Summer is still a few months away, but Lionsgate is about to warm things up with its sun-soakedNicolas Cagepsychological thrillerThe Surfer. Before the beloved actor delivered a chilling performance asthe demented titular killerofOz Perkins’sLonglegslast year, the film generated plenty of buzz atCannes, where it debuted to rave reviews and a six-minute standing ovation. In it, Cage takes up the role of a businessman returning to his Australian beachside hometown for the first time in years, only to be denied access to the beach he loved as a kid. The official trailer released today shows his desperate fight against the surfer locals who exclude him, escalating the conflict to terrifying levels as he refuses to give up.
The Surferbegins with Cage’s titular Surfer trying to take his teenage son to the beach to reconnect. Nothing is going right for him between his broken marriage, his frayed relationship with his child, and his job that, while fruitful, isn’t what he dreamed of when living in Australia. Things get much worse when he meets the gang of surfers, led by a viciousJulian McMahon, who lord over his childhood beach and threaten him. Completely humiliated, he remains at the beach alone to stand against the powerful thugs, even as their abuse only gets more violent. With everyone around him seemingly against him and the heat only rising with each passing day, hequickly reaches his breaking pointas the place he’s spent his life trying to return to completely rejects him.
The role is right up Cage’s alley after hispast over-the-top partsas increasingly mad characters in films likeVampire’s KissandMandy. It also helps to have a co-star who’s great at playing the villain, as McMahon demonstrated withhis menacing portrayal of Victor Von Doom. According to the formerFantastic Fourstar, Cage brought a lot of creativity and infectious energy to the set that madeThe Surfereven more of a joy to work on for the rest of the cast. In an interview with Collider’sSteve Weintraublast year, he recalled how the Oscar winnerbrought the best out of everyoneinvolved in crafting the “brutal” thriller:
“I’ve been watching him since, I don’t know,Raising Arizonaor something really early, and then a fan of a lot of stuff that’s coming out now. He’s one of those actors who really carries things on his own energy and his own ability of interpretation and performance. He’s just always interesting. That said, you never know what somebody’s like until you meet them and you get to work with them, but he’s just a bundle of energy, and he’s a bundle of creativity, and he’s very thoughtful, and he’s very inclusive. He wants everybody on set to be as invested in it as he is, and he invites you to be a part of that process. I like that, too. I like everybody to be working as hard as they can because they’re enjoying themselves and they’re getting a lot out of it. He’s very giving, and available, and professional.”
‘The Surfer’ Brings Together an Authentic Ensemble
A co-production between Australia and Ireland,The Surferwas directed byVivariumhelmerLorcan Finneganand written byPrime Targetepisode writerThomas Martin. To fit with the Down Under setting, the talented ensemble heavily featured native Australian actors, withNicholas Cassim, Miranda Tapsell, Alexander Bertrand, Justin Rosniak, Rahel Romahn, Finn Little, andCharlotte Maggiamong those joining Cage and McMahon. Though Collider’sEmma Kielywasn’t sold on the storyin her 6/10 review of the film, she had high praise for the direction and pure insanity brought by the cast, particularly Cage, saying “Finnegan’s direction continues to mature, making a movie about, essentially, people being horrible to each other, into an engaging thrill ride that makes you severely nauseous but you still don’t want to get off.”
The Surferwill be released in theaters on May 2. Check out the trailer in the player above.
The Surfer
