Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse swung into theaters in December of 2018 and immediately captivated audiences with its revolutionary take on the beloved superhero genre and breathtaking animation style. Directed by the talented trio of Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman, and Bob Persichetti, this animated masterpiece defied conventions and soared to unprecedented heights.

The film successfully introduces the concept of the multiverse and seamlessly weaves together the stories of various Spider-People from different dimensions. At its core, the film follows the journey of Miles Morales (Shameik Moore), a teenager grappling with newfound powers in the wake of the death of his universe’s Spider-Man. His world is spun even more out of control as he meets alternate universe heroes that make him question if he is ready for his new responsibilities.

Accolades poured in for the film, with the crowning achievement being the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. This recognition affirmed not only the technical brilliance of the animation but also the emotional depth and storytelling prowess that elevated Into the Spider-Verse beyond the status of a mere superhero film.

As first time viewers delve into the intricate web of dimensions and the extraordinary journey of Miles, it becomes clear that Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is more than a cinematic experience – it’s a groundbreaking achievement that redefined expectations for animated storytelling in the West and left an indelible mark on the superhero genre.

In this Movie List from The Film Magazine, we are highlighting the 10 best moments from the film that define why Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse continues to enthral audiences, and we will explore its legacy as one of the best comic book movies of all time.

Follow @thefilmagazine on X (Twitter).

10. Welcome to the Spider-Verse

This is how you start a movie.

The rising intensity of the opening music. The glitching of the studio logos. The flashes of graffiti. Then blam: the intro fully kicks in and we are treated to the visual feast that is this movie. An explosion of colours and funky graphics inform us that Into the Spider-Verse is unlike any other comic book movie in that it is unashamed of its genre.

Following this is the opening monologue from Peter Parker (don’t get too attached), beginning the recurring “Alright, let’s do this one last time” gag. Peter, voiced by Chris Pine, gives a brief rundown of things most audiences will already know, narrating his life and the responsibilities that come with being Spider-Man. Yes, we’re technically seeing another screen Spider-Man origin story, but the writers make this one concise and fresh. This self-awareness lends itself nicely to some humorous moments, such as detailing the smaller Spider-Man duties, like having his own cereal or recording a Christmas album. 

Furthermore, there are plenty of references to Spider-Man in pop culture for fans to feast on. Did anyone expect them to reference the abominable Spider-Man popsicle? The animators even draw comparison to other Spidey iterations on screen, like the upside down kiss, the train scene in Spider-Man 2, and the legendary dance scene from Spider-Man 3.

It is the film’s thesis statement: funny, fast-paced and visually spectacular. The perfect introduction to one of the most unique comic book movies. Simultaneously, these opening 2 minutes are a celebration of all things Spider-Man, and a reminder why the iconic hero has endured for so long on page, on screen, and in wider popular culture.

Recommended for you: 10 Best Moments from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man Trilogy

9. Meet Miles

A film is arguably only as good as its characters, and a film filled with fantastical Spider-people could have a hard time making its protagonist stand out. Within seconds of meeting Miles Morales, its clear audiences have a beloved hero to root for.

The first time we see Miles, he is caught up in his passions: artwork and music. His singing is gradually drowned out by his parents calling his name. He is pulled out of his daydream and into an all too relatable scenario – a teenager late for school. 

This quickly transitions to a high-energy montage showcasing Miles’ daily life, complete with the vibrant backdrop of Brooklyn. We are immersed in the sights and sounds of Miles’ world as they see a new side to him. As he walks through his neighbourhood, he is cool and approachable. His effortless charm makes him instantly likable. The dynamic animation, coupled with a hip-hop soundtrack, creates a sense of kinetic energy that mirrors the pulse of Miles’ urban environment. As Miles parades through the streets, leaving stickers of his artwork, he trips and is caught by his dad, a police officer. We are reminded that, despite his coolness, he’s still an awkward kid. These relatable struggles form the necessary strong connections between Miles and each of us.

These first moments with Miles do more for the film’s central character than a lot of comic book movies manage to do in their entire runtime. Miles’ humour and occasional awkwardness make him endearing. He embodies the youthful enthusiasm and idealism associated with adolescence, making him a perfect vessel for audiences diving into this larger than life story.

Dream Scenario (2023)
Director: Kristoffer Borgli
Screenwriter: Kristoffer Borgli
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Julianne Nicholson, Michael Cera, Dylan Baker, Tim Meadows, Lily Bird, Jessica Clement, Paula Boudreau, Marie McPhail

Nicolas Cage has become an internet darling in recent times, to the point that he’s the first actor since John Malkovich who has been able to comfortably play himself in a film without it seeming self-indulgent. Matt Damon and Ben Affleck turning up for a small cameo in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back might qualify for a special dispensation, however. The thing with Nicolas Cage that makes him unique, though, is that he is one of very few actors who pops up in anything and everything. He can just as easily carry a huge budget blockbuster as he’s likely to be the face of a straight-to-streaming B-Movie. What we can always guarantee is that he’ll always give it his absolute best. Whether that means creating a new meme or garnering widespread critical acclaim doesn’t really matter, because either way we’re in for something special.

To that end, Dream Scenario seems like, well, a dream scenario for a Nicolas Cage film. At its base, it’s about an unremarkable professor, played by Cage, who wants more from his life, and suddenly finds notoriety when he starts popping up in people’s dreams. As a premise, it’s weird and compelling, but it also comes with the backing of A24 – a studio who have built a certain level of trust among audiences with films like Everything Everywhere All at Once and Past Lives in recent memory. It sounds like a B-Movie fit to garner the internet’s next favourite meme, but it’s backed by a studio that could give us Cage’s next Academy Award for Best Actor.

