Mandy Movie Review

Mandy (2018)

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Written by: Panos Cosmatos and Aaron Stewart-Ahn (written by), Panos Cosmatos (story by)
Directed by: Panos Cosmatos
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Andrea Riseborough, Bill Duke
Rated: NR [R]
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Plot
The enchanted lives of a couple in a secluded forest are brutally shattered by a nightmarish hippie cult and their demon-biker henchmen, propelling a man into a spiraling, surreal rampage of vengeance.

Verdict
This movie is some kind of wild nightmare trip. It's made to feel older and low budget. That and it's just weird. To get the full experience you need to see it, but it's simply too long and not for everyone. The first half isn't far from a random collection of scenes. Nicolas Cage adds credence and name recognition. Without him this movie would be much easier to dismiss, but his reputation for crazy roles is the biggest factor in this movie.
It depends.

Review
Nearly from the start this is an odd movie. It doesn't provide much information and even less context.
A logger Red (Nicolas Cage) lives with his girlfriend Mandy (Andrea Riseborough). This is almost an assortment of scenes. There's a bizarre biker gang and a cult. It's a strange movie that's heavy on style, and it's favorite color is red. It feels like heavy metal music in movie form. It intentionally tries for a low budget indie feel, but it is entertaining. While it's long you just never know where this is going.

Nicolas Cage, Andrea Riseborough play Red, Mandy

The entire movie is a trip which helps hide how little happens. It's meandering and the first half should be at least thirty minutes shorter, but this exists exactly as intended. Mandy is captured by a religious cult and Red plans to save her. His plight doesn't happen until over half way in which is much too late.

Nicolas Cage plays Red

It's a movie you need to see to get the full experience, though it isn't for everyone. This keeps getting crazier, and while I like the style it's just too long. This movie is a nightmare, some kind of psychedelic action movie that is also peak Nicolas Cage. Cage certainly adds credence and name recognition. Without him this movie is a lot easier to dismiss. His performance helps, but his reputation as willing to take nearly any role and his over the top performances are the biggest factors for this movie. This is a Nicolas Cage movie, something crazy he did for the paycheck.