Time to Kill is another early film in Nicolas Cages' career that I had not seen, or even heard of, until recently. I have always liked him as an actor, so I was automatically intrigued to watch the film. I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, and I think Cage gives one of his best performances of his entire career.
Time to Kill is the story of an Italian Army Lieutenant who is suffering from a toothache, travels to the nearest hospital to get it treated, but encounters many horrors throughout his journey. In fact, that is the most intriguing thing about this movie. The experiences that Lieutenant Silvestri (Nicolas Cage) has throughout the film are almost, if not just as, terrible as experiencing the war itself. There are even times when you think that Silvestri would have been better off fighting in the war. This is a heavy film to get through, and some of the characters are downright unlikable. In fact, this might be one of those movies that you only watch once a year. However, this is an incredibly well-made film that I highly recommend you make the effort to watch. There are a few plot holes with this movie that I must address. Firstly, it is unclear where the war in this film is being fought. I actually had to do some research online to find out that the war was being fought in Ethiopia in 1936. Also, at one point in the movie, Silvestri accidentally shoots a woman and kills her. We do not learn this womans' name until moments before her death, and her name-drop feels completely random. Later in the film, Silvestri has a standoff with an enemy, and his enemy has stolen has his gun. Silvestri reveals that he has unloaded his gun so that the enemy cannot fire it. While this plot point can be somewhat debatable as to whether it should be seen or not, I personally feel it necessary. Despite these extremely minor flaws, this is an incredible film that every movie buff should have in their collection.
Nicolas Cage plays Enrico Silvestri. This is one of Cages' most emotional and vulnerable performances. Silvestri is a man who has plenty of war experience, but when it comes to surviving on his own in the wilderness, he has no idea what to do or where to go. He suffers horrors beyond his imagination, and because of that he will have personal demons for the rest of his life. The scene where he accidentally shoots and kills a local woman is particularly moving because there is no one/nowhere to go to for help. Even though Silvestri is not a likable character in the slightest, his journey is quite remarkable. Cage is brilliant in this film.
Giuliano Montaldo is the director of Time to Kill. I like what Montaldo does with this movie for a couple of reasons: Firstly, the wide shots that show Silvestri traveling across the vast landscape are absolutely spectacular, and almost make you forget about all of the terrible things that have happened to this character. Second, I like the way all of the incidents are filmed. Montaldo does a brilliant job of making us feel like we are experiencing these events along with Silvestri, which makes you feel empathy for the character even though he is not particularly likable. Montaldo does a fine job directing this movie.
Time to Kill is heavy on dramatic storytelling and dark character arcs. However, it is a must for any film connoisseur. This film might be hard to find, but if you do, I highly suggest that you pick it up.
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