Paul (Nicholas Cage) is instantly quite relatable as a character – he lives a normal life with a normal job and a normal family. It’s comfortable, but it isn’t anything exciting. We get a glimpse into the kind of person he is when he sets up a meeting with a former colleague, Sheila (Paula Boudreau). Sheila is about to have a piece of research published that Paul believes he should be credited for. Whether he actually should or not is never confirmed, but Sheila certainly doesn’t agree with him.

As we get to know Paul more, it’s quite easy to believe it might well have been a reach on his behalf in an attempt to gain any kind of recognition in the field he has been working in for his entire life. Paul’s wife, Janet (Julianne Nicholson), encourages Paul to record the meeting so she can hear her husband demand what he’s owed, but he deletes the recording before she’s able to hear the truth of what actually happened.

Paul and Janet go to the theatre together where an ex-girlfriend, Claire (Marnie McPhail), recognises Paul. She’s excited to see him because he has been on her mind lately, albeit unwillingly. He has been appearing in her dreams. He then learns that he has been appearing in his students’ dreams too, and then also the dreams of a bunch of random people who are asking who he is and why it’s happening on Facebook.

Initially, he’s besotted by the limelight, and he actively takes his space in it. People are excited to meet him for what appears to be the first time in his life and he can’t get enough of it. He even derails whole lectures to engage in a Q&A sessions with students who are seeing him in their dreams. What he isn’t so happy about is that, like in real life, he always seems to play a passive part in the dreams. As he starts to play a much more active role in his own life, the version of him that appears in people’s dreams follows suit, but it isn’t to a desirable end.

Dream Scenario is far less weird than it seems. Much like Being John Malkovich, it uses its surrealist nucleus as a driver to explore much more usual themes. Through this odd phenomenon where Nicolas Cage’s Paul is appearing in everyone’s dreams, we’re asked to consider cultural phenomena that are relevant to modern life. The newly instantaneous and unfiltered nature of how a person can rise to fame, the loss of nuance that comes with the sudden mass awareness of a flawed individual, and the frivolity of cancel culture are all brought into question.

There isn’t really anything in Dream Scenario that absolutely has to be driven by the idea that this random person has started showing up in people’s dreams, though, nor is there any attempt to explore how or why it might be happening. If Paul had just gone viral as the result of pulling a strange face in the background of a news report, for example, most of Dream Scenario would be exactly the same film.

The story of Paul’s rise and fall could still be the same for the large majority of it, and in a way, it might have even been more satisfying as a complete narrative. There wouldn’t have been any abstract concept to dive further into when there was clearly no interest in doing so. The interest of the film is plainly in deconstructing and commenting on modern viral celebrity culture and the pitfalls that come with it.

Dream Scenario is a showcase of what Nicholas Cage does very well, or at least one of the things he does very well. It’s a character study of a man who’s frustrated with a life that most people would be satisfied with because he wants more from it. It’s as if Charlie Kaufman’s Adaptation was rewritten to replace the references to orchids with an allegory about a mild-mannered Freddy Krueger, and who else could play such a role? It’s effortlessly watchable and compelling in a number of ways, but it wouldn’t have hurt to further explore the absurd concept that it all comes from.

Score: 19/24

Written by Rob Jones

You can support Rob Jones on his website: rbrtjones.com
Twitter: @rbrtjones

Follow me on X (Twitter) – @poor_and_clean

10. Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

Starring the incredible Aubrey Plaza, and loveable goofs Mark Duplass and Jake Johnson, Safety Not Guaranteed is a heart-warming time travel jape. While it has big names attached – including director Colin Trevorrow, who went on to steer the wheel of the Jurassic World franchise, it has a real indie charm.

It begins with an intriguing want-ad in a local Washington newspaper. Jeff (Jake Johnson), a journalist at a different paper, assembles a motley crew to investigate. While everything is set up for us to believe Kenneth (Mark Duplass) is a weirdo, and delusional at the very least, he isn’t and the film’s beauty lies in how deftly it draws the viewer to his side.

It has heart, humour and Jake Johnson. I’m not sure you need much else in a film.

9. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse Review

As a rule, I don’t do superheroes. DC, Marvel, I don’t really care, they’re all the same, aren’t they?

I grew up in a strange era where Val Kilmer was Batman and Lois Lane was a Desperate Housewife and the genre just never really hooked me. Then along came Miles Morales and I fell hard. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a visually stunning and standout offering in (what I and seemingly I alone feel is) a saturated market.

The Spider-verse animation is just incredible – unusual and unique. The film is brimming with detail and flashes of brilliance. I could watch it 100 times (100 more times) and notice something new with each viewing. The characters are larger than life yet somehow completely grounded and believable, and who knew the match up of Nicholas Cage and John Mulaney is what we needed in our lives? The soundtrack is perfect and the message behind it is so important.

The first time my kid saw it, she said, ‘oh so I could be spiderman’ and for that reason alone it deserves a mention in my Best Films of All Time.

Recommended for you: Spider-Man Movies Ranked

Renfield (2023)
Director: Chris McKay
Screenwriter: Ryan Ridley
Starring: Nicholas Hoult, Nicolas Cage, Awkwafina, Ben Schwartz, Adrian Martinez, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Brandon Scott Jones, Jenna Kanell, Bess Rous, James Moses Black

Over countless film adaptations, Nicolas Cage has somehow never played the world’s most famous vampire… until now. We’re not talking a delusional executive with plastic fangs as in Vampire’s Kiss here, but a real creature of the night. A colourful and eccentric character on-screen and off, and an avid student of early horror cinema, you’d think Cage would have been salivating at the chance years ago. Now, finally, we have Renfield, a tongue-in-cheek reimagining/sequel to Bram Stoker’s original novel (and Tod Browning’s 1931 black-and-white Universal adaptation in particular) that follows Dracula’s long-suffering, spider-eating human familiar trying to escape his dark master’s clutches in contemporary New Orleans. Rest assured, whatever else the film does right or otherwise, you pay to see Cage as Dracula and you certainly get your money’s worth.

