I really enjoyed the slightly unusual dimension brought to the film by Nicholas Cages's direction, showing the same characteristics as many of the films in which he has a leading role. The role of Yellow acid was a bit over the top but the other roles all believable and well acted. The much worked cliché of being drawn back into a rut was kept interesting by the unlikely paradox that a good looking and sexually adapt male could struggle to impress in normal situations simply because of the stigma and baggage of his previous occupation. James Franco was an excellent choice as Sonny portraying the on the surface shy but extremely confident individual with great believability.
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digital82125 April 2005i am a film student and i make it a point to stay up till 330 a.m just to watch movies like this. first there were slow moments, and some forced actions between characters, but franco's acting is always superb. i mean the shot where he flips out in the car, or when he screams at the naked girl on the floor. directing is basic. the editing is fast and tells the story well. i liked all the characters, the mother had me hating her the second she spoke and james made me feel bad for his character.
i honestly think that if you want to see a good undiscovered movie that wont win awards, but can be picked apart for joy and scrutiny then this will do it. overall acting is very well, and the story has a few plot holes but if you watch the direction the director wants you to then it makes up for it -
michaelRokeefe23 June 2011A Nicolas Cage movie, directed and produced, SONNY is stark, raw and straight-to-the-point. Fresh from his release from the Army, Sonny heads home to New Orleans with the intent of telling his mother Jewel(Brenda Blethyn)that he has no plans of returning to his former lifestyle. You see, Sonny's previous job was pleasing the ladies...a popular gigolo working for his mother, who taught him everything he knows. The job that his Army buddy(Scott Caan)falls through leaving Sonny to return to doing what he does well. Working for Jewel is a pretty young girl named Carol(Mena Suvari)that deep inside wants to leave the business and live like the "normal" people that marry and have a home with children. She tries to convince Sonny to join her and runaway from the seedy life in the Big Easy's underbelly. Some real strong images of sexual activity; boring...this movie is not. Also starring are: Harry Dean Stanton, Brenda Vaccaro, Seymour Cassel, Josie Davis and a Nic Cage cameo as Acid Yellow, a gay pimp. Some heavy tunes from Rush, Chicago, Devo and David Bowie.
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LKilbride4529 December 2002The truths explored in `Sonny' are not easily accessible to those who have never faced the choice that faces Sonny Phillips: whether to `square up,' or continue in a life style with extremely limited options, and little room for growth. Many who are born into a life of prostitution never seriously consider leaving it, most who have never experienced that life style are unaware of the dishonesties and injustices inherent in living on their more socially-acceptable middle-class level. The story sums up neatly: Sonny comes home after a stint in the army with the goal of leaving behind his former life style as a male prostitute. His mother, Jewel, who turned him out when he was twelve years old, now lives off of Carol, a beautiful young whore who has Sonny's old bedroom. Jewel wants to keep Sonny with her, and have him work as a team with Carol.
Somehow, 26-year-old James Franco is able to tap into a wellspring of emotional depth to show the anguish attendant in the decision Sonny tries to make and honor. Somehow, Nicolas Cage was able to lead him to it. What these two have accomplished should not be overlooked or undervalued. `Sonny' is a magnificent achievement. It is a movie that explores many themes, paramount among them that each of us is worthy of love, capable of innocence and growth. Real affection can be found in the unlikeliest of places, respect shows itself in many ways, trust is fragile, and love doesn't protect anyone from anything. Franco's performance could be considered nothing short of miraculous, if it weren't known how hard-working an actor he is. This range of talent hasn't been seen since 1955; his slight frame belies his power, and his smile is an endearing joy. Mena Suvari, as his love-interest, Carol, is also an unexpected delight, bringing to mind nothing so much as Carroll Baker's performance in `Baby Doll.' Her combination of innocence and sexuality is reminiscent of Marilyn Monroe's, and it's nice that someone is on the scene to keep that flame alive. Also noteworthy is Brenda Vaccaro as Meg, an old trick of Sonny's who's eager to spend time with him again. She brings a warmth and generosity to a role that could seem ludicrous in a lesser actress. Not least among all these terrific talents is Brenda Blethyn as Sonny's mother Jewel. Although her southern accent seems questionable, it's difficult to think of another actress who could make someone who's done something this despicable to her child, seem genuine and likable. As her friend, Harry Dean Stanton also pulls off something unexpected, bringing depth of character to someone whose occupation as a shoplifter could otherwise lead us to think of as shallow. But it is a director's vision that pulls a movie together, and Nicolas Cage is to be heartily and enthusiastically commended for what he's accomplished here. `Sonny' is a wonderful movie. -
Boyo-226 August 2004Maybe Nic Cage conducted a seance and summoned up the ghost of Mr. Williams, cause this stinks like one of his lesser efforts, all the way.
