Nicolas Cage interview: ‘Pig’

“The whole reason why I wanted to make this movie was this line. Everything gets distilled down to that one line,” Oscar winner Nicolas Cage reveals about a pivotal moment of introspection in “Pig” when Cage utters the line “we don’t get a lot of things to really care about,” which concludes a heartfelt monologue in which his character suggests following your dreams over settling for expediency. “That’s it, isn’t that a beautiful, liberating way of looking at things? We don’t get a lot of things to really care about,” he sighs. “Why not just enjoy the things we really do care about and stop worrying about everything else?” Watch our exclusive video interview above.

SEE Exclusive Video Interview: Alex Wolff (‘Pig’)

Neon’s “Pig” is Michael Sarnoski‘s feature directorial debut, from a screenplay he co-wrote with Vanessa Block. The indie drama stars Oscar winner Cage as Rob, a once-revered chef turned off-the-grid woodsman and truffle forager, whose truffle-finding pig is suddenly stolen from him. Alex Wolff co-stars as Amir, a rich city kid who helps Rob in his quest to find the pig, as the two men develop a deep bond as they each reckon with their own personal heartache and sorrow.

“Pig” has garnered rave reviews across the board since its release July last year, scoring an impressive 97% “fresh” approval rating at Rotten Tomatoes, with the website noting that the film “defies the hogwash of expectations with a beautiful odyssey of loss and love” anchored by Cage’s “affectingly raw performance.” The film has scored nominations from various regional critics groups, while Sarnoksi and Block vie for Best First Screenplay at the upcoming Independent Spirit Awards.

“Pig” is at its most compelling when the camera lingers on Cage’s face, which is broken and weathered both physically and emotionally. There’s this profound grief and despair in Rob, who is paralyzed in mourning over the death of his wife, and who is suddenly confronted once again with losing something he treasures and loves, forcing him to emerge from his self-imposed exile. Cage admits that he was able to dig so deep in part because of the deep bond that he developed with the cast and crew, especially Sarnoski, Block and Wolff.

“It was a perfect marriage with Michael and Vanessa and Alex. To sit down and just have it flow. It was very easy and it was almost effortless. We didn’t do more than one or two takes. I felt that Michael and I were completely in sync,” he shares. “I would say I was in awe, but I still don’t fully understand how we had this alchemy together. It was like lightning in a bottle. It was these little collisions with Alex and with Michael and Vanessa,” he explains, admitting that “it doesn’t happen often. Maybe this is the second time it’s happened in 43 years of doing this started when I was 15, but it just was one of those things that came together in a way that was kismet, you know, and that’s the element that you never know. That’s the x-factor. You never know where it’s going to come from or when it’s going to happen, but it did.”