Robert Montague Renfield (Nicholas Hoult) has been serving his master Count Dracula for almost a century, tending to his every need during daylight hours, bringing him unsuspecting victims, and becoming an abused shell of a person in the process. After the Count is left dangerously close to perma-death following a vampire hunter attack, the pair are forced to start again in a new city where Renfield begins to question his place in the world and the nature of his co-dependent relationship with a real and figurative monster.

Many critics have already drawn a neat line between Renfield and Deadpool, which is completely understandable. Both movies were made for around $60 million and have a light-hearted, self-referential and ultra-violent take on a traditionally younger-skewing movie genre, namely the monster movie and the superhero blockbuster.

A clever little gimmick in this is how they turn a character who (on the page and in previous screen interpretations) is just an ordinary mentally unstable man into a credible physical threat, explaining this by Dracula bestowing his thrall with time-limited “Dracula powers” (this is actually said aloud by one character) by ingesting flies, spiders and cockroaches usually carried around in a convenient matchbox. The lanky and dishevelled Renfield then proceeds to carve his way through an army of disposable henchmen in a series of inventive, splattery set pieces accompanied by choice needle-drops that begin with him punching a guy’s head clean off and only escalate from there to ridiculous Takashi Miike levels of gleeful violence.

The playful references to the original universal horror movies, down to painstaking recreations of iconic images from those films, will please long-time fans of the old, campy variety of scare cinema. Hoult is very much playing the submissive version of Renfield from the Todd Browning film (originally so memorably portrayed by Dwight Frye) but weighed down by a century of abuse, fortuitously meeting the most empathetic person he has encountered in decades (Awkwafina’s grieving cop Rebecca) and finally beginning his path to becoming a more content person. Yes, a key moment in his self-actualisation is signified by a makeover scene.

Nicolas Cage is pleasingly over the top with some delightfully unconventional, arrhythmic line readings and flamboyant gestures, which is hilarious when paired with the fairly straight and mannered Nicolas Hoult. He has also remained completely, irredeemably evil as all Draculas should be, revelling in the suffering he causes in order to grow into his full dark power, adding gaslighting and horrible domestic abuse to his list of mortal sins. Amusingly, Dracula is quick to retort “don’t turn this into a sex thing” when Renfield asks him whether he’d prefer female cheerleaders to feast on, but that is just what their relationship resembles: a deeply unhealthy and imbalanced romance in which one party is getting all the gratification at the expense of the other.

The film works pretty well when it’s riffing on old monster movies or leaning into the victim support group therapy angle, but it’s much less successful when it has to be a more generic crime movie.

The criminal underworld subplot gives Awkwafina’s cop her reason for being – to bring her father’s killer to justice – but we’ve seen all this before and the disparate plot elements from very different genres never quite mesh together comfortably. Fans of ‘Parks and Recreation’ already know how well Ben Schwartz plays annoying man-children, but slapping a load of tattoos on his neck doesn’t make him into a scary gangster, and Shohreh Aghdashloo’s crime family matriarch just isn’t memorable enough. Both performances pale in comparison to everyone taking part in the more vampire-adjacent portion of the story.

The group therapy scenes are also a little tonally wonky – if there’s one portion of the film that should be played completely straight as a counterpoint to the rest, it’s this aspect, and the members of the group are generally too broad or goofy to make an impact, their potentially interesting and heartfelt stories dropped in favour of the gag that Renfield’s sucky boss really does drain the lifeforce of everyone he encounters. A couple of moments here that might have had genuine impact are completely undermined shortly afterwards, perhaps in an effort to avoid too much of a downer ending.

Between this and The Lego Batman Movie, director Chris McKay seems to have a fascination with unhealthy co-dependent relationships explored through a colourful genre lens. Renfield might not do anything particularly revolutionary with the horror-comedy, but the claret-soaked action, Hoult and Awkwafina offering charisma in spades, and Cage not just tearing the throat out of the scenery, makes this worth your time.

Come for campy Count Cage, stay for Nicholas Hoult ripping people’s arms off to repurpose them as fleshy melee weapons. 

Score: 17/24

Recommended for you: Top 10 Times Nicolas Cage Went Full Cage

Pig (2021)
Director: Michael Sarnoski
Screenwriter: Michael Sarnoski
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Alex Wolff, Adam Arkin

In recent years, Nicolas Cage movies have come to be met with particular expectations. YouTube personalities like Chris Stuckmann have become infamous for their videos on some of the actor’s most over-the-top performances, and Cage has since become something of an internet meme. With this in mind, it would be difficult to take a glance at Michael Sarnoski’s Pig – a story of a man hunting down those who have stolen his foraging pig – and not expect something resembling a wild mix of John Wick and Charlotte’s Web. But this is not the case…

First-time screenwriter-director Michael Sarnoski sets up an effective bait-and-switch with this very expectation, the early moments of Pig hinting at Cage’s Robin annihilating everyone who might know the whereabouts of his prized possession before instead surprising us with a narrative squarely focused on themes of grief. By using the expectations associated with the career works of Nicolas Cage, Sarnoski manages to offer a story that slowly begins to seep into your mind, hooking you on something far deeper than surface-level thrills and typical Cage madness. 

Nicolas Cage offers one of the finest performances of his long and established career as Robin, and he shares the screen with the equally as impressive Alex Wolff (Hereditary; Old), whose performance as confidant Amir is arguably the turn of the young actor’s career thus far. Together, they represent not only blooming companionship, but share in their grief, imbuing everything with a sense of deeper purpose as, together, they search for Robin’s lost pig.

