Nicolas Cage has made quite a lot of movies, trust me I know as I’ve been slowly working my way through them and reviewing all of the ones available on Blu-ray in the UK. I’ve also had to import a few that play on UK Blu-ray players due to a lack of a United Kingdom release. The next film up for review fortunately has had UK release and is a strange black comedy. It sees Cage team up with Laura Dern in director David Lynch’s highly entertaining Wild at Heart from 1990. It’s a certificate 18 film and includes adult themes and content. Anyway let’s take a closer look, so without further ado here’s my Wild at Heart blu-ray review.
- Wild at Heart (1990)
- Genre: Black Comedy/Crime Drama
- Directed by David Lynch
- UK Rating 18
- Discs: 1
- Released By Universal Pictures
- Blu-ray Released: 4 June 2012
Plot
Lovers Sailor and Lula (Cage & Dern) decide to leave everything behind and hit the road. Along the way there’s plenty of excitment from wild nights out to plenty of bedroom activity. However what they are running from is about to catch up with them and challenge their love for one another.
Style / Direction
David Lynch directs whilst the cinematography is handled by Frederick Elmes. For the most part Wild at Heart is a classic road movie that see’s two lovers driving through America passing through small towns and meeting strange people. It looks great and director Lynch delivers an incredibly stylish and well told story.
Music / Audio Effects
The music is composed by Angelo Badalamenti although much of the film features well known songs that are integral to the overall story and experience. It’s a pretty awesome soundtrack if I’m being honest.
Acting / Characters
Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern both put in terrific performances which are equally impressive. They seem to bounce off each other so well you genuinely feel they really are in love, even if it is a crazy kind of relationship.
However this is not your typical romance, oh no this is one set inside a kind of Wizard of Oz reality. Sure it’s real America but both characters seem to occupy a different place within it with only each other truly understanding it.
Backing up the lead actors is a rather exceptional line-up including Diane Ladd, Willem Dafoe and Harry Dean Stanton. Not a bad cast right? In fact it’s this casting by David Lynch that really makes this film stand out and shine. Good story, great directing and outstanding acting best sum up Wild at Heart (1990).
Cast
- Nicolas Cage as Sailor Ripley
- Laura Dern as Lula Pace Fortune
- Diane Ladd as Marietta Fortune, Lula’s mother
- Willem Dafoe as Bobby Peru
- Harry Dean Stanton as Johnnie Farragut
- Isabella Rossellini as Perdita Durango
- J. E. Freeman as Marcello Santos
- W. Morgan Sheppard as Mr. Reindeer
- Crispin Glover as Dell
Conclusion: Wild at Heart (1990) Film Review
If you are looking for a rather surreal black comedy romance then director David Lynch is probably the right man to call. He delivers all of that along with an incredibly stylish vision in a fast paced way that still manages plenty of time for character development. Cage and Dern as the two committed and wild lovers deliver superb performances and ones that you will remember long after the films end. There are plenty of sex scenes, this is a certificate 18 but they are done tastefully and actually to the benefit of the storyline.
Overall I haven’t anything particularly negative to say about the film, in fact I recommend you pick this one up.
If you enjoyed my Wild at Heart blu-ray review so far you may want to check out the following films:
Conclusion: Wild at Heart Blu-ray Review
This Blu-ray version came out back in 2012 and it’s fair to say Universal Pictures didn’t seem to care too much about re-mastering their titles back then. That means most of their earlier Blu-ray releases, whilst having improved resolution all seem to suffering from frequent annoying marks flicking on screen from time to time. Wild at Heart is no different and whilst it’s not terrible it’s certainly could use a clean-up and re-release.
Extras
David Lynch Short Films:
- The Grandmother (1970) (34 mins)
- Lumiere & Company (1 min)
Popcorn Cinema Rating: Wild at Heart (1990)
MOVIE RATING: WELL WORTH WATCHING
BLU-RAY RATING: AVERAGE
EXTRAS: OK
Purchase Wild at Heart (1990) On Blu-ray
Wild at Heart (1990) is available now on blu-ray.
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Wild at Heart (1990) Trailer
For those of you yet to see the film I’ll leave you with a little taster…
Clip may not be representative of the blu-ray version
That’s concludes my Wild at Heart blu-ray review, I’ve been reviewing all of Nicolas Cage’s movies that are available on blu-ray, preferably UK releases but there are a couple of imported ones included. You can read those review here and don’t forget to check back each week as I slowly work my through them all.
Summary: Wild at Heart (1990) Blu-ray Review
Movie title: Wild at Heart (1990)
Duration: 125 mins
Director(s): David Lynch
Actor(s): Nicolas Cage, Laura Dern, Diane Ladd, Willem Dafoe, Harry Dean Stanton
Genre: Romance, Black Comedy
- Movie Rating
- Blu-ray Picture Rating
- Extras
Summary
Good story, great directing and outstanding acting by both Cage and Dern.
Pros
- Nicolas Cage/Laura Dern
- Great Acting/Direction
- Fun Story
Cons
- Picture Quality Could Be Better
