The Story of Milan Garage Clearing
There’s a lot to like in Out with the Old, a movie that features Nicolas Cage as a gritty ex-gangster in the dying days of the American West. It’s his first-ever Western, and the performance is a surprisingly good one for the actor who has long been known as a DTV-era star.
It starts well, with Nicolas Cage smirking his way through the film as a grizzled gangster who’s had enough of the law and the young hoodlums who run his neighbourhood. He’s not alone in his sentiment: so are three of his old mates, including the smug Aaron (Danny Hatchard) and the clueless JP. They’re all out to make the youngsters see how bad they are by kidnapping them, torturing them and killing them.
While it’s great to see Cage having some fun with this type of role, the story could have been much better. It starts strong and should have been an excellent revenge film, but the script and directing threw the ball into the air at the wrong moment, and we end up with a hammer-and-tinkering ending that didn’t really fit in with the rest of the story.
Out with the Old, In with the New: The Story of Milan Garage Clearing
The characters in the story have a lot of flaws and cliches, but they’re not given any sympathy or attention. The police officers and investigators are again a bunch of idiots who don’t do their jobs very well. There’s also the daughter of a police detective who is devoted to the leader of her gang, and whose mother doesn’t even know she’s involved in this crime!
Fortunately, the cast has its moments, and Brooke (Alexandra Breckenridge) is an engaging protagonist who shows a lot of neurodivergence. She can be meticulous with her beans and perfect in her mimicking of a rant about apples she heard on the radio.
It’s an entertaining film, and a great showcase for a number of veteran actors. But it’s a little too predictable and doesn’t do a lot to shake off some of the negative stereotypes associated with senior citizens.
A few standout scenes deserve a special mention, though. Among them are the fireside scene between Colton (Cage) and Brooke, in which they bond over their shared emotional incapacity, and Brooke’s performance of “Old Man” by Pepper.
Overall, though, the film’s pacing is a bit too slow. It’s a shame because it could have used more time to get us acquainted with these people and their lives, rather than simply getting to the action.
As an added bonus, the soundtrack is pretty good as well. Air Supply’s version of the main title song is a nice touch, and the music itself has a nice Western-style sound.
It’s a shame that Shyamalan doesn’t let the build-up of horror linger menacingly in the air, as it does with other films that feature his protagonists, such as Unbreakable and The Visit. Then again, it’s possible that the audience will be so distracted by the idioms and cheesy jokes that they won’t even notice how effective the horror elements are.
