The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

For a Nicolas Cage movie, The Trust not as bad as one might expect, considering the actor’s string of duds in recent years. Playing out like a low-budgeted version of Ocean’s Eleven – except this time it’s the cops who are doing the crime – The Trust has initial promise, but as the minutes begin to unfold, boredom begins to kick in as becomes obvious that the story isn’t really going anywhere.

The film begins by introducing us to two cops, Stone (Cage) and Waters (Woods), who work in the evidence room at the Las Vegas Police Department. Both seemingly tired of their jobs, Stone is hoping that a promotion from his boss will soon come knocking while the prostitute and pot-loving Waters is painfully indifferent about the entire affair. Their lives, however, soon change when Stone accidently discovers large amounts of unexplained cash on bail release paperwork, triggering him to chase a money trail.

Bringing Waters into the picture, their investigation soon leads them to an empty building that was recently fitted with a super-secured – and super-suspicious – meat locker, which they believe is a safe filled with cash.  Unfortunately, their plan of penetrating the vault doesn’t go as planned, leading the two to places they never thought they’d have to go to.

Blending flashes eccentricity with deadpan comedy, Nicolas Cage is surprisingly effective and relatively pleasing as the self-loathing cop who stumbles upon a discovery that, although illegal, holds the possibility of a new and a more exciting life. As his partner-in-crime, Woods is equally effective and the two actors play off each other extremely well, sharing a decent amount of onscreen chemistry.

However, their potential – along with the movie’s initial promise of delivering a dark and a relatively humorous caper – is lost with the script’s lack of risks. Co-directed by brothers and first-time filmmakers, Alex and Benjamin Brewer, the film is shot with a surprising amount of grit and visual flair.  Though the siblings manage to build a solid amount of tension, there’s an imbalance to the whole film, in terms of tone, especially in the last act.

Still, even with all its flaws – the music could have been a bit more involving throughout for example – The Trust is still a far superior Nicolas Cage film than anything we’ve seen in recent times.