitor subdues Sara, and twists Cammy's head, killing her. Compare this performance with other movies. Ozzie attacks the Janitor, who beats Ozzie to death with a mop. That includes "Action Comics No. Why isn't he running and hiding for his life? While driving back, Evan is attacked and killed by a stowaway Tito while Liv escapes. In Willy's Wonderland, Cage plays a mysterious gentleman called The Janitor, who's forced to spend the night cleaning out the titular restaurant. A quiet loner finds himself stranded in a remote town when his car breaks down. We were able to trade them all in for the ultimate prize: Willy's Wonderland, a movie in which a totally non-verbal Nicolas Cage beats the literal stuffing out of evil animatronics while spending a single night in a haunted family play center of Tartarus-like ball pits and flashy pinball machines. I was like, "Sounds good to me.". A quiet drifter is tricked into a janitorial job at the now condemned Willy's Wonderland. Parsons: When I originally wrote the script, I put in one line, which was "Come at me, bro." Click to enlarge. Somewhat inspired by the video game Five Nights at Freddy's, Willy's Wonderland sees Cage's character tasked with cleaning the abandoned, titular . Part of Polygon's Best of 2021. I'll credit the creature designs of the many killer animatronic animals inhabited by the spirits of a dead Satanic cult demanding sacrifice. What really put Cage in the red financially weren't the eccentric items, however, but his overstuffed real estate portfolio. Unable to pay for the repairs he needs, he agrees to spend the night cleaning Willy's Wonderland, an abandoned family fun center. He'd beat Gus and after he beat Gus, he'd go and play pinball. So what exactly did he buy? Directed by Kevin Lewis and written by G.O. Its first issue was released in October 2021. The crew was applauding him at the end. How an unknown actor and a luckless director teamed with Nicolas Cage to create 2021's first cult movie. "Willy's Wonderland" is a whole damn trip. The college kids are loving it. His big screen career had fizzled out following the release and financial flops of The Sorcerers Apprentice and Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. The guy worked tirelessly, man. They subdue Cammy and attempt to leave before Lund and Evan stop them. While Tex and Jed discuss planning to re-open Willy's Wonderland, Sara suddenly appears and sets their car on fire with gasoline. Is that consistency or a lack of development and imagination? It was eventually released through video on demand and received a limited theatrical release on February 12, 2021. When the Janitor and Liv arrive at the arcade, Cammy snaps Chris' neck, killing him. While her friends douse the perimeter with gasoline, Liv enters the restaurant through the vents to get the Janitor out. Even when hes on the Oscar trail he doesnt forget Dublin, I was violent and angry. "I have this Forrest Gump-ian way of touching something and it becomes a hit!" Can we really blame Cage for lending his efforts to the project? Could it walk away with no Oscars? Where he's dancing and doing the pinball stuff? Owner Tex Macadoo offers him to work as a night-shift janitor in exchange for repairing his vehicle before he and Jed leave him locked in the restaurant. They're trapped in here with him. , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes. He was only starring in about two films a year from 1996 to 2006, but almost all of those movies were smash hits at the box office. Fists fly, kicks land, titans clash -- and only one side will make it out alive. He bought the German castle Schloss Neidstein in 2006 and Midford Castle in England in 2007. First came Kevin Lewis' Willy . Nicolas Cage apparently needed money and I am so glad for that. A quiet loner finds himself stranded in a remote town when his car breaks down. He's picked up by a local mechanic named Jed (Chris Warner), who tells him that he will only fix the car if he is given a large amount of cash up front. In the second comic, the backstory of Gus the Gorilla is revealed. Connections Nicolas Cage's net worth at one time much higher, easily over $100 million, after earning at least $200 million from movie salaries alone. As the sun rises, the Janitor and Liv drive out of the town, running into and killing a wandering Tito along the way. What is an octopus, $80? They didnt work, all of them. Right off the bat, something felt off about this film. Cinemark The Circus: Inside the Greatest Political Show on Earth: Season 8, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Season 1, Link to Marvel Movies Ranked Worst to Best by Tomatometer, Link to 10 Black Women Filmmakers Who Have Shaped the Cinema Landscape of the 21st Century, Link to 10 LGBTQIA+ Women Who Became Trailblazers in Entertainment, The story isn't great, but it's got a fun '80s slasher movie feel. It's an enjoyable movie that begins to feel its length on multiple occasions. The houses and cars werent the only things Nicolas Cage bought, there was some weird stuff too. It is revealed that the Arty Alligator animatronic is possessed by former art teacher turned infamous serial killer Arthur Allen, also called "The Bloody Banksy", who mauled people to death and then made artwork with their blood, declaring the world to be a blank canvas, and he is giving it color with