Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!: Lord of War (2005) - Cage thrives with a ghastly lead in Niccol's terrific, troubling war drama

6/13/2019

Lord of War (2005) - Cage thrives with a ghastly lead in Niccol's terrific, troubling war drama

♥♥♥♥♥

+ Best Villain of the Year: Nicolas Cage as Yuri Orlog + Best War Movie of the Year

Star Nicolas Cage chillingly recreated with multi-colored bullets on this menacing poster for Andrew Niccol's Lord of War

One of the world's largest illegal arms dealers and arguably one of the worst persons to touch its surface, Yuri Orlog is the subject of Lord of War.

Lord of War is written, co-produced and directed by great New-Zealander filmmaker Andrew Niccol (Gattaca (1997)), based on several real-life arms dealers and infected third world conflicts. Nicolas Cage (Army of One (2016)) is perfect as the fascinating and eerie title character; he throws himself bravely and fearlessly out on deep waters yet again here with a truly despicable role. In Lord of War, Cage gets solid backup from Bridget Moynahan (Battle Los Angeles (2011)), Jared Leto (Lonely Hearts (2006)) and Ian Holm (Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994)).
This societally critical war drama is shot and scored by filmmakers who seem to know their Scorsese, (the American master filmmaker seems a tangible source of inspiration for Niccol and Co.)
The impact comes through irregardless: Lord of War is a strong and despairing (anti)war picture that makes its audiences alternatively laugh and cry.

2005 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]

Watch one staggering scene from the film here

Cost: 50 mil. $
Box office: 72.6 mil. $
= Big flop (returned 1.45 times its cost)
[Lord of War was released 16 September (USA) and runs 121 minutes. Shooting took place in New York, Utah, the Czech Republic and South Africa, including Cape Town, from August - November 2004. A Czech weapons dealer source supplied the production with 50 tanks, which were shipped off to Libya weeks later. The production bought 3,000 SA Vz. 58 rifles to stand in for Kalashnikovs, as they were cheaper than buying prop guns. The film opened #3, behind fellow new release Just Like Heaven and holdover hit The Exorcism of Emily Rose, to a 9.3 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it left the top 5 in its 2nd week and grossed 24.1 mil. $ (33.2 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were France with 8.3 mil. $ (11.4 %) and the UK with 4.3 mil. $ (5.9 %). Roger Ebert gave the film a 3.5/4 star review, equal in rating to this one. It also won a special recognition mention from the National Board of Review. Niccol returned with In Time (2011). Cage returned in The Weather Man (2005). Lord of War is fresh at 62 % with a 6.17/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Lord of War?

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William Friedkin has died

Born in Chicago, Friedkin accrued TV credits prior to his advance to the big screen as the director of Good TImes (1967), The Birthday Party (1968), The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968) and The Boys in the Band (1970) before his major breakthrough, The French Connection (1971), for which he won his only Oscar. He followed it up with the even bigger smash, The Exorcist (1973), arguably the best horror film of all time, for which he was Oscar-nominated. Later credits include Sorcerer (1977), Cruising (1980), To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), Rampage (1987), Rules of Engagement (2000), Killer Joe (2011) and The Devil and Father Amorth (2017, documentary). Friedkin passed away at age 87. R.I.P.

Louise Fletcher has passed away

Born in Alabama to deaf parents, Fletcher got her first credits in late-1950s TV-series.She took a 10 year-long sabbatical to devote her time to motherhood after the release of A Gathering of Eagles, but then came back and soon saw her career's most important part, as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), for which she won her sole Oscar. Later credits include Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), The Lucky Star (1980), Brainstorm (1983), Two Moon Junction (1988), Cruel Intentions (1999), A Perfect Man (2013) and many more. Fletcher passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

Jean-Luc Godard has passed away

Born in Paris, France, Godard lived much of his life in Switzerland. He wrote for French film criticism magazine Cahiers du Cinema and became foundational for the New French Wave that inspired new waves in scores of other countries across the world with his Breathless (1960). Later credits include A Woman Is A Woman (1961), Vivre Sa Vie (1962), Le Petit Soldat (1962), Contempt (1963), Alphaville (1965), Pierrot le Fou (1965), 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her (1967), Weekend (1967), Every Man for Himself (1980), King Lear (1987), Century of Cinema (1995, documentary), Goodbye to Language (2014) and many more. Godard died of assisted suicide at age 91. R.I.P.

Wolfgang Petersen has died

James Caan has died

Caan was born the son of Jewish immigrants from Germany in New York. He got his start on TV in the early 1960s. His credits include El Dorado (1966), The Rain People (1969), Brian's Song (1971, TV movie), The Godfather (1972), - for which he earned his only Oscar nomination, - Slither (1973), The Gambler (1974), Funny Lady (1975), Rollerball (1975), Silent Movie (1976), Hide in Plain Sight (1980), - the only film he also directed, - Thief (1981), Misery (1990), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Bottle Rocket (1996), Eraser (1996), Dogville (2003), Elf (2003), Las Vegas (2003-07), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) and many more. Caan passed away at age 82. R.I.P.

Jean-Louis Trintignant has died

Born in Vaucluse, France, Trintignant's theatrical debut as an actor was in If All the Guys in the World... (1955). Later credits include ...And God Created Woman (1956), The Seven Deadly Sins (1961), Inferno (1964), A Man and A Woman (1966), My Love, My Love (1967), A Man to Kill (1967), The Great Silence (1968), Z (1969), The Assassination (1972), Three Colors: Red (1994), Amour (2012), Happy End (2017) and many more. He also wrote and directed two films in the 1970s. Trintignant passed away at age 91. R.I.P.

Ray Liotta has died

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Philip Baker Hall has died

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William Hurt has passed away

Born in Washington D.C., Hurt's first film role was the lead in Altered States (1980). Later credits include Body Heat (1981), The Big Chill (1983), Gorky Park (1983), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), for which he earned his only Oscar as Best Actor; Chilrdren of a Lesser God (1986), for which he was also Oscar-nominated; Broadcast News (1987), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; Smoke (1995), A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), A History of Violence (2005), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; The Good Shepherd (2006), Into the Wild (2007), Robin Hood (2010) and many more. Hurt passed away at age 71. R.I.P.

Ivan Reitman has passed away

Born in Chechoslovakia, now Slovakia, Reitman's family fled the Soviet regime to Austria, then Toronto, when he was 4 years old. Reitman broke into movies as a director with Foxy Lady (1971). Later credits include Cannibal Girls (1973), Meatballs (1979), Stripes (1981), Ghostbusters (1984), Twins (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Kindergarten Cop (1990), Junior (1994), Father's Day (1997), Evolution (1998), No Strings Attached (2011), Draft Day (2014) and more. Reitman's son Jason Reitman is also a great filmmaker. Reitman passed away at age 75. R.I.P.

Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!

Eagerly anticipating this week ... (6-24)

6/13/2019

Lord of War (2005) - Cage thrives with a ghastly lead in Niccol's terrific, troubling war drama

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