Nicolas Cage has an extensive pantheon of films of all kinds of shapes and sizes, and yet, The Surfer (2025) manages to stand out as one of his most bizarre. Director Lorcan Finnegan designs a surrealist, anxiety-inducing, sun-baked film in his fourth feature outing, molding all sorts of toxic masculinity and cult themes within its seemingly simple premise. 

Throughout the runtime, the movie often falls under the weight of its numerous lofty ambitions, but still manages to clear the wave and form what will be one of the most memorable Nicolas Cage performances, for better or worse. 

We start our story with “The Surfer” (Cage) returning to his old home in Australia, where he plans to buy back his family’s house and surf with his son, “The Kid” (Finn Little), to get him and his ex-wife back. While heading to catch the waves, they run into a group of irritating local surfers led by Scally (Julian McMahon) who stand in their way since they claim they’re not native to the country. This leads “The Surfer” to do everything in his power to survive their wrath upon him, eventually leading to his breaking point.

The crux of The Surfer lies in making you feel every emotion Cage feels on the screen. It immerses you, feeling every shard of glass stepped on and each molecule of sweat dripping from Cage’s face under the scorching sun. You are present with him. The best kind of surrealist films are the ones that make you feel just as confused as the characters, and Finnegan fires on all cylinders to bring that to the screen. 

It’s somewhat fun to see Cage slowly become more and more insane with every passing day at the beach, but the film balances varying tones throughout. With darkly comedic moments in one sequence, and gross-out that feels ‘look away from the screen’ worthy the next, only an actor of Cage’s pedigree can pull both off without losing a beat. 

The technical jargon Finnegan works with does absolute wonders for the film’s off-kilter energy. Heavy uses of multiple crash zooms, ultra close-ups, and even a fish eye lens all feel appropriate to the feeling the movie gives off, unease. 

Unfortunately, the film falls short in its thematic elements of toxic masculinity. The essential war between Cage and Scally’s jerk surfer bros is a blast to watch unfold, but it often feels like the film has something that it wants to explore more within the disgusting nature of these individuals. Sadly, it just defaults to the all too common ‘Cults are weird!’ surface-level commentary we’ve already seen from recent releases such as this year’s Opus. 

Aside from the sporadically leaning pace of the picture, the film’s ending feels so out of place with everything else. In the beginning, we meet “The Bum” (Nicholas Cassim). Cage has empathy for him for also being bullied by the other surfers, and it’s clear that he’s going to return. The way that he returns feels completely out of left field and stitched onto the film’s end. 

Overall, The Surfer has too many elements to juggle, and while it drops a couple of the balls, its incredibly strong moments give it a form of appreciation by its end, especially since most of its scorched-up surrealism still works relatively well. 

In terms of recent roles, it often feels most similar to Cage’s Dream Scenario back in 2023, not so much with its theme or story but in their same goal of giving the audience an utterly surreal but satisfying experience. The Surfer more than delivers the unforgettable experience we expect from a Nicolas Cage film. 

Review Courtesy of Joshua Mbonu

Feature Image Credit to Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions via Pique Newsmagazine