Drama starring Nicolas Cage and Patricia Arquette. Over the course of three night shifts, burnt-out New York paramedic Frank Pierce becomes increasingly attracted to Mary, the daughter of a heart attack victim. But he is still haunted by visions of Rose, a young girl whose life he failed to save.
This blistering urban drama is one of Martin Scorsese's lesser-known films, but it still finds the director on stellar form. Nicolas Cage plays a highly strung paramedic who ruminates on life, death and the city over the course of three wild nights patrolling midtown Manhattan. Adapted from Joe Connelly's semi-autobiographical novel by screenwriter Paul Schrader, the film is a loose companion piece to his and Scorsese's earlier opus Taxi Driver. Once again, the New York streets are styled into a nocturnal, Boschian hellscape - only this time updated to reflect issues like the crack and opioid epidemics and the critical failure of America's profit-driven healthcare system. Cage gives one of his finest performances, and his nervy lead character remains sympathetic as he grapples with his calling while spiralling into insomniac mania. A smart, urgent and compulsively entertaining blend of the personal, political and religious, this stands among both Scorsese's and Schrader's most accomplished statements.
| role | name |
|---|---|
| Frank Pierce | Nicolas Cage |
| Mary Burke | Patricia Arquette |
| Larry | John Goodman |
| Marcus | Ving Rhames |
| Tom Wolls | Tom Sizemore |
| Noel | Marc Anthony |
| Nurse Constance | Mary Beth Hurt |
| Cy Coates | Cliff Curtis |
| Dispatcher | Martin Scorsese |
| role | name |
|---|---|
| Director | Martin Scorsese |