Key to the leading duo’s exceptional performances is director Michael Sarnoski who, despite making his debut with this 2021 release, shows the patience of a filmmaker far more experienced, allowing for Pig to gently forage into the dark themes and deep characterisations that both Cage and Wolff were able to excel at portraying, taking the time needed for the weight of the story, the characterisations and the performances to truly hit home.

It is Sarnoski’s screenplay that is by far Pig’s most impressive asset however, the work on the page expertly shifting between tones and truly fleshing out a fantastical world for the narrative to take place in. Here, small and seemingly insignificant features of the first act become revelations later on, and Sarnoski proves himself an early-career master at finding the perfect spots in which to insert humour. There are moments where it feels like you’re being told too much, but for the most part Sarnoski manages to inform each of us without falling into all of the typical traps that early-career filmmakers so often do: namely being too explicit too often, or not offering any kind of explanation at all.

On paper, Pig may seem far from the kind of movie that it is, but that’s not to mean that it is worse by any means. Pig is possibly better than anything else it could have been, and certainly better than anyone could have expected. With this debut 2021 release, Michael Sarnoski proves himself to be a seriously talented filmmaker to watch, Pig being one of the most beautifully cathartic cinema experiences of the year.

23/24

Recommended for you: Top 10 Times Nicolas Cage Went Full Cage

Mark Wahlberg is in final talks to co-star with Tom Holland in Uncharted, Sony’s upcoming adaptation of their famed video game franchise. If the deal is completed, Wahlberg will play the mentor figure of Tom Holland’s lead protagonist Nathan Drake, Victory “Sully” Sullivan.

Variety – 13th Nov 2019

Nicolas Cage is in final talks to star as himself in a meta-drama titled The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent from screenwriter-director Tom Gormican (That Awkward Moment) and his writing partner Kevin Etten. The project will reportedly reference some of Cage’s biggest hits, including Face/Off, and will feature Cage as a version of himself desperate to land a role in the latest Quentin Tarantino movie while dealing with strains in his relationship to his teenage daughter. If the deal goes ahead, this film will mark the first studio project Cage has starred in since the 2nd Ghost Rider movie in 2011.

THR – 15th Nov 2019

Netflix are to make a sequel to the Beverly Hills Cop franchise in a one-time deal with IP owners Paramount that will see a 4th instalment head directly to the streaming service. Original star Eddie Murphy will return for the movie set to be directed by Belgian filmmakers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (Gangsta – 2018) and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer.

THR – 14th Nov 2019

One half of the Coen Brothers, Joel Coen, is set to adapt famous Shakespeare play “Macbeth”, and is reportedly looking to cast In Bruges and Harry Potter actor Brendan Gleeson as King Duncan. If a deal is made, Gleeson will join Denzel Washington, who is set to play the film’s titular character.

Collider – 12th Nov 2019

Jonah Hauer-King of ‘World on Fire’ fame has landed the role of Prince Eric in Disney’s upcoming live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid. The British born actor joins Halle Bailey, Melissa McCarthy, Javier Bardem, Awkwafina and Jacob Tremblay in the movie set to be directed by Chicago and Mary Poppins Returns director Rob Marshall,and lands the role following earlier reports that former One Direction member Harry Styles backed out of a proposed agreement.

Empire – 13th Nov 2019

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson this week revealed that the upcoming Shazam! universe DC Comics title Black Adam, in which he will star as the titular character, will be arriving in cinemas on 22nd Dec 2021.

 

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Details have emerged of the next directorial project for There Will Be Blood and Phantom Thread director Paul Thomas Anderson, with The Hollywood Reporter reporting that the film will be set in a high school in the 1970s and centre around a successful child actor. The film, which will reportedly feature several narratives, is set to begin filming in 2020 with casting already underway for the yet-to-be-titled feature.

THR – 12th Nov 2019

BlackKklansman director Spike Lee will direct Legendary’s 1980s-set “hip-hop Romeo & Juliet” graphic novel adaptation Prince of Cats. The filmmaker will team with the original graphic novel’s writer and illustrator Ron Wimberly and screenwriter Selwyn Seyfu Hinds (‘The Twilight Zone’) to develop a screenplay.

THR – 13th Nov 2019

The Big Short and Vice director Adam McKay is setting up his latest movie, which is set to be a meteor disaster satire he described to Deadline as “dark satire in the school of Wag the Dog, Dr. Strangelove and Network” and will be about “two mid-level astronomers discover a meteorite will destroy earth in six months and must go on a media tour to warn mankind”.

Deadline – 8th Nov 2019

The Last Duel, a new film from director-producer Ridley Scott and screenwriters Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Nicole Holofcener, has been given a 25th Dec 2020 release date by Fox Searchlight and Disney, placing it in a peak awards season window. The film, which is set to star Damon, Affleck, Star Wars star Adam Driver and Jodie Comer, is a 14th century epic set in France.

Variety – 15th Nov 2019

Thor: Ragnarok and Jojo Rabbit director Taika Waititi has completed the cast of his next project as newcomer Kaimana has been taken aboard to portray Jaiyah Saelua, the first nonbinary player to compete in a men’s FIFA World Cup qualifier. The film, titled Next Goal Wins and based upon the British documentary of the same name by Mike Brett and Steve Jamison, is an underdog story of the American Samoa football team trying to overcome their status of perennial losers. Michael Fassbender has already been cast as the team’s coach, while Elisabeth Moss is also set to co-star.

THR – 14th Nov 2019

Amazon Studios seem to be in the midst of a shake-up as their Head of Production and Operations John Lynch has left his position. Though details are currently sketchy as regards a reason why he has left the role, Lynch did reportedly tell employees on Friday that his tenure was over.

