Well, here he is: the King of Inconsistent Performances, and the one actor who truly deserves a place on this list for the frankly astounding number of conflicting performances that he's given over the course of the past 30 years. Many are shocked to learn that Nicolas Cage has an Oscar under his belt (he won, deservedly, for his role in 1994's Leaving Las Vegas). But after he won that Oscar, it almost seemed as though this talented actor had achieved his goal, and felt as though it was all right to slink off into mediocrity. That's to say, there have been great Nic Cage performances (Adaptation, Raising Arizona), serviceable Nic Cage performances (Face/Off/Con Air), and downright insane Nic Cage performances (The Wicker Man, Ghost Rider), none of which seem like they're coming from the same place. Which is really what acting is all about, to be fair. The saving grace here is that Cage's performances are never not entertaining - the good, bad and ugly ones all have a strange, inherent like-ability to be associated with them. So as we sit back and watch Cage as he flitters like an injured bird between movies he genuinely cares about, movies he's doing purely for the cash, or movies that even the man himself doesn't know how he ended up in, there's a certain element to be treasured here. In recent years, with the rise of the internet and such, Cage has become a sort of twisted, semi-ironic icon - even his past detractors seem to have admitted that there's something contagious about his giddy, never-ending mania. And they're right: in this case, inconsistency is totally the brand. Like this article? Got anyone to add to the debate? Let us know in the comments section below.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
