Nicolas Cage fights for revenge in the trailer for Dying of the Light

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

For most people these days, a new Nicolas Cage movie is grounds for immediate ignorance. The guy has turned in only a few decent performances (JOE is actually the only one that comes to mind) with the rest being pure, unadulterated crap. Still, the prospect of a movie written and directed by Paul Schrader (TAXI DRIVER, RAGING BULL) and producer by Nicolas Winding Refn is enticing enough to garner my viewing.

Schrader has a history of control issues when it comes to his films. After his EXORCIST prequel DOMINION was scrapped and completely refilmed, Schrader worked with Bret Easton Ellis on the Lindsay Lohan movie THE CANYONS. On DYING OF THE LIGHT, Schrader completely quit the film due to control of the final cut and has absolved himself of the finished product. None of these are good signs for the film.

Academy Award® winner Nicolas Cage ignites a powder keg of action in this electrifying cloak-and-dagger thriller. Evan Lake (Cage), a veteran CIA agent, has been ordered to retire. But when his protégé (Anton Yelchin) uncovers evidence that Lake’s nemesis, the terrorist Banir (Alexander Karim), has resurfaced, Lake goes rogue, embarking on a perilous, intercontinental mission to eliminate his sworn enemy.

Originally set to star Harrison Ford and Channing Tatum, DYING OF THE LIGHT actually looks like a decent political thriller. Cage doesn’t seem to be phoning it in as much as he usually does and Anton Yelchin makes for a nice supporting player. It appears Refn sided with Paul Schrader‘s behind the scenes issues with producers, so I guess we will have to wait and see how bad the final cut of the movie actually is.

DYING OF THE LIGHT hits theaters on December 5th.