Variety – 15th Nov 2019

Amazon have signed a multi-year deal with Lionsgate to ensure the studio’s releases will be featured exclusively on Amazon Prime in the UK during the first streaming window. Recent titles Knives Out, Midway and Bombshell will be among the first releases to be included in the deal.

THR – 14th Nov 2019

And finally…

Czech filmmaker Vojtech Jasny, best known for winning the Cannes Best Director award in 1969 for his work on All My Good Countrymen, has passed away aged 93.

THR – 16th Nov 2019

1. Mindy & Damon McCready

Kick-Ass (2010)

Since it has arguably been Hollywood’s favourite genre over the past decade, we’re all used to the usual superhero movie character arcs, but Matthew Vaughn’s Kick-Ass was anything but the usual. For a start, the titular hero (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) is an ineffective super-failure for much of the film’s runtime and most of the actual crimefighting is handled by a potty-mouthed twelve year-old. Said murdery minor gets a pretty memorable introduction out of costume, long before she calls a room full of armed drug dealers the c-word and proceeds to meticulously dismember them.

Mindy (Chloe Grace Moretz) and Damon McCready (Nicolas Cage) are not your average father and daughter. We first meet them standing in the middle of some waste ground, reeling off gun statistics. Then, without warning, Damon raises his own sidearm, assuring his daughter that “You’re gonna by fine, baby doll” and shoots his daughter in the chest, sending her flying off her feet. Turns out this happy family are deadly vigilantes by night – known as Big Daddy and Hit-Girl – and that Damon is simply preparing his beloved progeny in case “some junky pulls a Glock”.

This scene becomes much more poignant later on after both masked crime fighters have taken considerable physical punishment from the bad guys and Mindy observes tearfully that being shot for real hurt much more than when her dad did it, “That’s because I used low-velocity rounds, child”. If you stop to think about it, what Damon is doing – indoctrinating his child to take part in his campaign of revenge – is ghastly, completely morally unforgivable. And yet, you never doubt for a moment that their father-daughter relationship is built on genuine love and affection – they would do anything for one another and have had to stick together through a lot of tough times with the untimely death of Mindy’s mother and Damon’s incarceration on false charges. They just want to create a world where they can be a normal family, safe and secure, but they’re prepared to do truly awful things to even more awful people to ensure that. It’s this striking, tonally juxtaposed scene that makes us remember Big Daddy and Hit-Girl, as well as the family they are behind the masks.

2. Dr. Hannibal Lecter

The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Who doesn’t love a compelling monster? Someone to love to hate?

Real-life serial killers are terrifying because they’re impossible to understand. One of the great (possibly the greatest of all) fictional killers is Dr Hannibal Lecter. Created by author Robert Harris for “Red Dragon”, Lecter is terrifying on the page and on screen because he’s completely unknowable and also seems like the last person who’d be capable of killing someone. He’s cultured, refined, articulate and academic, but a creature of pure evil lies beneath.

In Jonathan Demme’s Oscar-winning The Silence of the Lambs, FBI trainee Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) is sent by her superiors to interview the infamous Dr Hannibal “the Cannibal” Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) in a Baltimore asylum so the Bureau can develop a psychological profile for an on-the-loose serial killer known as Buffalo Bill. Robert Harris once admitted that his own creation terrified him, that he was afraid to write more Hannibal stories lest the character take him to places he didn’t want to go. Despite being a fictional character, he seemed self-aware, even independent of his creator. In their series of interview scenes, the first of which serves as Hannibal’s introduction, Hopkins’ performance is chilling and charming; quite the dichotomy. From his mundane greeting of Starling (“Good morning”) as he stands demurely behind the glass of his cell, he is always in control. However careful she thinks she is being, he can see right through her from the start, amusedly catching her when she inadvertently shows her hand and tries to clumsily manipulate him to provide his expertiese: “Oh no no no, you were doing fine…” he says.

Much like Clarice, we as an audience have to summon all of our willpower to not be taken in by Hannibal. That’s his power, evident from this very first scene – his ability to get in your head and alter your perception, to seem to know you better than you know yourself. We’re in Clarice’s inexpensive shoes as she walks down the asylum corridor and the camera tracks her movement, heart in our mouth as we wait for that now iconic reveal; the moment the monster’s cage will come into view. When the reveal does come, it’s relatively unremarkable and we can momentarily take a relieved breath and collect ourselves, only for the anxiety to returns not long thereafter as Hannibal begins to prod and poke Clarice. The wariness this creates towards this monster’s intelligence and cunning is present throughout the rest of the film.

Seriously. The door’s behind you.

Leave.

…

Throughout the years, Nicolas Cage (or Nicolas Kim Coppola as he was born – yes, he’s the nephew of director Francis Ford Coppola for those not in the know…) has turned in some truly inspired acting choices in his esteemed and often head-scratching career.

Lest us forget that the guy can clearly act.

He took home an Academy Award for his turn as alcoholic screenwriter Ben Sanderson in Leaving Las Vegas (1995), but not all of his performances are as Oscar-worthy. In this list, we’re here to celebrate the “other” Cage films. You know, the ones that are made into memes.

So here, avid reader, are the top 10 performances in which Nicolas Cage unleashed his inner most Cage.

“Oh not the bees. They’re in my eyes. Oh… the bees.“

10. Matchstick Men (2003)

In Ridley Scott’s Matchstick Men, Nicolas Cage plays a character by the name of Roy who is a con artist with Tourette’s Syndrome and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, but when his teenage daughter turns up out of nowhere wanting to learn the business, Roy finds himself conflicted with being a father and pulling off the biggest heist of his ‘career’.

