Michael Sarnoski's debut feature, Pig, is mostly a character study of an individual dealing with past and present loss. The film also touches the concept of road movies ,unlikely friendships, some existential themes and dissects anti-revenge motif. Nicolas Cage plays Robin,a desolated individual living in the Oregon woods, selling elusive truffles. One day his prized truffle pig is abducted by some people. Escaping death, Robin sets out to find his pig, with the help of his young dealer, Amir.
Sarnoski delicately creates our protagonist character Robin,a man of mystery. The other character, Amir is also somewhat quirky. He knows a little of Robin, apart from the fact that he's a truffle hunter. But as the two set on a mission to find the pig, through Amir's eye, we slowly get to know Robin. Amir takes him in his car from place to place. They travel, form an unlikely bonding, considering their age and status. Scene by scene we see Robin's tragic past unfolding. He suffered some terrible losses in the past forcing him into isolation. But what will he do now as his only companion in the woods gets stolen? Will he take revenge? Or get into another phase of his self-exile?
Nicolas Cage gives a powerful portrayal of grief stricken person suffering from immense pain and agony. Robin is also a stern example of an established figure turned into ruins. It could be a wild guess but I was thinking about the similarities between Robin and Cage himself, about how both of them went downhill from top in their respective careers. Who knows!
There are lots of plot elements in the film. But what Pig suffers most is that it gives us glimpses ,but never really explores them. Robin's dilemma about his pig, his past life, his sorrows, Amir's own personal problems- all of these are touched but remained solely on the surface. As a result, I was left with a mixed feeling of wanting more. The film seemed to end just when it looked to be building for climax. It did have a potential to be a great film but fell short.
That being said, Pig does make some strong points. It marked a strong directorial debut for Sarnoski. There were some serene wide angle shots of Oregon wilderness throughout. But most of the time the camera was close to Robin, capturing his brawls ,sweats and raw emotions. It's also great to see Nicolas Cage back with one hell of a performance. Surely we can expect there's more to come from him.
Sarnoski delicately creates our protagonist character Robin,a man of mystery. The other character, Amir is also somewhat quirky. He knows a little of Robin, apart from the fact that he's a truffle hunter. But as the two set on a mission to find the pig, through Amir's eye, we slowly get to know Robin. Amir takes him in his car from place to place. They travel, form an unlikely bonding, considering their age and status. Scene by scene we see Robin's tragic past unfolding. He suffered some terrible losses in the past forcing him into isolation. But what will he do now as his only companion in the woods gets stolen? Will he take revenge? Or get into another phase of his self-exile?
Nicolas Cage gives a powerful portrayal of grief stricken person suffering from immense pain and agony. Robin is also a stern example of an established figure turned into ruins. It could be a wild guess but I was thinking about the similarities between Robin and Cage himself, about how both of them went downhill from top in their respective careers. Who knows!
There are lots of plot elements in the film. But what Pig suffers most is that it gives us glimpses ,but never really explores them. Robin's dilemma about his pig, his past life, his sorrows, Amir's own personal problems- all of these are touched but remained solely on the surface. As a result, I was left with a mixed feeling of wanting more. The film seemed to end just when it looked to be building for climax. It did have a potential to be a great film but fell short.
That being said, Pig does make some strong points. It marked a strong directorial debut for Sarnoski. There were some serene wide angle shots of Oregon wilderness throughout. But most of the time the camera was close to Robin, capturing his brawls ,sweats and raw emotions. It's also great to see Nicolas Cage back with one hell of a performance. Surely we can expect there's more to come from him.