I believe James Franco has something good to offer the world of cinema but half the time you cannot hear a word he's saying. Most likely to overcompensate, Brenda Blethyn overplays her role as his Mother/pimp, and while she has her moments, they are few and far between.
Mena Suvari gives the best performance, though I didn't really understand any of the relationships in the movie. Harry Dean Stanton just hangs around...why? Not that he bothers me, but what's your part? Suvari and Franco get too dramatic too quickly and have some puerile dialogue, some of it in the rain..its too much to bear.
It was nice to see Brenda Vaccaro as one of Sonny's 'customers' but it hardly was enough to save the movie. Cage himself is seen briefly at the end. I hope when he directs a real movie that I'll be interested enough to see it, although that's doubtful since this was such an ordeal. 3/10. -
HotToastyRag24 February 2020Welcome to another movie that belongs to the genre of "Life is terrible and nobody's happy." If you're in the right mood for them, they can be terrifically entertaining. One of my favorite movies of its year was The Florida Project because of its realism and sorrow. Sonny is a drama about a young man who wants a better life for himself than he was born into. Okay, that's not exactly what it's about, but in a nutshell, that's the basic message that people in the audiences can relate to. In a tearful monologue, Harry Dean Stanton admits that there every single moment of the day he wishes he was someone else. "If I look too close in the mirror, I might see me. I don't think I'm quite ready for that," Mena Suvari confesses.
Those of you who've read my reviews know that I'm notoriously harsh on films that glorify prostitution. Sonny portrays it as the seedy, humiliating, disgusting business that it is. Brenda Blethyn is at her best: low-class, ignorant, selfish, with an edge of sugar that's equal to the edge of vinegar. She plays James Franco's mother and pimp, and when he returns from three years in the army, she expects him to pick up right where he left off. He doesn't want to, and in a heartbreaking scene, he seeks employment at a clothing boutique only to be recognized and embarrassed by former client Brenda Vaccaro. This is a far cry from Pretty Woman, folks, so don't expect Franco to run off with Mena Suvari, his mother's new employee. They form an attachment because they feel like they're both trapped and both know what it's like to carry the stigma of working in prostitution, but the movie spends much more time lifting the lid on how the other half lives than on a little romance.
If you're watching this movie for Nicolas Cage, he doesn't show up until the last fifteen minutes, and you probably won't even recognize him. However, since he did direct and co-produce the movie, you're still seeing his handiwork even when he's not on the screen. This is his directorial debut and it doesn't feel like it was made by a newcomer. There are no glossy edges, and most scenes are set in broad daylight so the characters have no filter to hide behind.
The performances in this heavy drama are extremely strong, and if you can stomach it, watching it for the second time will bring out previously hidden layers. Mena Suvari has the deadened look that real prostitutes wear; it's clear self-hatred replaced self-respect long ago. James Franco shines in scene after scene as he degrades himself and lets other's expectations of him take precedent over who he thinks he could be. Anyone who thinks Julia Roberts played a realistic prostitute should watch Sonny and get an education. They get treated like garbage, they get humiliated, and sometimes they don't even get paid. It's a terrible, dangerous way of life.
It's understandable that Sonny wouldn't find a very large audience, but if you like James Franco-his talent, I mean-you should consider renting it. Yes, he's ridiculously gorgeous and puts on the Southern drawl he's perfected through the years, but this is not a steamy movie to rent for girls' night. If you're renting it, it's because you want to see another facet of his versatility.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to graphic sex scenes, I wouldn't let my kids watch it. -
hanniewigs4 September 2008First let me state that I love James Franco. I loved him in Freaks and Geeks and most of his roles ever since....but this movie was just silly. The actress that plays the main character Sonny's mother became so annoying and her phony accent is so grating you are tempted to turn off the movie half way through. James Franco seriously tries his best with a badly written script and not so qualified director. Nicolas directed this film in such an odd way. I don't think actors should assume they can be directors based solely on being in films. There is a little thing called education and experience and just because you have starred in 30+ movies doesn't mean you have the skills to direct a movie. Three quarters of the way into the film you can tell the actors have given up and just want to finish. I believe that James Franco only starred in this movie for experience. To push himself in ways his other roles didn't but that doesn't make it a good movie. It is almost painful to watch. I am from Mississippi, I have been all over the South and the North and I have NEVER heard accents like the ones these actors were using.
