April 10, 2022

Square pasta and don't get me started on the praying mantis.

Nicolas Cage just did what some say was the best Ask Me Anything ever. Here's the whole thread at Reddit. 

Asked "What's your favourite pasta shape?," he said:

I once went to an Italian restaurant in San Francisco about 25 years ago with Charlie Sheen because they had square tube pasta and he was very interested in trying square tube pasta and we did and we loved it so much we went back the next day to try it again. 

And everyone Googled "square tube pasta."

Asked "Do you like bees?," he said: 

Yes. I would have to say they’re my favorite insect. They make us honey. Bees, and then the firefly. And ants are interesting. Bumble bees are quite adorable. Don't get me started on the praying mantis. I told David Cronenberg once that the praying mantis was the most ferocious of the insects and he so said no, and I said what is, and he said the dragon fly larvae and he said that the beast in the Alien movies was designed after the dragon fly larvae because it shoots its teeth out and when it attacks.

And somebody said, "I think we might need to put 'Don't get me started on the praying mantis' on the banner of the subreddit." 

Asked a more apt question for actor — "Who is your favorite character in all of literature and film?" — he said:

That is so hard to answer. I will say that James Dean’s performance as Cal in East of Eden is largely the reason I became a film actor. His role in that is one of my favorite characters in cinema. But then we can go all the way to Rasputin...

I presume he meant Raskolnikov...

... or we can go to Dmitri Karamazov. Dmitri Karamazov is one my favorite characters in literature. I love him so much because he’s so happy and he has no money. He’s just living it up. He spent all his money trying to get the girl. I did the same thing once. I was very Dmitri Karamazov in high school. The most beautiful girl in high school who was a grade older than me invited me to the prom but I had no money. My grandmother gave each of us a little bond. My older brother bought a car. My second oldest brother bought some stereo equipment. And I splashed out on a chauffeur-driven limousine, a tuxedo and a four course meal at Le Dome on Sunset blvd. The car was $2000, the stereo was $2000, and my prom night was $2000 and man, that was money well spent. THAT’s Dmitri Karamazov.

His favorite movie of all his movies? 

15 comments:

Kevin said...

I prefer square pasta in the shape of round pasta.

David Begley said...

Wiki, “Cage's third wife is Alice Kim. They were married at a private ranch in northern California on July 30, 2004.She gave birth to their son, Kal-El (after Superman's birth name), on October 3, 2005.”

He’s been married five times.

Temujin said...

Wow...great clip. Just last night we were looking through a list of 'best indie movies of 2021' to pick something out to watch. "Pig" was on the list and I was eyeballing it, but somehow we ended up watching a cute/funny flick called "Shiva Baby". Not a great movie, but it did nail the characters and was funny in parts.

But watching the clips on "Pig" makes me want to watch that next. Also...looking forward to "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent". Cage is such a bizarre actor. Sometimes he's great. Sometimes he's so bad, or the movie he's in is so bad you think he's lost it. But it's all worked to develop a huge cult following. And a new movie featuring him playing him. He's reveling in his bizarreness.

Still love his role as 'Hi' in the Coen Brothers, "Arizona".

Bob Boyd said...

After watching the clip, I looked up Pig to see where I could stream it. Here's one of the first things to come up on the search:

This film sets itself up to be a John Wick style movie. Pig is captured, violently, and loner woodsman is off to rescue it. That just screams action movie.

Ice Nine said...

>And I splashed out on a chauffeur-driven limousine, a tuxedo and a four course meal at Le Dome on Sunset blvd. The car was $2000, the stereo was $2000, and my prom night was $2000 and man, that was money well spent.<

Not terribly surprising for a fool who bankrupted himself by pissing away a $150M fortune on crappy investments like private islands and obscure castles and overpriced cars...and dinosaur skulls.

Joe Smith said...

He seems like a really, really weird guy who is always entertaining on screen.

If his prom date was the most beautiful girl at Beverly Hills High School in the early '80s, then guaranteed she was an incredible hottie.

And if little Nic got up to any mischief in the back of that limo, I'm sure he considers it the best money he ever spent : )

Ann Althouse said...

"Not terribly surprising for a fool who bankrupted himself by pissing away a $150M fortune on crappy investments like private islands and obscure castles and overpriced cars...and dinosaur skulls."

Maybe an actor should be a fool. A very great fool.

Ann Althouse said...

I've blogged very little about NC over my 18 years, but I did blog about that T Rex skull (where he outbid Leonardo DiCaprio).

heyboom said...

Back in 2005 or so, when I was working at an FBO in SoCal, he and his wife and kid came through for a trip on his private jet. I spent a little time with him getting his bags and such and he was a very pleasant guy and approachable. I've heard that he is actually afraid of flying and uses a little liquid courage to compensate. He did seem slightly buzzed to me that day.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I bought a stripper a round trip ticket to Florida, with my second tax return, after she told me a story. I remember she could do something extraordinare with her regularly specially attended-to body part. I was hypnotized 😵‍💫

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

The prom limo, expensive restaurant story was in the plot of 'Some Kind of Wonderful' (1987)

Narr said...

If he had nailed the HS hottie, don't you think he'd say so?

Jefferson's Revenge said...

Isn’t he related to a great director? A nephew I think. Forget which one..he was great in Leaving Las Vegas. As was Elizabeth Shue. Emotionally disturbing but good.

Saint Croix said...

Added Pig to my queue. Thanks!

Will Sullivan said...

Pig is a seriously brilliant and wonderful film. As understated as it is underrated. After you watch that, go watch him in Mandy. I'm convinced he's playing the same character in both films, Pig being set after the events of Mandy.