Two of the most scene-chewing, brilliant overactors of all time once shared the screen together. Not only that, but each one spent most of the film essentially doing an impression of the other. These two actors are Nicolas Cage and John Travolta, and the film is John Woo's Face/Off. John Woo's English-language movies are usually hit or miss. Many agree, however, that this film was his American masterpiece.

Face/Off follows Sean Archer (John Travolta), an FBI agent who made it his life to track down terrorist Castor Troy (Nicolas Cage). Archer finally corners him and seemingly takes him out. After a spectacular plane crash, Troy is in a coma; Archer can finally rest. That is, until he finds out Troy hid a bomb somewhere in the city.

Troy's brother is the only person who knows where, and he isn't too keen on giving the information out to just anyone. Archer decided to have Troy's face removed and placed on his, in an attempt to get the location of the bomb. While on his mission, Troy awakens and forces the doctors to place Archer's face on Troy. This essentially means Nicolas Cage is playing John Travolta playing Nicolas Cage, and John Travolta is playing Nicolas Cage playing John Travolta. Get all that? As confusing as the plot sounds, the film works on multiple levels, but why? Why would an action film with such an outlandish premise manage to stand out?

Travolta/Cage

Archer and Troy
Paramount Pictures

For starters, let's look at the two leads. Both John Travolta and Nicolas Cage are heavy hitters in Hollywood. They are both extremely entertaining and, when in the right film, both are powerhouse performers. In Face/Off, both men are able to act to their strengths. For the sake of sanity, we will focus on the fact that for most of the film, Nicolas Cage is the hero and John Travolta is the villain.

Cage is able to give a performance that is, for the most part, reigned in. He is a fish out of water; a cop mixed in with a group of high-profile criminals. When he is able to, for lack of a better phrase, Cage-out, it is quite the sight to behold. By the end of the film, viewers completely forget Cage is technically the villain.

Related: Why Action Master John Woo Will Never Make a Superhero Movie

On the other side of the coin, there is John Travolta as an overacting terrorist. Travolta as Troy gets to act his heart out as the egotistical bad guy he is. He even gets in good with Sean Archer's family, and is oddly a better father. Unlike Cage, Travolta's hamminess is dialed up to eleven, and it is wonderful. Seeing Cage actually be a type of straight man to Travolta is somehow engaging. This performance is without a doubt one of Travolta's best.

What makes the film work is the fact the two leads have to basically do impressions of one another the entire film. This is no easy task by any means, yet Travolta and Cage are able to perfectly carry the film doing just that. Face/Off shows that Cage and Travolta know their reputations as overactors, and embrace it fully. It also proves how insanely talented they are to pull off such a convoluted plot. There aren't many in Hollywood who would be able to do so. According To Cage, the film has "aged beautifully after 25 years," and it is no surprise why.

Family Dynamic

Sean and Eve
Paramount Pictures

A film such as this needs something more than a crazy story to keep it afloat. Luckily, it contains just that. Sean Archer has a wife and daughter while Castor Troy was an estranged girlfriend and son. When they switch lives, the families of each man are the driving force behind what they do. At the beginning of the film, Sean Archer's son is mistakenly killed by Troy, which is what fuels Archer's hunt for him. As Troy, he is able to briefly reconnect with what he lost, as he has to act as if he is Troy's son's father. As for Troy, he is attempting to take Archer out using psychological warfare, including turning his family against him.

After the death of his son, Archer became emotionally and physically distant toward his wife and daughter. Troy takes it upon himself to fill in the gap left by Archer. He becomes closer to Archer's wife and connects with his daughter in a way Sean never attempted, going so far as to teach her self-defense. Archer's family is totally unaware Troy has entered their lives, so they happily accept this "new Archer." This is an entirely different level of tension to the film, as nobody on either side knows Archer and Troy have swapped places. Flipping the idea of what makes a good father and husband work brilliantly in this film, and this is all thanks to John Woo's direction.

John Woo's Genius

John Woo Face Off
Paramount Pictures

As stated before, it is incredibly difficult to do an impression of someone doing an impression, such as Cage and Travolta pull off. It isn't any easier to direct such a concept. Woo's job was so much more than just directing action scenes. He had to get into the mindsets of two different people in order to direct the actors properly.

Woo is an incredibly talented director, who is an expert in directing action scenes. His stylized form of slow-motion and fight choreography lift this film higher than it already was, transporting his artistry from Hong Kong masterpieces such as A Better Tomorrow, Hard Boiled, and The Killer. John Woo is preparing to prove his talent yet again, as his next action film will be shot with no dialogue.

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Like the leads, there is likely no other director who would have been able to pull off a film such as Face/Off. Woo understood how to direct the film in such a way that audiences would truly feel as if they were watching a film like no other. There are several fantastic shots, such as when Troy and Archer are on opposite ends of a mirror. They turn to shoot the glass and are faced with the image of their enemies rather than their own reflections.

This film shouldn't have worked and should have slipped into the deep cracks and crevices of '90s action flicks. The decade brought so many of the same types of film, especially ones that involved some kind of futuristic technology or spy plot. Face/Off is an example of everything perfectly coming together in just the right way at just the right time. John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, and John Woo are the three secret ingredients to the film's success. Take away one of the elements, and the entire film falls apart.

At the end of the day, this is a movie that doesn't take itself too seriously, yet still manages to be a thrilling, and sometimes dramatic, movie. From the first frame to the end credits, Face/Off offers a unique film that is rare today. Really, the entire movie was a giant gamble that shouldn't have worked at all, at least beyond an acting exercise. The genius of the film doesn't lie in the insane plot, it lies with the masterminds who brought it to life.