Nicolas Cage plays Ben Sanderson, an alcoholic screenwriter who literally drinks himself to death. The movie starts with his old friends rejecting Ben and his boss firing him. You find that he is divorced and does not see his child. He goes to his house and burns everything that ever meant anything to him. He drinks and drinks. Finally, he sets off to Las Vegas, knowing that it will be his last trip. There he meets a prostitute named Sera (Elisabeth Shue). Needless to say, they have a doomed relationship. After a wild night, the film tumbles down a rabbit hole of misery towards its utterly bleak conclusion, so much so that its almost counter-productive. It's a relief when such a dark film refuses to preach, trusting the viewer to draw his or her own conclusions about the roots of this self-destructive funk. Directed by Mike Figgis and based on a semi-autobiographical novel of the same name by John O'Brien, Leaving Las Vegas is quite interesting in its depiction of a mans suicide. While it's sad and spooky enough to send shivers down your spine, it is surprisingly able to avoid melodramatics and still leave you with a powerful message.
Jesse Gumbarge is editor and chief blogger at JarvisCity.com - He loves old-school horror films and starting pointless debates. You can reach out at: JesseGumbarge@JarvisCity.com