In a scene that sees Cage’s character bursting into a drug store in desperate need of medication, Cage is able to let loose with a Tourette fuelled, tick-heavy barrage of abuse, cursing out one customer in particular with a line that feels every bit like a Nicolas Cage improvised moment of insanity.

Despite this character having two very serious medical conditions (one of which gives him free range to swear as much as he can muster), this is still far from Cage’s most unhinged role on the list.

9. Outcast (2014)

Nicolas Cage is barely in this Chinese co-produced fantasy adventure flick, but for what little time he is on screen, he gives us a performance worthy of this list.

Well done sir.

The film, starring Hayden Christensen (who just can’t seem to catch a break) tells the story of a Chinese prince and his sister who seek the help of two British Crusaders (Nicolas Cage and Hayden Christensen doing the worst accents imaginable) to help them defeat their older brother after he murdered their father and seized the throne.

As he’s hardly even in this film, his performance is nominated for his brutally Cage-like farcical English accent, comical squinty eye and a medieval Jack Sparrow delivery of lines. Sometimes that’s all all it takes folks.

8. Ghost Rider (2007)

I’m sure no one really knows what it would feel like to slowly and painfully transform into a burning skeletal vengeance demon. But, in Mark Steven Johnson’s second Marvel comic book adaptation (after the abysmal Ben Affleck starrer, Daredevil) Nicolas Cage gets to go full Cage once more in the pivotal Ghost Rider reveal scene.

With his flesh melting away, and the burning skull of the Ghost Rider emerging through, Cage is seen giving a cross between severe screams of agony, satanical laughter, and a slight look of ecstasy.

I mean, sure. Who are we to judge?

7. Arsenal (2017)

If ever there was a sequel to a movie no one wanted, it would be Arsenal. Believe it or not, Arsenal is a direct-to-video follow-up to Nicolas Cage’s earlier cinematic stinker, Deadfall (which also makes the list). Here, Cage reprises the role of Eddy King, a ruthless crime boss, in this critically panned pseudo-sequel that saw Steven C. Miller (no I hadn’t heard of him either) taking over the director’s seat.

The only redeeming feature comes through giving Cage much more screen time than the previous movie did back in 1993, bringing back the fake nose and moustache of his earlier incarnation for full-on gangster Cage glory.

In a scene that has Cage reading aloud a hand-written letter to his dead criminal brother, Cage gives an impassioned delivery as his kidnapped victim sits opposite, wishing for the sweet release of death (I imagine).

6. Mandy (2018)

Okay, this one feels like a bit of cheat, because not only is this film really quite good, but Cage’s performance in this scene is pretty in-keeping with what had just transpired. After all, how would you react to your loved one being burnt alive before your very eyes?

Having witnessed the fiery death of his beloved girlfriend, Cage’s character eventually manages to untie himself of his restraints and does what most would probably do in his position…

Drink. Like, a lot.

After he starts guzzling down a whole bottle of alcohol, Cage then begins screaming like a crazed animal on a toilet seat in nothing but a bloodied t-shirt and his underwear.

Again, totally within reason.

Still, it’s one of the most fully ‘Cage’ moments on screen and more than earns its mention on the list.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
Directors: Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman
Screenwriter: Phil Lord
Starring: Shameik Moore, Chris Pine, Jake Johnson, Hailee Steinfeld, Mahershala Ali, Brian Tyree Henry, Lily Tomlin, Luna Lauren Velez, Zoe Kravitz, John Mulaney, Kimiko Glenn, Nicolas Cage, Kathryn Hahn, Liev Schreiber

Sony Pictures Animation’s hotly anticipated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse promised to take the idea of cross-dimensional travel and superhero team ups to the next level through a brand new animation style filled with vibrancy and life. Oh boy did they deliver.

Into the Spider-Verse is simply an unforgettable animated movie experience, a soft opening drip-feeding the less usual elements of its original visual style and potentially complicated central story arc in a way that was easy to digest, the impactful, exciting and often moving narrative beats consequently hitting you like a rush of blood to the head, the aesthetic wonderment of the film’s comic-book-inspired visuals pulsating from the screen and screaming “look at how cool this is!”

This animated feature is simply bursting with life, every frame filled with colour and an energy to its motion, its youthful exuberance right on the pulse of youth culture from the ideals and concerns of its central character to the fashions and technology used by the cast, right through to the pulsating beat of the soundtrack.

And it’s layered too…

Into the Spider-Verse relies upon some pre-existing knowledge of the Spider-Man universe, sure, and the joyful experience is bound to be increased if you’re at least somewhat familiar with the character, but it offers enough uniquely comic book style explanations to get itself through what would usually be tedious expository dialogue, and ultimately offers a cast made up of some truly fleshed out characters and one of the best central protagonists in any superhero movie ever – Miles Morales is someone you can’t help but want to see succeed. It’s a feeling emphasised by the piece’s unusual take on an origin movie – that being an inter-dimensional team-up of sorts – that (alongside the fantastic and original animation) distracts from some of the movie’s more clear-cut tropes and cliches, creating the feeling of an entirely fresh and distinct piece of work in every aspect.

It is for this reason that Into the Spider-Verse becomes transcendent of what it could have easily fallen into the trap of being: a superhero movie for comic book superhero fans. It simply screams too loudly and holds too tightly to be relegated to such a position; a truly fantastic achievement.

Visually, the team at Sony Pictures Animation have achieved something extraordinary, their new technologies taking the comic book visual form and firmly stamping it into the mainstream cinema experience. The film is awash with colour and an almost palpable electricity as a result, every single frame rendered with some of the most beautiful and striking visuals in any film this year. It’s in this respect that Into the Spider-Verse is really sent over the edge as an overall movie; the visual construction wrapping an otherwise solid picture in something so spectacular and original that it is absolutely monumental, and will guarantee that audiences (if not the industry itself) will look back upon this film as a game-changer and history maker of our time.