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Nicolas Cage needed to get this out of his system, I guess. He never directed before or since, and it's a project that speaks somewhat to what we know about his influences - James Franco, channeling, I think, James Dean, who was Cage's reason to become an actor - and, I suppose, to his wanting to tell this particular story of a gigolo in New Orleans circa 1981. Whether or not he'll make a movie with such concerns, or just another movie as director period, remains to be seen. For now we have this, a melancholy look at a young man screwed up by his mother (and by screwed up I mean by her having him as a man-whore starting when he was 12 years old) and unsure of where to go in his life. It has its misses, and just strange quality about it at times. But it also has life and some weird energy about it that's hard to shake off.
Cage certainly casts with some interest, and more or less he's a good actor's director. He gets Franco to dig deep into his character Sonny, a guy who escaped to the army more-so than really serving from his existence as a hustler of lonely middle-aged women looking for some hot thrills and sex. When he gets back he wants to go legit - something his mother (Brenda Blethyn) is dead-set against - but is drawn back in after a bad encounter visiting an old army buddy in Texas, and when he realizes that his reputation in the quarter of New Orleans he lives in is locked: he's a man-whore, and is undesirable except in his lowly position. He also seeks advice from a boyfriend of his mothers, Harry Dean Stanton, and his mother's current protégé prostitute played by Mena Suvari.
Cage manages to get some really affecting scenes with his characters. One of which is the morning after Sonny and Carol have done some prostituting at a Louisiana mansion (Sonny with the main madame, Carol with some other guy), and they're at a farm and see in the barn a dog that's just given birth to puppies. It brings Carol to tears as she thinks she won't be able to get out unless she makes a clean break. It's one of those highly melodramatic scenes- think Douglas Sirk, that much so- but it works, albeit with some cheesy touches (when Carol says to Sonny "I love you" rain just starts on cue). Other scenes try to be more affecting but are a little more compromised. Scenes where Jewel (Blethyn) does her sob routine in front of Sonny work up to a certain Tennessee Williams style dramatic point, but Blethyn's accent is way over the top. A couple of short scenes between Stanton and Franco fare much better.
And other times Cage is just trying things out as a director, and sometimes things work and sometimes not. He's a little rocky when it comes to scene transitions: we see Sonny's trip from New Orleans to Texas with lots of fast-motion shots of his car driving to Rush's 'Limelight' and it's just silly. And when it comes time for Sonny to really be low in the dumps following the death of a character, as he wanders drunk and meets a gay drug-fueled pimp (played by Cage himself, Acid Yellow, a particularly strange and unerring figure to come at this point in the film), it's met with some mixed results as Franco is good but everything else seems forced or fake. But, again, usually with his actors he gets good work, and a feeling of a 1950's existential crisis comes out of the material that works for Franco to play up (frankly he might even be better than Dean in some cases, perhaps slightly channeling young Cage to boot), and the ending of the film is a very nice twist.
It's not something to rush out to rent or buy, and I'm sure only die-hard Cage enthusiasts or fans of the actors will really seek it out (any die-hard fans of Blethyn out there?). On its own terms, however modest, it comes in with a swagger and heartbeat and does its own thing to some good if not great effect. If Cage has another project he wants to direct, I'll show some interest if not overwhelming enthusiasm. -
rosscinema6 October 2004This isn't a bad looking film and the performances are all fairly effective but once the first 30 or so minutes have passed you've pretty much seen what this has to offer. Story takes place in New Orleans in 1981 where Sonny Phillips (James Franco) has just been discharged from the Army with the hopes of finding a job someplace but his mother wants him to come back to what she taught him. Jewel (Brenda Blethyn) is an ex-prostitute who taught her son the same thing and he was very popular for the wealthy older ladies in the area. Jewel has a young girl named Carol (Mena Suvari) working for her and even though she has a number of tricks every day she still talks about getting out of the business and living a normal life. Also living with Jewel but just as a renter is long time friend Henry (Harry Dean Stanton) who has lent a helping hand for the both of them.
