21. Leaving Las Vegas
United Artists
The Drug: Alcohol Remember the time when Nicolas Cage was a great actor noted for his fine performances? It's a distant memory for many these days, and while the recent release of Joe seems to hint that he might be on track for a return to form, much of his best work is behind him. A fine example of this is his performance as Ben Sanderson in Mike Figgis's Leaving Las Vegas, for which Cage picked up the Academy Award for Best Actor. Playing a man crippled by alcohol addiction who decides to head to Vegas so that he can drink himself to death, Cage's performance is undoubtedly a career high and one which the actor's preparation clearly paid off. To get into the role, Cage went on drinking binges and had his friends film them so he could study his mode of speech, as well as spending time in alcoholic rehabilitation in hospital. Unflinching both in its portrayal of the destructive side of alcohol abuse and prostitution, Elizabeth Shue also delivers an excellent performance as the hooker Sanderson hooks up with, it's enough to put you off booze - for a few days, at least.