Butcher's Crossing (Nicolas Cage)

[Hoke Moseley]

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/mo...ng-1234971435/

A new Nicolas Cage film project is hitting the international market.

Altitude is unveiling Butcher’s Crossing, described as “an epic frontier adventure” that will star Cage, who in recent years has proven to be one of the most eclectic and unpredictable of thespians.

Gabe Polsky, who directed documentaries Red Army and Red Penguins, is making his narrative feature debut with the project. It is also a reunion of sorts, as Polsky was a producer on Cage’s 2009 movie Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans.

Altitude is handling international sales and will introduce the project to buyers at the Cannes Virtual Market, 21-25 June. Altitude has also secured the film for U.K. and Irish distribution.

According to Altitude, Crossing is a frontier epic in which a young Harvard dropout seeks his destiny out West by tying his fate to a team of buffalo hunters led by Miller, who will be played by Cage. Together, they embark on a harrowing journey risking life and sanity.

The project is based on the novel by John Williams, which explores man’s relationship with the natural world. Polsky wrote the adaptation with Liam Satre-Meloy.

“This is an urgent story with timeless themes — a gut-wrenching journey exploring the limits of human nature,” said Polsky.

Shooting is due to begin in October in the U.S.

Producing are Polsky, Molly Conners of Phipen Pictures, and Will Clarke and Andy Mayson of Altitude Film Entertainment. Cage’s Saturn Films will also produce.

Altitude is noting that wildlife conservation charity Defenders of Wildlife and American adventurer and writer Steve Rinella will also be involved.

The novel is excellent. Excited for this.

[kylor]

Oh heck yeah. More Cage is always good.

[ManBeast]

The sounds right up my street!

[Himmel]

First Look

[levcore]

Have we ever seen Cage with a shaved head before? I always thought he had plugs, I guess it's just a wig lol.

[BloodshotUSA]

Originally Posted by levcore

Have we ever seen Cage with a shaved head before? I always thought he had plugs, I guess it's just a wig lol.

I assume he is wearing a bald cap and didn't actually shave his head. If he did, who knows if his hair would grow back.

[Heinz-Klett]

Trailer:

BUTCHER'S CROSSING - Official Trailer - YouTube

coming to select movie theaters on October 20

[russweiss1]

Originally Posted by BloodshotUSA

I assume he is wearing a bald cap and didn't actually shave his head. If he did, who knows if his hair would grow back.

Saw this last night. It's a limited release and only playing at two theaters in my area. The film wasn't very interesting.

[Show spoiler]The story focuses on Cage and his hunting party but it's basically the story about white men's greed and the near extinction of buffalo over a 20 year period.

I like Cage but felt his character could have been played by almost anyone. I read that Cage did shave his head for the movie.

[HotRats]

Last 40 minutes are good. Unfortunately they are preceded by an hour of boredom

[Orian]

Any news on an international (more specifically the Netherlands) release?

I assume this is based on the book of the same name by John Williams
, which is one of the best western books in my opinion.

[BloodshotUSA]

I finally got the chance to watch this. There were parts that were enjoyable but overall but I found it underwhelming.

The films starts off strong, but the story just of kind of begins to meander at a certain point. I thought the most interesting part of the story was the one they focused the least on: winter arrives and the snow blocks their path back home. They are stuck in the wild until spring which is 6 months away. That should have been most of the movie. They could've showed all 4 guys slowly unraveling and beginning to hate each other. Watching nature get the best of them. Instead its like 10 minutes of the movie.

It felt like the movie wanted to be an allegory of human greed. It seemed like that based on the title cards after the movie ended. But I just didn't get that from the movie, it seemed like Cage's character was more obsessed in killing the Buffalo than actually making money off of them. There is even a point while shooting them that he starts to mumble to himself about revenge for them nearly killing him.

Cage's performance was great. It's a very subtle but effective performance playing a guy who has lost his mind/all rationality.

Fred Hechinger plays Will, the kid who puts the money together for the hunting party. I thought it was an underwhelming performance. I feel like he was supposed to be our POV character, he felt less important as the movie went along. He barely talks in the second half and he has a bunch of hallucinations that don't lead to anything.

I feel like the ending (and for the Will character in particular) was supposed to have this profound meaning, but it just fell flat for me.

The other two people on the hunt, one of them is Xander Berkeley, do a great job. I thought the guy who played the skinner was more interesting as a character than Will. At least he had the guts to stand up to Cage's character.

Rachel Keller from Fargo/Legion has like 2 scenes in this randomly at the beginning. Then Will hallucinates about her but she never shows up again. Kind or random to see an actress at her level in such a nothing role.

___

5/10. I'm a huge Nic Cage fan and I wouldn't recommend this. If you get can a good deal to rent it on VOD then check it out, but don't go out of your way to watch this.