*****SPOILER ALERT*****
Sonny doesn't want to go back to being a prostitute but when he is unable to get a job he seems to have no other resources in life and at times gets very angry after finishing with a customer. He becomes very jaded and remorseful and when Carol suggests that they go off together and start a new life he can't even bring himself to admit that it's possible for such a thing to happen.
This film marks the directorial debut of actor Nicolas Cage and while he does show that he can tell a story at a good pace the main flaw comes from the script itself. This story is very reminiscent of the ambiguous neo-realism films from Italy and France of the 50's and 60's in which the script just allows us to watch Sonny slowly become angry and bitter and to allow prostitution to inevitably become his unfortunate life. Critics point out that the film doesn't offer any insight to Sonny and instead we see the usual clichés and one can't deny that those flaws are evident but there are some good things that should be noticed in Cage's direction. One is the solid performances he gets by all of his actors and I think Blethyn's Southern accent isn't to bad but I think Suvari gives arguably the most effective performance in the film. There is some of the usual prostitute with a heart of gold in the script but when she begs for Sonny to say something positive about their future while it's pouring rain it reminded me that she is indeed one of the more talented young actresses out there. Cage also gives the film a more sordid look at what was going on around Bourbon St. during the early 80's and I found the mood to be pretty effective. But the script doesn't give you anything fresh to view and for the most part the characters just seem to be going through the motions of the films actions. This isn't a bad film and Cage seems to have some talent as a director but this is still a script that fails to be revealing. -
krisstan6916 July 2005I just recently saw this movie on either HBO or Cinemax, and let me tell you, for me it was like a train wreck, once you start watching, you cant stop watching. So, it was after 1:00am when I flipped it on, thinking I had found something to help me go to sleep, but once I started listening to it and getting the movie plot down for what it really was, I was shocked, then very interested in what would come of the characters. When Sonny went crazy in Texas when he was with that blonde girl, that is when I really just went 'what the hell kind of movie is this?' That didn't stop me from watching however, just kept me on the edge as to what he was going to do from then on. Mena Suvari I thought was great, because this wasn't the typical nice little Hollywood roll for her to do, it was different and edgy, and she was wonderful in it. The ending threw me off, but still made you think and kinda make up your own conclusion as to what happened with them.
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karney22 November 2002(spoilers) Just saw a screening of this at the Egyptian in Hollywood, with Cage & Franco & Suvari appearing afterward for a Q&A session. Basically you've got a story of a hustler (Franco) who was groomed for the biz by his mother. He's trying to escape the life but his mom and his new girlfriend (Suvari) are trying to keep him in it. The film was strangely truncated- big parts of how the Suvari and Franco characters formed their relationship doesn't show up on screen, so the 'love' story that forms the spine of the story doesn't really have any resonance for the audience. I think Cage let his actors have a little too much reign in their choices, but it may be the fault of the script for not fleshing out the relationships. Some of the scenes were very compelling and even funny, especially one where Sonny dresses up as a policeman and does a trick for a woman who wants to do some roleplaying. All in all though, we're just not as engaged as the filmmakers want us to be in the central relationships of the film. Peripheral relationships are almost more fully realized than central ones throughout the film. Harry Dean Stanton especially is wonderful.
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desperateliving30 April 2005I guess it's hard to address serious issues when you're dealing with a plot about a flamboyant southern belle who raises her son to be a natural-born-whore, because this movie is considered to be a failure even though it really isn't. It's neither the ready-made slice-of-life that Sundance specializes in, nor is it an innovative film like "Pi," so casual independent fans have little reason to like this (they probably dislike Paul Morrissey, too). So there's already a few misconceptions about the film, but add to that that it's an actor's film: what else are we supposed to expect from Nicolas Cage? The movie is a mix of piano music and prostitution, and it's just like Cage's acting -- hyper-real and over-the-top, classy and trashy at once.
