Pig
Directed by Michael Sarnoski
- drama
- thriller
- mystery
The story
A truffle hunter who lives alone in the Oregon wilderness must visit Portland to find the mysterious person who stole his beloved foraging pig.
What it’s like
Quiet, unhurried and deeply sad, with long static shots of a rain-soaked forest cabin, dim wood-panelled interiors lit by lamplight and the grey-blue glow of a city at night. The camera mostly holds still and lets Nicolas Cage's weathered face and slow movements fill the frame, while the score is sparse, low piano and ambient hum, with long stretches of near silence broken by the crunch of gravel and the clatter of a restaurant kitchen. Portland arrives as a contrast: glossy, busy, the polished gleam of fine-dining rooms and cold steel, the hum of money and ambition set against one man's dishevelled grief. The pace is measured and reflective, and the emotional register is grief-stricken and melancholy with flashes of dry humour and tenderness; it follows a bruised loner who gradually reopens to the world. Violence is brief and mostly offscreen, with a few sharp, bloody moments that land hard rather than linger; there is no sexual content, and the mood is more dread-tinged sorrow than fear. Made for people who want a meditative, character-driven drama about loss, craft and the slow return of humanity.
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