Movies - TV
Why John Travolta Thinks He Had An Easier Time On Face/Off Than Nicolas Cage
By JEREMY SMITH
John Woo's "Face/Off" cast two of the most successful actors of Hollywood in 1997 to sell the film’s absurd premise about a cop (John Travolta) infiltrating the syndicate run by his criminal nemesis (Nicolas Cage), who also killed his son. Oh, and they both undergo plastic surgery to look like each other.
Travolta says he had an easy time impersonating Cage (thanks to Cage’s unmistakable demeanor), but Cage had to watch Travolta’s films, including “Look Who’s Talking,” to really get the hang of how to play him accurately. Travolta had better screen presence, because he was role-playing his wild criminal nemesis, while his co-star had to role-play a righteous cop.
Sadly, most of Travolta’s projects after “Face/Off” have been unworthy of his talent, compared to Cage who can still disappear into a role when it’s worthy of him (like he did in “Mandy” and “Pig”). Perhaps, Travolta needs to step back into Cage’s shoes (sans the plastic surgery) to see if he can get inspired to give his first great performance of the 21st century.