The movie is partially a series of differing acting styles -- Blethyn's comic exaggeration, Franco's sleepy mysteriousness, Stanton's quiet control, Cage's funhouse tricks. But I think Cage deserves a certain amount of credit -- he doesn't scuzzify the material or romanticize it; he creates some interesting scenes (and handles most of the more potentially offensive ones with as close to grace as possible); he indulges all of his actors. And there is some real pain in the story, about not being able to switch jobs, and how vagabonds have nothing to show for their life. There are times when this goes where few films do in terms of honesty, yet the script does have increasing problems as it goes along. A scene like the one where Cage makes his appearance, seen through Sonny's drunken haze, works only because of the oddness of it; it feels stolen from other films because it's supposed to be there for the type of movie this is. But the film is at its best when it resists any "type." 8/10 -
Jimmy_fingers21 January 2004Rented this blind, and didn't realise it was Nic Cage's directorial debut. Big fan of his, or at least his early work. Talking of his early work, the film showed clear clues as to his influences, as the film has touches of Coen and Lynch about it (Cage's cameo in particular was extremely Lynchian). I thought the story interesting and well executed. The characters were wonderful, in particular Blenthyn's 'madame'. I thought visually it worked brilliantly, in particular setting it in 1981 (presumably of course where the book is set). I like how the film's ending allowed you to make up your own mind.
Very worthy effort from Cage and well worth a viewing -
Poolie15 May 2004Everything bad about this movie was directly caused by one of the most awful directing by Nicolas Cage. He directs the actors to overact too often (as Cage does way too often himself)and it makes those scenes ridiculous when they should/could have been poignant instead. Also he tries too many have "artsy" shots lighting and instead it looks amateurish and goofy. The scene with Acid Yellow is one of the worse directed scene in the hostory of cinema. It could have been a great scene but the goofy lighting/camera angles/fuzz that Cage used to try to show off just made the scene cartoonish and ridiculous.
NOt all actors can direct. Obviously Cage had no clue what he was doing, unlike his talented uncle and cousin, and should stick to his annoying over-acting roles.
Franco is a stud but Cage took so much out what this movie could have been that even Franco's performance gets buried in Cage's mess. I bet the talented 3 lead actors are embarrassed when they watch their performances in this movie but they can blame Cage who had them act in the same way he does. And that is definitely NOT a good thing...
OH one thing that is also awful and is apparently not Cage's fault: the script.
I still gave this movie a generous 3/10, but one of those marks is for Franco acting (when not too Cage-d) and the other one is cuz we got to see his body and ass a lot, which is pretty much the only thing that kept me watching. I commend Cage at least for that. -
Greatornot13 December 2009If it were not for his famed director uncle Francis Ford Coppola, we would never know of Mr. Nicholas Coppola.. Yep thats his real name. Mr. Cage is a detriment to acting and now directing. What a shame that Hollywood has become an occupation of who you know, not how talented you are. This film proves that point. This was a muddled film with the best moments being of a randy nature. Josie Davis, youngest sister of 'Charles in Charge' was worth seeing in her one scene,with and without clothes. The movie seemed muddled. This took place in the early 80's , but one got the sense it was more like the early 40's. It just seemed that pieces of the puzzle never quite fit. Basically a love story of a young man from a dysfunctional , brothel family ,consisting of an overbearing over the hill mother and other surprises , that were predictable but I wont reveal. Sonnys love interest , one of the prostitutes living in this perverted house of debauchery. Coming back from military service , Sonny hardly exhibited discipline that would come from a successful stint in the Armed Forces. I watched this cheap DVD in about 14 sittings or so it seems. While the acting was somewhat acceptable, the inconsistencies and realism was not. It seemed like it was the same exact set and location as 'Pretty Baby' filmed about 3 decades earlier. Watch this dreary film and film set at your own peril.
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Nicolas Cage directed, "Sonny" is a title to be remembered as a past time to the Ryan Gosling "esk" movies of yesterday. Featured as a dark horse humor of the deep south, with the contrast of the all to familiar promiscuous and underworld venues of "The Bad Lieutenant," James Franco puts on the convincing mask of a '1980s Nawlins" trick turner. Very independent and distant from his present day roles, Franco's performance is raw and distinguished. The plot is as simple as it is compelling. Despite this little known title, for those movie goers with the need and appetite for films of Leaving Las Vegas magnitude, "Sonny" is the enthralling feature to curb your hunger. If your search for a cinematic hallmark leads you here, I urge you to venture elsewhere. The simplicity and brutish complexion of this early 2000s artwork makes it an appealing plunge for viewers of unassuming admiration. "Better than Spiderman, not as good as 127," gage as you see fit.
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Ric-76 January 2003Acting talent of the caliber found in this film has rarely been put to such little productive use. The script was very, very poor and managed to capture very little that is characteristic of New Orleans, except perhaps the fact that you can buy a cocktail and walk with it out of the bar and down the street. Having been a prostitute does not necessarily disqualify one from all future gainful employment in legitimate occupations, and I didn't buy the fact that Sonny was automatically doomed to a life of hustling--not even in 1981 (the year chosen for the film).
