An NPR "Books We Love" 2022"Age of Cage might be the closest we will get to understanding the singular beauty of each of Nic Cage's always electric performances. You are holding the Rosetta Stone for Cage. Enjoy it."-Paul Scheer, actor, writer and host of the How Did This Get Made? and Unspooled podcastsIcon. Celebrity. Artist. Madman. Genius. Nicolas Cage is many things, but love him, or laugh at him, there's no denying two things: you've seen one of his many films, and you certainly know his name. But who is he, really, and why has his career endured for over forty years, with more than a hundred films, and birthed a million memes?Age of Cage is a smart, beguiling book about the films of Nicolas Cage and the actor himself, as well as a sharp-eyed examination of the changes that have taken place in Hollywood over the course of his career. Critic and journalist Keith Phipps draws a portrait of the enigmatic icon by looking at-what else?-Cage's expansive filmography.As Phipps delights in charting Cage's films, Age of Cage also chronicles the transformation of film, as Cage's journey takes him through the world of 1980s comedies (Valley Girl, Peggy Sue Got Married, Moonstruck), to the indie films and blockbuster juggernauts of the 1990s (Wild at Heart, Leaving Las Vegas, Face/Off, Con Air), through the wild and unpredictable video-on-demand world of today. Sweeping in scope and intimate in its profile of a fiercely passionate artist, Age of Cage is, like the man himself, surprising, insightful, funny, and one of a kind. So, snap out of it, and enjoy this appreciation of Nicolas Cage, national treasure.

Introduction: The Meaning of Cage1: The Origins of Cage2: Valley of the Cage3: Cage Unchained4: The Rage of Cage5: Wandering Cage6: The Softer Side of Cage7: The Year of Cage8: Action Cage9: The Heights of Cage10: The Two Cages11: The Unmaking of Cage12: Endless CageAfterword: Cage to the FutureThe Complete Cageography: A Capsule Guide to the Films of Nicolas CageWorks CitedAcknowledgmentsIllustration Credits