American actor Nicolas Cage, or should we say “thespian”, as he prefers to be called, has made a career out of being a unique character – a little outrageous but totally dedicated.
Developing his own form of acting called Nouveau Shamanic, Cage has appeared in many acclaimed movies, as well as many odd ones.
He’s expressed an interest in everything from horror, camp comedies, action, animated children’s movies and dramas, and his filmography has subsequently become nothing short of prolific.
Cage clearly has a sense of humour, playing a fictionalised version of himself in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.
Yet, it’s clear that he is obsessed with the cinematic medium – you only have to listen to him talk about movies to understand the depth of his fascination with filmmaking.
Cage has cited many classic movies as his all-time favourites over the years, from Juliet of the Spirits and The Wizard of Oz to The 400 Blows and Citizen Kane.
However, he’s often put aside a lot of time to talk about Stanley Kubrick, a true master of the medium. Talking to Rotten Tomatoes, Cage once selected both 2001: A Space Odyssey and A Clockwork Orange as some of his favourite movies.
Admitting that he watches 2001: A Space Odyssey three times a year, Cage called it “enigmatic” and “poetic,” explaining that he “still find[s] something new in it” every time he revisits it. He is particularly impressed by the visuals of the movie, which were a feat in the 1960s but remain just as astounding today.
There’s nothing about the look of the film that is remotely dated – Kubrick was always able to capture something futuristic, as though he were a time traveller visiting the ‘60s with filmmaking knowledge from the future.
Cage similarly loves A Clockwork Orange, based on Anthony Burgess’ novel of the same name. The violent movie caused much controversy upon its release, with Kubrick even pulling it from circulation in the United Kingdom because of a slew of crimes linked to the film.
The actor explained, “Stanley Kubrick’s treatment of the subject of violence and the mystery of nature and to go against our natures and what is or isn’t necessary, and what is the true evil, and all of these questions that came out of the absurdist and evocative film that is [A] Clockwork Orange, again, is everlasting.”
One of Cage’s favourite things about the movie is the use of lighting, which led him to call Kubrick “a master of light.” Like Space Odyssey, the film uses exquisite set design, cinematography and lighting, giving it a particularly modern feel.
Kubrick was way ahead of his time, and A Clockwork Orange’s visuals prove this. “Even today, when you look at some of the stills from the movie, when they’re in the Milk Bar, it looks like virtual reality, and I don’t know how he did it,” Cage said.
The bizarre props, furniture, and outfits surely help to make these scenes feel even more visually impressive, with light bouncing off the bright white of the characters’ outfits and chairs made out of naked white mannequin-esque bodies.
It’s hard to believe that Kubrick was making these movies in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. When you really think about it, hardly any films—particularly mainstream ones—looked quite like them.