Can ‘Spider-Noir’ cure my Nicolas Cage rage?
Can ‘Spider-Noir’ cure my Nicolas Cage rage?
The star of “Spider-Noir” earned my ire more than 15 years ago. Can his new show quiet it?
If the sign of a good movie is that it made you feel something, I suppose the 2009 sci-fi mystery film “Knowing” did its job. I came out of that film feeling not just bored, but angry that my time had been so carelessly wasted. The amateur film critic in me had even harsher things to say, but such thoughts are best left in the past.
One casualty of my disdain for the movie was my estimation of Nicolas Cage, the film’s lead actor. Perhaps he’s only guilty by association and doesn’t truly deserve the blame for my opinion of the movie’s quality, but through the years, all of his other performances have been colored by my bad memories of “Knowing.” That’s what makes me so fascinated by, and oddly excited for, Cage’s first starring role in a TV show. This week, the iconic Hollywood star steps into the role of Ben Reilly in the live-action MGM+ and Prime Video series “Spider-Noir.”
Reilly is an out-of-luck private investigator struggling to make ends meet in 1930s New York City. As he ages, he is forced to grapple with his past life as The Spider, the city’s one and only superhero. But when peril threatens the city once again, Reilly has no choice but to become The Spider once again.
Cage actually first took on the role of “Spider Noir” in the animated “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” and I had to admit when I saw the movie that he was an ideal choice for the role. But a transition to live action is something else entirely; plenty of cartoon-to-live-action transitions with more well-established characters than Cage’s Ben Reilly have flopped over the years.
But perhaps there’s a freedom in that — a room for Cage to make the character his own, while still honoring the roots of the noir Spider-Man that originated in a 2009 Marvel comic book. I have to admit, all the trailers for the show thus far have given me reason to think I’ll have a great deal of fun watching the show.
Watch a trailer for ‘Spider-Noir’
There are a lot of other reasons I’m excited for “Spider-Noir” that have nothing to do with Cage. His costars are one — Lamorne Morris turned in an incredible performance as State Trooper Whitley Farr in Season 5 of “Fargo,” and Brendan Gleeson is going to be fantastic as the Irish mob boss Silvermane.
I also think giving viewers the choice to watch “Spider-Noir” in color or black-and-white is a nice marketing ploy by Amazon. I’ll probably try the show in both to see if the monochrome presentation really adds an old-timey feel to the show.
All of it may be for naught if Cage can’t earn himself back into my good graces, however. I’m excited to see if he can pull it off! “Spider-Noir” will premiere on the MGM+ premium cable channel on Monday, May 25, at 2:30 p.m. ET, and on Prime Video on Wednesday, May 27.
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