This electric, atmospheric festival of colour is simply fantastic; a memorable and hearty superhero film with a revolutionary take on its own medium, a treasure of this year in cinema and absolutely the very best in Sony Pictures Animation’s studio history. This may even be the best superhero film of 2018.

21/24

However, I will not be looking back on these flicks for this memorial piece as I imagine that these will have already been covered and adequate tributes will have been given to the man in these film roles. In no attempt to undermine the importance of his later movie roles, I personally want to discuss his much earlier contributions to cinema and their significance in helping to shape British film and British Horror in particular.

In the forties and fifties, Lee was a mostly unknown actor until he was thrusted under the spotlight during his turn as “The Creation” in the Hammer Film Productions’ “The Curse of Frankenstein” (1957 – pictured above), one of the first horror movies in colour. It was thus packed with spurts of bright red blood, the likes of which had never been seen before and would have caused real revulsion for audiences back then. Lee was chosen for the part, similarly to Boris Karloff, for his distinctive facial features which would have provided a wealth of opportunities for the make-up department in a horror production. From then on, Lee frequently appeared in the Hammer Film Productions, which had soon turned into a horror powerhouse, often opposite Peter Cushing, with the pair most memorably portraying Dracula and Dr Van Helsing in Dracula (1958).

These days, the mention of Hammer Horror often invokes a snigger – a victim of tight budgeting, the films are full of special effects that do not hold up against the test of time: lots of bats on strings y’know; and have even be cruelly dubbed as “camp”. It is easy enough to see why they would be stuck with such a label for towards the end of the company’s run in the 70s, the films had become a parody of themselves and were churned out like Mills and Boones novellas. Even so, Hammer had produced a long run of genuinely frightening horror movies (the gore was unlike anything that had ever been seen in cinema, impressive considering formal film ratings were only brought in by 1968). The bold new strides made by Hammer in turn heavily influenced both European and Hollywood Horror at the time including Mario Bava’s sumptuous “Mask of Satan/Black Sunday” (1960); and the American Independent filmmaker Roger Corman, who directed several adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe’s work including “The Masque of the Red Death”(1964).

To credit Hammer Horror in helping to redefine a new age of Horror cinema, Lee and Cushing deserve much recognition as they were absolute pillars and were seen in many other independent productions at the time. The chemistry between the two is rarely trumped, their interactions are always hugely enjoyable to watch, especially their energetic fight sequences. As a result I always experience slight pangs of disappointment when I sit down to a Hammer and realise they aren’t in it. Furthermore, Lee has the perfect screen presence for horror: on the many occasions he has played Dracula and Frankenstein’s Monster, he barely utters a word but still musters a terrifying performance. His Dracula is a snarling, lusting animal; his creation is a mournful, confused and thus enraged soul. Lee brought sensuality back into the role of Dracula which had been lacking in previous movie adaptions but was a key part of the original literature; he was the original sexy vampire, making Edward Cullen look like a sad and moany schoolboy in comparison.

So, as discussed, Christopher Lee was a hugely important face in British Horror from the 50s to the 70s. This was an extremely important era for horror, due to the creation of the film rating system and to the new strides made at the time, such as the introduction of colour and with it more gore, blood and sex. Lee deserves as much possible credit for his contributions to this inventive time for horror. In further tribute I want to discuss a great movie from this film era from a subgroup of horror – folk horror – and the film in question: The Wicker Man (1973).

Yes, I know it’s hard to think of The Wicker Man and not conjure up images from the 2006 remake including Nicholas cage punching numerous women in the teeth and his massive scenery chewing. This flimsy retelling is so ingrained into our pop culture that to this day, whenever I mention Nicholas Cage I greatly struggle not to cry out “NOT THE BEES!” Now, I’m all for laughing whole-heartedly at ‘so bad they’re good’ films, but the problem with the remake is that it is so ridiculously bad it totally outshines the original which ends up being ignored. This is a mortal cinematic sin of the worst kind as the original is so thumpingly brilliant and it is honestly upsetting that Nicholas Cage’s shit [pardon my French] acting is causing cinephiles to miss out on a truly chilling horror flick. From this point on my advice to you is ignore the remake, purge every image of Nic Cage from your mind now!

Now we can get to business. A policeman comes to a remote island in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland after receiving an anonymous tip-off about the disappearance of a local girl, Rowan Morrison. Sergeant Howie is a very conservative Christian and immediately upon his arrival is shocked and appalled at not only the residents’ licentious behaviour, but also at their total abandonment of Christianity which instead is replaced by apparent paganism. Further disgust and dismay is fuelled by the islanders total lack of co-operation in the investigation of the girl’s disappearance (even Rowan’s mother seems apathetic towards the whole matter). As the determined sergeant digs deeper, he comes to the conclusion that something far more sinister may be afoot.

It would be easy to think that the shock experienced by Howie as he learns of the villagers’ rites would not sit with a contemporary audience, as probably many would not empathise with his uber Christian sensibilities and probably wouldn’t share in many of his outcries and protests. And certainly it is true that the Sergeant’s earnest dedication to his faith may not be relatable to a modern audience. We do however, still share in his revulsion in the reveal of the increasingly disturbing paganistic traditions and rituals of the island, with themes that could shock all walks of a multicultural and secular society.

