This Nic Cage War Movie Was A Failed Face/Off Reunion That Still Features Some Of His Best Action Scenes

Nicolas Cage reunited with Face/Off director John Woo for Windtalkers, an explosive war movie that failed to connect back in 2002. There’s a case to be made John Woo is the greatest action filmmaker ever, with Woo’s Heroic Bloodshed movies A Better Tomorrow, The Killer and Hard Boiled redefining the genre.

Woo’s move to American filmmaking during the 1990s wasn’t a seamless transition, though it still resulted in action greats like Hard Target and, of course, Face/Off. This Nic Cage/John Travolta two-hander (or two-facer?) features incredible performances, jaw-dropping setpieces and a killer hook.

Woo is so key to the movie working that it’s hard to imagine a potential Face/Off 2 without him directing. Windtalkers was Woo’s follow-up to his biggest American hit, Mission: Impossible 2, with the World War 2 epic casting Cage as a traumatized soldier tasked with protecting a Native American “code talker.”

Windtalkers was based on the real-life Navajo code talkers used during the war, who were able to transmit coded military messages using their language that the Axis powers couldn’t decrypt. Despite being sold as a Face/Off reunion, Windtalkers was a commercial dud, grossing only $77 million on an estimated production budget of $115 million (via The Numbers).

Windtalkers Features Some Of The Best Action Scenes Of Nicolas Cage’s Career

Nobody can stage a battle like John Woo

Windtalkers reviews weren’t much better (it stands at 32% on Rotten Tomatoes), with the film being the beginning of the end for Woo’s original run of American films. It’s flawed for sure, but one positive on the Nicolas Cage movie’s side is that Windtalkers has fantastic action.

It was produced right before CGI became the norm for studio movies, so the vast amounts of extras, explosions and squibs are all practical. Woo told Cage before production began that he would tone down his more balletic style to make Windtalkers feel grounded, but in truth, much of the action is just as outlandish as his other movies.

Still, the sweep and scale of these setpieces never fail to impress, from the claustrophobic opening battle in a swamp to the devastating village attack that leads to the deaths of several major characters. Like his heartbreaking Vietnam war movie Bullet in the Head, Woo doesn’t mind making his characters suffer.

On the whole, Windtalkers is nowhere near as fun as Face/Off. There is (understandably) significantly less humor, with Cage’s half-deaf and perpetually angry marine not being a fun hang at all. While Cage largely dials down his tendency to go big, he still has a few “mega acting” moments.

Still, in the action department, Windtalkers always delivers. Woo has such a natural talent for pulling off these sequences that they never fail to impress, with Cage and his co-stars Christian Slater and Adam Beach throwing themselves right into the middle of it.

John Woo Stands By Windtalkers Despite Its Box Office Failure

Woo feels the studio misunderstood the point of Windtalkers

Woo later released an extended cut of Windtalkers that better fleshed out the characters and made the battles even longer, but it’s fair to say the movie’s critical reputation hasn’t improved much in the years since. Despite being a bomb, Woo stands by his film and spoke at length to Vulture on the challenges involved with making it.

There were not many people who really understood that movie or liked it. It was not good timing. The movie had to be released in 2001. Then 9/11 happened, so they had to push it. They were so afraid audiences wouldn’t want to watch a war movie at that time. I had a conflict with the writers. I said, “My kind of movie is usually about friendship, respect, and honor.” But the writers didn’t feel good about that. They said, “The enemy is the enemy. The enemy has to be destroyed.” I tried to make it a human story. The audience didn’t expect a movie about friendship. But I’m still proud of that movie.

Woo has also claimed that the studio MGM didn’t understand the point Woo was trying to make. They wanted an exciting war movie blockbuster, while Woo wanted to make a film about friendship and loyalty in the middle of hellish combat.

The director’s cut better underlines Woo’s message, though the film still suffers from clichéd dialogue and character arcs, in addition to a bloated runtime. Cage’s unlikable protagonist doesn’t help either, but in a way, Windtalkers feels like a modern, bloodier updating on the kinds of war movies made during Hollywood’s “Golden” age.

Windtalkers isn’t even in the top ten of Woo’s best movies, but it’s better than its initial reception. It’s got a stacked cast, an earnest tone and heart-racing battle sequences. It’s just a pity it never reaches its full potential.

Windtalkers’ Action Overwhelms A Great Premise

The actual code talking elements of Windtalkers got blown away

Windtalkers presented a little-known piece of American history by revealing the part the Navajo code talkers played during World War 2. If the film were being made today, it would no doubt be told from their perspectives, but back in 2002, the story had to be framed through the perspective of a white character played by an A-list star.

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Windtalkers also invented the notion that the military considered the code more important than the men speaking it, with Cage’s Enders being ordered to kill Yahzee (Adam Beach) if it looks like he’s about to fall into enemy hands. This forms a core part of the drama, but the screenplay falls short in a few areas.

Beach is such a likable performer that it’s easy to root for Yahzee, but Beach’s co-lead is such a two-dimensional nice guy that it sometimes feels like he exists to teach Enders some moral lessons. Yahzee just doesn’t have much agency of his own, and Windtalkers can falls into some unfortunate stereotypical clichés about its Native American characters.

Windtalkers really should be about Yahzee and his fellow code talker Charlie (Roger Willie), and how important the code was to the war effort. Instead, the movie is more interested in bloodshed and explosions, while the actors have to bring the stilted dialogue to life.

Source: The Numbers, Rotten Tomatoes, Vulture

Windtalkers

Release Date

June 14, 2002

Runtime

134 minutes