‘Pig’ deftly tackles grieving

In the midst of Nic Cage’s eclectic yet sometimes masterful acting career comes a dramatic, somber movie called “Pig.” Pig is filmed in our beloved Portland, as we follow Cage’s character, Rob, on a journey to find his stolen truffle pig, vital to his business of collecting very valuable truffles.

After viewing the trailers to this movie, I went into it thinking this was going to be a comedic twist on John Wick’s vengeful, gory films, but instead I was met with a movie that reduced me to tears by the end, as we venture through messages of coping with death, life purpose, and how some problems are best solved by breaking bread.

This movie sits in the company of some of my favorite movies of all time, as Cage’s iconic face and known demeanor is reduced to mirror a life one could find anywhere, with a journey that doesn’t relish in extravagant favors or grand gestures but rather the purest definition of a hero’s journey put into a package that resembles a slice of life.

For those who don’t want spoilers, I suggest you go to Hulu or wherever you can to rent this movie and start watching now, because this movie is also somewhat of a mystery – so delving into any plot points would be giving away vital information.

As a fair warning, I would also say don’t watch this movie if you’re coping with a loss of a family member, as this movie is centered around death.

With that out of the way, it’s time to discuss the plot. After a brief opening of introducing Rob’s life as a truffle farmer deep in the woods of western Oregon and the silent transaction he has with his business partner, Amir, our protagonist winds down for the night with his adorably small pig.

In the middle of the night, two attackers take the pig and leave Rob injured and this inspires him to not seek revenge, but just to find that adorable pig. He goes to Amir to seek help in finding his animal business partner, and here we get a good glimpse into the latter’s character.

Amir is honestly one of the funniest characters in this movie: He’s an investor in the Portland restaurant business riding the coattails of his father. He tries so desperately to be taken seriously when the movie itself doesn’t even give him that chance. Every time he’s in his yellow Camaro he listens to a prestigious-sounding podcast talking about why classical music is the superior music genre. In his dialogues he has moments where he tries to hype himself up as an elite businessman, only to not live up to that hype and instead rely solely on begging and using Rob’s name to get what he needs.

To Amir, his truffle source is just some reclusive farmer he found in the woods, but to the many people we meet in this movie, Robin Feld is a retired master chef who pioneered the restaurant business of Portland, his name worth its weight in gold and yet disgraced due to his unforeseen public appearance spitting in the faces of those he once called friends. All social interactions, once gilded, are now broken due to the death of Rob’s wife, Laurie, which made him the loner woodsman he is today.

Amir’s hesitation and outright awkwardness throughout this movie is caused by his father, an investor in several Portland restaurants including one owned by one of Robin’s previous employees. Amir’s father, Darius, is a cruel man owing partially to his own mistake of mistreating his wife so poorly that she kills herself, and with Rob also being a widower, we have a sort of binding agent between Robin and Darius. After a blunt confrontation involving Robin’s previous employee over suspicions of them holding the pig captive, we find out that none of the restaurant owners in the area have the pig – Darius does.

The climax of this movie revolves around a dinner between Darius, Amir, and Rob. The dinner prepared is one that Amir told Rob about after realizing that Rob himself was the chef that cooked it, and how this meal created one of the most pleasant nights between his mother and father Amir could ever remember.

The meal begins quietly as Rob places the dishes on the table: Cornish game hen, a salted baguette, and a vintage wine. Darius doesn’t really seem to understand how this will motivate him into talking, but after two bites and a sip of wine, he’s reduced to tears over the memory of his late wife. He leaves the table and washes the wine down with whiskey he had in his office, to remove the bitter truth. Rob remembers every meal he’s ever made, and he knows who Darius is, and feels that despite his brutish demeanor, he knows that the pig can’t be as hurt as he thinks.

In this heart wrenching ending, Rob has to deal with a new level of grief. This whole movie deals with death and coping as widowers, in a soft tone that touches the heartstrings of viewers, and I think in a time where division and anger is common, this movie fits in well as a reminder that meaningful bonds will conquer all odds – and that when those bonds inevitably break through death or parted ways, the memories will last as long as we can remember.

The stages of grief don’t ever really end, they just grow softer and easier, and when that pain of grief becomes hard to deal with, it’s never a bad idea to reach out. We’ve all lost, or will lose, loved ones and although our methods of dealing with loss will always differ, sadness is best resolved with branching out and talking it through.

As death potentially lurks in the air we breathe, it’s important to acknowledge that hard times are never permanent. Going through photos of lost loved ones is hard at first, but taking it a day at a time, focusing on the present, and taking deep breaths will make those photos easier to look at – eventually. After all, there is a reason we smile in pictures.