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eightiesgirl28 October 2002I had the wonderful opportunity to see the debut of Sonny at the Virginia Film Festival on 26 October 2002. This is a gritty and raw portrayal of a young man's attempts to change his fate. Mr. Cage has made a daring film about the difficult life of a male hustler.
This is a film that spares nothing and finds us rooting for each character's redemption. This is not to be missed. -
brownrainjacket26 August 2003God. So many of you amateur critics were not paying attention. Please don't tell me the 'jist' of the story. Don't give me some distorted, film-spliced preview version so that I can go into it thinking I'm on the right track with your unconscious blather consoling my brain. There is much to be missed seeing this film. I'll admit that I was slightly, if not very, disappionted after seeing it. But there's something there that many have ignored but instead found the time to criticize poor this and poor that. Please, just take things for what they are. Cage's debut was not a failure in artsnob society anymore than it was in making money. Its good points are and will be overlooked. -- Ok. What did I dislike of the film, if that really matters. - Please. Don't ever show Scott Caan touching a Camus novel on screen ever again. "It's good. You should read it." Don't say that he's one of your favorite young actors just b/c, i presume, of your uncle and his dad. Refrain from melodramatic calvin klein scenes in the rain, unless it's a scary movie sequel. If you're going to scalp the audience with incessant drivel, at least give us something not so recycled. And I'm sure there's more. But the biggest thing is that the script should have been reworked again and again and then more. I know--the loyalty to the author's work, but this script was really very limited. It just shows why Richard Gere turned it down for American Gigilo back when it was first written. But at least Gere wasn't in this one. Franco is great. He will live to prove that to doubters in his future career. Cage could have done much worse. And he won't have to live with making a cliche big easy picture. Harry Dean, Harry Dean. Man, what a cool cat. Mena Suvari--very surprising. And I'll check with my cajun grandpa on how good Blethyn's 2wk accent was. That's it. Peace and love to the creators and the wannabe critics. Don't get so hyped up on wordy little nonsensical wisdom your dog could think up, and learn how to embrace the whole world, even if it doesn't meet your personal mark of approval.
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Filmguy7910 December 2002You'd think as a director Nicolas Cage, a member of the Coppola clan, would be better equipped to handle the ins-and-outs of a straightforward character driven drama, that he'd not let things get too self-indulgent or weighed down by
unnecessary, heavy-handed exposition. You'd think he'd know to get his actors to pick up the pace when things are slagging and tone things down when they
get too over-the-top. You'd certainly think he'd refrain from cliches like having a pivotal character say "My luck is finally turning around" and then cutting to that character's death in the very next scene. Well, you'd be wrong. 'Sonny,' Mr. Cage's directorial debut, is about the eponymous 26-year-old
former male prostitute (played with sensual swagger by James Franco) who
falls back into his old ways when he returns from a three-year stint in the army to the home of his New Orleans madam mother (an exhausting Brenda Blethyn)
and her new hooker Carol (Mena Suvari, doing her best in a sorely underwritten role). At first, he tries for the "square" life in Texas with an Army buddy of his, but faster than you can say Bible-girl-drinking-cough-syrup, he regresses into his mother's needy bosom and turns tricks bedecked in early-'80s gigolo finery. And then...well, not much happens. Franco modulates his performance well -- you believe this kid knows nothing much more than how to sexually satisfy
middle-aged Southern women, and you believe his sudden outbursts of
confused rage. As the movie stagnates in its final third, however, not even
Franco can save the stultifying dialogue in John Carlan's script. (It's unfortunate, actually, how poorly written much of this movie is, since Carlan -- a gigolo in his great-grandmother's Texas harem from when he was, no kidding, nine-years old
until he turned 17 -- quite literally lived the story from the inside-out.) Ultimately, however, the fault for this movie's faults lies squarely on Cage's shoulders. He can't seem to decide whether he's making a broad comic allegory or a poignant, "small" drama, and he paces the scenes so slowly that the movie feels twice as long as it actually is. Scenes that beg for another take play on much too long; other scenes are cut short before they've really fully played out. Cage does have a striking sense of color and composition, yet simple dialogue scenes are too often staged too awkward by half. I've often thought that Cage is the kind of actor who is dependent on a strong director, someone to reign in his self-indulgent tendencies and push him to
explore less well-trodden territories (see the great 'Adaptation' for a recent example). The same, it appears, is true of his own direction.
