Film Review: Nicolas Cage's 'Primal' Is Wild Fun

Question: What do Nicolas Cage, an assassin and wild animals all have in common?

Answer: They're all stuck on the same boat in the action-thriller, Primal.

Primal is set in both the jungles of South America and in Puerto Rico on a ship.

Nicolas Cage plays hunter-animal importer Frank Walsh, a man that captures wild animals in the jungle of South America, including monkeys, birds, venomous snakes, a talking parrot he calls 'Einstein' and his most prized possession—a rare white jaguar that is worth millions of dollars which would go to the 'highest bidder.' The white jaguar is really an invisible CGI character.

He's regarded by many as the 'anti-hero’ who's a drunk and a heavy smoker and a very conceited bad-ass. He’s not very well-liked by his crew on the boat.

The film was shot during the time of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. Nicholas Powell directed the movie.

Powell previously worked with Cage on the 2014 film, Outcast. I think the title Primal is an over-used title for the film and does not necessarily fit it. The title has been used for similar infamous films previously. The film also stars Famke Janssen, Kevin Durand, LaMonica Garrett and Michael Imperioli.

The beginning of the movie focuses on a bearded Cage high in the trees in the jungles of South America hunting in the wild. He channels his inner Humphrey Bogart in the film wearing beige clothing complete with a fedora hat and dark shades.

Nicolas Cage is trapped on a container ship.

Primal is a story about an animal importer/hunter, Frank Walsh (Nicolas Cage) who is trapped on a container ship with several wild animals, a rare white jaguar he captured while in South America that he plans to sell to his buyers, and an unhinged dangerous rogue-assassin prisoner whose only mission is to murder the crew aboard the ship.

The assassin is being shipped by the NSA back to the U.S. The assassin manages to escape his cage on the ship and releases all the wild animals including the white jaguar, too. He fools Walsh to capture both man and beast before time runs out!

Sounds like an awesome plot, right?

What Nicolas Cage says about re-collaborating with director Nicholas Powell:

Cage told The Hollywood Reporter that he hasn't seen the film yet. He enjoyed working with Powell in 2014 on the film, Outcast but wasn't satisfied with the outcome.

"When he brought me the script to Primal I thought this is perfect because it is really meant to be a wild ride, a lot of fun. I tried to embrace the title itself, in that here I am facing off against a white jaguar and facing off with a man twice my size. Trying to figure out how I can access my inner-jaguar if you will; to stay in the ring with them," Cage explained to THR.

Cage felt comfortable with Nick. "He really knows how to film fight sequences. He is also great with character and its development." Cage told THR. Cage also noted that some of the lines in the film were improvised.

Primal is a non-stop action thriller and fun to watch.

Primal scored 67% on Rotten Tomatoes. There's never a dull moment in the film and Cage and the cast is fun to watch—especially the animals. Primal is available on VOD streaming services and in select theaters.

Nicolas Cage’s upcoming projects are Prisoners of the Ghostland, The Croods 2, Wally’s Wonderland, Grand Isle, and The Color Out of Space. Currently, he can be seen in Kill Chain, and A Score to Settle.

I rate this film a B-