When news first emerged that actor Nicolas Cage was going to star in a Portland-filmed movie called “Pig,” about a man in search of his abducted truffle-hunting pig, some people were skeptical. Cage is an Oscar-winning actor, of course. But his career choices have been eclectic, including a few movies that, let’s just say, didn’t seem quite up to his level of talent.
But guess what? “Pig” isn’t bad. And critics have been praising Cage’s performance as “magnificent,” and the film as “open-minded and open-hearted.”
That’s not to say that “Pig” works perfectly. It’s aggressively slow-paced. A sequence involving some sort of underground fight club, in which Portland chefs pummel guys, is bizarre, violent and makes no sense whatsoever. The film’s tone varies between moments that verge on satirical comedy (a waitress’ description of an over-the-top dish sounds like a “Portlandia” routine), and anguished emotion.
But first-time feature director Michael Sarnoski, who also wrote “Pig,” has a vision, with Cage’s character at the center. The movie has a mournful, melancholy quality that feels sincere and delicate, and Cage’s depth of feeling makes “Pig” a study not of an unlikely action hero seeking revenge, but of a sensitive man trying to deal with loss.
The movie begins with Rob (Cage) living in a ramshackle cabin in the woods. Shaggy-haired and disheveled, he leads a life that revolves around going on truffle-hunting expeditions with his pig. Rob supports himself by selling truffles to Amir (Alex Wolff), who then supplies the precious morsels to restaurants in Portland.
Rob’s simple existence is thrown into turmoil when he’s attacked, and thieves steal his pig. Determined to find his pig, Rob eventually has to call on Amir for help getting to Portland. It turns out that Rob once was a respected chef in Portland, so exquisitely gifted that a meal he prepared for Amir’s parents became a legendary event in their lives.
Back in Portland, Rob’s quest to find his pig leads him to that unlikely fight club, run by a nasty piece of work (Darius Pierce) who has some kind of lair beneath Pioneer Courthouse Square. Fortunately, the film doesn’t spend much time going down that outlandish dead-end. Instead, we watch as Rob revisits places that suggest what he left behind.
It’s not stated explicitly why Rob turned his back on his career, and headed off to be a recluse in the woods. But in scenes in which Rob and Amir get to know more about each other, we learn more about them.
Admittedly, “Pig” sometimes goes to extremes in establishing that Rob is now an outsider. After being beaten up, for example, Rob doesn’t bother to wash off the dried blood that has caked on his face. No wonder a chef Rob knew back in the old days nervously asks, when they meet again, if Rob needs medical attention. Considering the scraggly hair, decrepit clothes and caked blood he’s sporting, Rob doesn’t raise that many eyebrows, which is a tribute to Portlanders’ tolerance, if an odd storytelling choice.
Even when we’re not sure where this is going, “Pig” is affecting. Adding to the film’s texture are fine performances by Wolff, Adam Arkin as Amir’s businessman father, and locally based actors, including Gretchen Corbett, Beth Harper and Dana Millican. Oregon chefs Christopher Czarnecki and Gabriel Rucker appear in the end credits as food consultants.
“Pig” is scheduled to play at Century 16 Cedar Hills Crossing in Beaverton; Regal Movies on TV in Hillsboro; Century 16 Eastport Plaza in Portland; Studio One Theaters in Portland; Cinema 21 in Portland; Regal Fox Tower in Portland; Laurelhurst Theater in Portland; and Regal Bridgeport Village in Tigard.
-- Kristi Turnquist
kturnquist@oregonian.com 503-221-8227 @Kristiturnquist