Pig (2021)

Director: Michael Sarnoski

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Alex Wolff, Adam Arkin

A truffle hunter who lives alone in the Oregon wilderness must return to his past in Portland in search of his beloved foraging pig after she is kidnapped.

No, Pig does not refer to a character portrayed by Nicolas Cage. It refers to an actual pig. But it ain’t no ordinary pig; it is a truffle pig. (A truffle pig is a domestic pig used to locate and extract truffles, a type of fungus that grows underground. They are also very valuable.)

Cage stars as Rob, an ex-chef who now lives in solitude in a forest. With no modern technology, phones or even hot water, he lives completely off the grid. His only companion is his pig, which he loves dearly – and, oh my gosh, this pig is adorable!! Rob sells his truffles to Amir (Alex Wolff), who in turn sells it to luxury restaurants – one such a restaurant as owned by his dad.

One night, someone breaks into Rob’s home and steals his pig. Rob wants her back! In order to find his pig, he has to reconnect with his past and contact his old connections. He’s not going all John Wick or anything, and I did find the film a bit slow paced.

Rob hasn’t been to the city in several years. He stays with Amir while in town and Amir tries to help him. (I just couldn’t understand why Rob never took a shower or at least wash his face! Not even Amir made him clean up before taking him to his dad’s restaurant. Why? This made no sense.)

Ok, and now for a big spoiler, so stop reading now if you intend watching ‘Pig’. We follow Rob in his search for his beloved pig, but it turns out the pig died. Yup, this is revealed during the final few minutes (while I was still eagerly awaiting a reunion between Rob and his pig), and then Rob returns home alone and very sad. What kind of an ending is that??! The whole idea was for Rob to find his pig, and not for him to return home empty handed. Sorry, I can’t recommend this film because I guarantee you will not be happy with the ending. The ending also deemed the movie completely pointless. A Good performance by Cage couldn’t save this for me (in the end).

‘Pig’ received 113 award nominations, winning 38.

Would I watch it again? No.