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Directors are really like their movies. I like Nicolas Cage as an actor and I give him more credit than most people and critics do. His looks are good for the type of characters he always plays but he in my opinion should stick to acting, rather than directing movies, or he should at least next time pick a more interesting script.
The movie tries hard and its intentions are all good but the movie just isn't quite 'it'. The events and situations in this movie are just far from interesting. characters come and go, that it becomes hard to see where the movie is trying to head to and what it tries to achieve. For a serious movie that's about a gigolo the movie stays surprisingly much on the 'choir boy' and good, positive side of things. On top of that the movie moves too slow at points and some sequences go on for far too long. It's obvious that Cage wanted to make the movie and its feel more 'European' than 'Hollywood', but he should just leave 'European' movie making to Europeans next time.
The main character is such an unpredictable and aggressive one that it's also hard to sympathize for him at moments, as is the case with almost every other character in the movie.
The actors all mostly did a good job. Nicolas Cage obviously has some good connections in Hollywood, also thanks to his family of course. It's a good and real character movie but it's just too bad that the script and characters in it isn't any better.
It's not that this movie is really bad, it's more that if offers so little refreshing, interesting or original. No wonder that the movie got overlooked and is so little known to people.
6/10
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marnifrances8 May 2007I thought this film would blow me away and might be original considering the subject matter. I was wrong. The acting was less than average from 3 actors that are usually brilliant. The characters are inconsistently played (except for Brenda Blethyn), probably due to poor direction. Blethyn's character is over the top and melodramatic. Mena's is wispy and under-played and James Franco's doesn't have half the impact it should.
In short, without spoiling the plot, I expected far more from Nicolas Cage and from the actors.
Poor effort from a story that had the potential to be interesting, emotional and gripping. -
ssovrobert7 September 2004Am baffled at the low ratings and poor reviews this film has gotten. Would this still have been the case if Nick Cage were not an A-List actor? I thought this film to be a phenomenal character piece that kept me gripped until the very end. James Franco once again shows his chops as one of the best actors of his generation. Perhaps the film was a little too real for many to take and showed a life of prositution that was not through Hollywood goggles (ie Pretty Woman). With the exception of Scott Caan, all the performances were stellar and the movie was a phenomenal debut for any first time director. I hope that you haters out there do not sway Mr. Cage away from his position behind the lens.
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caspian197827 July 200499% of Sonny's audience is present to watch one scene. The nudity from actress "Josie" fueled many video stores to carry copies of this movie across this great country of ours. The end result, a good movie taken for granted. Still, for an independent film, this is not. For such a large budget and some interesting cast members, the movie falls shorts for the right reasons. The plot and characters are both interesting but loses its flavor somewhere during the half way point. Cage as a Director could have gotten a lot for P.A., if he marketed it right. James Franco proves that he is more than just a pretty face, he can act and act with his entire body. Still, the audience for this movie rests in the fan base of nudity. A Sundance or Art Festival feast, it landed off the table and onto the floor where the dogs of the T & A fan base ate it up like it was the last supper. A more gritty story with a smaller budget would have turned more heads and made more of an impression.
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SONNYK_USA23 May 2005Even a well-known cast of respected actors can't bring this ill-conceived project by actor turned director Nicolas Cage ("Adaptation") to either a dramatic or sexual 'climax' for that matter.
It's a shame that a major actor like Cage who's had the opportunity to work with almost every great director in Hollywood could have gleaned so little info about the craft of film-making.
The only thing I can say in Cage's defense is that he did hire a competent crew and he shot on film and not digital video (as opposed to real worst movie of 2002 - "Chelsea Walls" - the digital disaster by fellow first-time actor-director Ethan Hawke).
Therefore, Cage's film really isn't the worst of the year since it is at the very least - 'technically' competent, but all other creative aspects are amateurish at best. This forces an above-average cast of actors to overcompensate with mawkish, over-the-top performances - leaving the audience with no one to root for or care about.
Only Cage's marquee value (as an actor) could have gotten this soon-to-be video release a limited run in theaters (for the moment), but it won't be too long into 2003 before it hits video shelves.
Possible rental for curiosity-seekers only! You've been warned!