each murder. Willy's Wonderland is a 2021 American action comedy horror film directed by Kevin Lewis from a screenplay by G. O. There's eight of them. Neither is it an accident when he's towed to a garage run by a yokel (Chris Warner) who tells him the bill is going to be $1,000, and that he only takes cash, and that none of the ATMs in. It was all hands on deck, everybody. Ken Hall was the one who built all the costumes. So, I started making the plays events, where you could bring drinks and your friends. In order to pay off his debts, he has been taking almost every role offered to him and filming five to eight movies a year. Like this story? Some of the roles that Cage took over the years include the critically acclaimed film Mandy, a film that featured Cage as a man looking for vengeance against a demonic hippie cult who murdered his girlfriend. Your AMC Ticket Confirmation# can be found in your order confirmation email. The mundane tasks suddenly become an all-out fight for survival against wave after wave of demonic animatronics. I always picture it something like what Bruce [Campbell] says in the Evil Dead: "Groovy!" Once they go in a certain direction, youve got to get a million tugboats to try to swivel it back around.. Willy's Wonderland review - it's weird even for Nicolas Cage. While the end result was a mixed success the movie met with mixed reviews, with many commenting that Nic Cage not talking was a disappointment. Action, It was just all happening at once., Nicolas Cage (Nick Cage, left), Lily Sheen (Addy, center) and Sharon Horgan (Olivia, right) lay together in the living room as they watch a movie in THE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT. Early on when Nic Cage first enters the kitchen and starts cleaning, he has a piece of tape on his cheek. Offers may be subject to change without notice. "The good investments came from personal interest and my honest enjoyment of the history.". "You have to be able to mock it and say, 'This thing just attacked him and now he's cleaning a stove? After his abusive mother strangled him so hard his vocal cords stopped working, he became a serial killer who preyed on women attending university. Well, he started the spree around 2004 with a property on Paradise Island in the Bahamas and then bought himself a private island in the same archipelago for $3 million. Perhaps they just told him where to lurk while the animatronic weasels and alligators chewed up prying teenagers. Even at a young age, he longed for more. After the animatronics kill more staff and guests, Jed is hesitant to keep the restaurant open, but Tex is approached by a wealthy family offering him money for a private birthday party for their child which Tex reluctantly agrees, despite Jed's protests. The idea was that him playing pinball was like leveling up in a video game. That I was just doing it and not caring. [17][18], On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 60% based on 89 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7/10. As his resurgence continues, the Nicolas Cage cult classic Willy's Wonderland has gotten a promising sequel update from writer G.O. [15], On June 25, 2021, Parsons confirmed that American Mythology Productions would release a comic book series serving as a prequel to the film.[16]. Well, yes, that would be great. Photo Credit: Katalin Vermes/Lionsgate. 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All of that money he made on his successful acting career led to the spending spree of a lifetime. The Banshees of Inisherin: An uncomfortable question edges forward. It follows a quiet drifter who is tricked into cleaning up an abandoned family entertainment center as he is stalked by eight murderous animatronic characters possessed by the souls of a cannibalistic killer and his seven psychotic acolytes. Parsons (whose screenplay Cage reportedly found on "the Blood List" of well-regarded un-produced horror scripts), "Willy's Wonderland" has been. With so much money, he decided to invest in a lot of real estate. Regal Horror, It was a life-changing experience for sure. In between getting handy with the disinfectant, the character drinks a lot of soda, plays a lot of pinball, and, oh yes, systematically demolishes one possessed monster after another all without saying a word. Even his financial manager advised him against all of his crazy purchases, but he wouldnt listen to any advice. Please click the link below to receive your verification email. The character has a few quirks, like his surprisingly ironclad work ethic, but the character is just as underwritten, absent personality, and replaceable as any of the killer robots. Compare this performance with other movies. Like 1973's original, a British folk horror that remains a defining text of the sub-genre, 2006's iteration of The Wicker Man sees Cage's hero visit a remote island where the local Neo-pagans are up to something strange and he fall's victim to their creepy machinations. If the movie was more satirical, I might even give the filmmakers credit for the dumb teenagers reverting to form regardless of circumstances. this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. In an interview with GQ magazine, Cage confirmed that he officially finished paying off all his debts a year and a half ago. 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