Friday, November 16, 2018

HALLOWEEN HANGOVER: MANDY (2018) ***


You know Nicolas Cage is going to be awesome in Mandy when his first line of dialogue is a knock-knock joke about Erik Estrada.  He also casually name drops Marvel characters into his pillow talk with his wife (Andrea Riseborough).  He’s kind of broody for most of the movie, but once director Panos (Beyond the Black Rainbow) Cosmatos finally lets Cage off his leash (or out of his cage, if you prefer) he’s often amazing.  No one can say a simple line like, “You ripped my shirt” and make it sound like a wounded, emotionally-unraveled battle cry.  If you think he’s wacko then, wait till you see him high on zombie mescaline.

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves.

Cage is a lumberjack named Red Miller who adores his wife Mandy (Riseborough).  A cult of religious fanatics sends a gruesome mutant biker gang to kidnap and kill her.  They leave Red for dead, but he returns to avenge his loved one armed with a freshly forged battle axe and a case of pure CAGE RAGE.

Imagine if Clive Barker did a biker movie and that might give you an idea what to expect.  (Hellraiser’s Angels on Wheels?)  Cosmatos’ style is visually dazzling.  He often fills the frame with eye-popping colorful imagery and lots of lens flares, which make the film look like the love child of Dario Argento and Steven Spielberg.  In addition, there’s a kitchen sink approach that makes it unique.  Cosmatos uses everything from anime-style animation to goofy faux ‘80s commercials and what only can be labeled as Heavy Metal Album Imagery to keep us on our toes.  

Honestly, there was no reason whatsoever for this to be two hours long.  Some of Cosmatos’ tangents are less successful than others.  The deliberate pacing also helps to take some of the wind out of the movie’s sails, particularly in the second act.

For all its faults, there’s still nothing quite like Mandy.  It may be uneven, but when it cooks, it’s with an open flame.  Besides, any movie that features Nicolas Cage locked in a chainsaw duel to the death is OK by me.

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