Leaving Las Vegas (1995)

I love this movie so much

Instant Favorite.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

I have watched this movie at least3 times, hoping that at each viewing it will get better. It never does. It never truly captures me. I find it slow, dull, and depressing. Nicholas cage's performance is one note. Elizabeth Shue gives a much more complex and varied performance. Her performance is much better than the material. Cannot see why Nicholas Cage won the Oscar. A slow, over rated piece of Hollywood claptrap. A forgettable movie with no outstanding scenes or dialogue.

...A romantic way to go...if there was such a way. But Ben never used to be like that. At the start of this neon soaked masterpiece we see Ben ridding himself of the last remnants of family life and leaving it all behind for the drink. We see a photo of himself, his wife and his son before the drink had a grip on him. You could say that Ben had it all but he was always chasing something more elusive - that his family could not provide him. Things fell down for him like dominoes, his friends, his job, his family...everything......but the drink was always there like a loyal friend. Ben was a man that could not be stopped....he was pushing that self-destruct button hard an that is how it was for Ben.Sera with an "E". S-E-R-A....on the other hand was a lonely prostitute who you always felt was always striving to feel loved - loved in the context of something more deeper or spiritual and not the kind of superficial 'love' she was getting from her clients, No, she always was seeking to be loved by the men in her life.On the outset this doesn't seem like you typical romantic flick but there is something oddly romantic about it nonetheless. Especially considering they are both on the fast track to oblivion. They hadn't much but at least they had each other....but not for long - something had to give in this high inflammable relationship. You could see where the relationship was going but that didn't make it any easier.'Sting' provides us with the Jazzy soundtrack that really gives the film an extra boost and sets up the atmosphere nicely in Sin City. Nicolas Cage in his best performance of his career plays a great drunk and Elisabeth Shue should have won an academy award for her portrayal of a lost soul. 'Leaving Las Vegas' is a deeply sad portrayal of a man who once had it all - he is perceptive of his situation and he knows what he wants and in that same breath it is a romantic way to go.

Leaving Las Vegas was delivered by the Academy given the Best Actor in a leading role to Nicolas Cage and after watching this film, one can succeed and see as to how his performance was powerful and delivered. But more than anything, the heart of the film is in the performances. Also Elisabeth Shue plays Sera, and she really comes out as an angel. She has many rough scenes, but Shue achieves to keep her character deeply human and good. It's an exceptional performance. She could have hold the film by herself, but that isn't considering her opposite, Nicolas Cage. Show cases that he's truly one of the most gifted actors of his generation. This was probably the most impressive performance of his career. Compared to the present time, as most of his recent films appear to be non Hollywood films and straight to video where he phones it in for paychecks, this film is where the praise in which fans have considered about in.

This movie is not a fun watch. It's not about a guy that loses it all and starts to drink. He's already lost it and is a semi-functional alcoholic.Some really fantastic performances from Nic Cage and Elizabeth Shue here. It will probably stand as their most dramatic roles since they both have gone on to do a lot less heavy material. I had seen Cage turn in some decent performances here and there but I was really impressed with Elizabeth Shue. When the focus swings around to her I wasn't sure if the movie would fumble but she brings so tragedy and sadness to Sera I was both riveted and wanted to look away.It's tough to recommend but it is undeniably powerful and moving. See it for the performances and watch something fun after. You'll deserve it.