Sexual liberty is a running theme throughout and was also an important part of this era of history, helping to destroy social taboos and oppressive restrictions from our society. However, in The Wicker Man (1973), it is used as a disturbing element as it seems to rob the local schoolchildren of their innocence: the maypole’s symbolism of male virility is described in such a matter-of-fact way to young girls whilst another class of young boys dance with full gusto around one – it all just seems kinda perverted leaving both the sergeant and audience flabbergasted. ‘So what? The teacher just said the word “penis” in front of schoolgirls; all children go through sex education an important part of growing up.’ True, but this wasn’t a sex ed lesson. Instead it was the teaching of the island’s doctrine, leading to the worrying conclusion of brain-washing of the worst possible kind. Throughout the film we witness many of the local children take part in dangerous and disturbing customs (such as jumping through rings of fire and holding frogs in their mouths) all of which are fully encouraged by all adults present. The corruption of the children’s innocence is consolidated by the reveal of the same schoolgirls gleefully partaking in the torture of animals.

We are also able to share in Howie’s frustration as villager after villager refuse to submit any information, only subtly hinting at the girl’s whereabouts before waving off the urgency of the situation as they stare into space murmuring about reincarnation and returning to the Earth. The villagers’ faith providing a “comfort” in the fulfilment of Rowan’s destiny by her body returning to the Earth is infuriating, making you and Howie want to shake the sense into all of the seemingly deluded locals. The precedence of the intricacies of “The Afterlife” over the possible grisly demise of the innocent child seen in almost all of the villagers Sergeant Howie meets is absolutely enraging, but it eventually leads to an absolutely terrifying conclusion – human sacrifice! Surely they couldn’t have?… Even worse is the prospect that the girl may have happily gone to her fate, dumb like a lamb to slaughter.

The movie also excels in the fact that several elements of the picture could have been laughable but instead helped to add to the nauseating and uncomfortable atmosphere of the film, creating actual moments of real terror and tension. I probably should have mentioned this earlier but the film is quite… errm… musical, with several moments in which the cast actually sing including the songs “Maypole”, “Fireleap”, “Willow’s Song”, some of which derived from Robert Burn’s ballad “The Highland Widow’s Lament” and even nursery rhymes like “Ba Ba Black Sheep” and “Oranges and Lemons”. Normally, I would not take a musical horror very seriously as they conjure images of “Little Shop of Horrors” and “Rocky Horror Picture Show” but these musical interludes performed by different characters actually help to immerse the senses into the world of this strange little island, helping to create a suffocating and intoxicating atmosphere as we are further dragged into the story. The aforementioned “Willow’s Song” performed by Lesley Mackie (who plays Daisy) is used in an attempt to seduce the virginal Howie. His resistance causes him almost physical pain. The film culminates and ends with the whole villages’ rendition of “Sumer Is Icumen In”, making the ending seem more devastating as it is all now evident that the whole island has succumbed to the indoctrination of their barbaric religion.

Also in the last half hour of the film, the locals prepare for their May Day festival and all dress up in a variety of down-right weird garb. The sights of Christopher Lee in unusual witch drag, a fully-grown bearded man (which wouldn’t seem out of place in a model-making enthusiast’s meeting) dressed in a tent-like hobby horse outfit should be hilarious. The absolute opposite effect instead results, for in the last chapter of the film the grisly details of the festivities of the island are revealed in a climax that builds up with the dread experienced by the audience, which the grotesque fancy dress adds to. The claustrophobic build-up to the end is worsened by the use of “innocent children”, many of whom are masked along with the whole village, participating in a gruesome version of the playground favourite Oranges and Lemons; and again it is this theme which really provides the sting in the devastating ending.

Christopher Lee plays Lord Summerisle who is seemingly the ringleader in the island’s dedication to ancient Celtic gods, and who wholeheartedly encourages the terrifying activities of the local youths. He incites the hatred of Howie with his proclamation that God is dead and is his antithesis. Lee, as usual, is on top form here, all suave and civilities initially but someone who uncovers the brutish tyranny that he has successfully cast over the island who now happily follow him in the archaic rites of their rediscovered religion. He also perfectly portrays the insanity of the man shown via his absolute devotion in his faith and his delights in its liberalities; he is a man that cannot be reasoned with and will only stop when the bloodshed he finds necessary is committed. What is so terrifying about his performance is that he is civil and almost shows adoration, sympathy and pity to his victims, but remains steadfast in his purpose.

With this movie Lee was trying to distance himself from his previous Hammer Horror roles in fear he may be type-cast. Strangely enough, the film was also trying to distance itself from the horror norms which Hammer had established (however revolutionary they were when first introduced) limiting the blood and gore and evoking horror via suggestion and mystery. The film and Lee absolutely succeeded in this; The Wicker Man is now a beacon that outshines and stands tall above the vast sea of mediocre horror and is a shining example to any future filmmakers showing us that jump–scares and blood spurts are not necessary to make a bone-chilling horror. Also this is one of Lee’s most enigmatic roles ever; showing that evil can come in all guises, including self-proclaimed righteousness. He manages to invoke empathy in the audience in such a way that you almost take his side… almost.

The film is a delicious treat for the eyes; Scotland has never looked so sunny. The costumes used in the ritual help give the feel of being transformed back into ancient Briton under Celtic reign. The supporting cast present such joy in their festivities and faith that coupled with the catchy soundtrack, you’ll be wondering where you can sign up for the cult (no really, it looks such fun). Despite the fact that the displayed paganism shocks and offends us, it gives a thoughtful commentary that Christianity may be guilty of the displayed indoctrination, the pagan lifestyle seems to be more free, accepting and non-judging especially in comparison to Howie’s strictly observed virginity.

So, if you want to pay tribute to the brilliant Christopher Lee, I massively recommend giving this a watch. What better way to send up a cinematic legend by remembering him in one of the greatest British Movies ever made? I hope you have fun on Summerisle, but remember, stay far away from the local festivities.

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