n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Can't believe hollywood makes these types of movies, can't they learn how to make good one's?

Evan Lake (Nicholas Cage) was a legend at the C.I.A., but after years in the game, and a particularly horrible experience at the hands of the Taliban, he was diagnosed with dementia, and forced into retirement. Lake is moving on with his life when new information comes to light, that his old nemesis, a terrorist leader long believed dead, is back. Knowing their best chance to catch him is Lake, they turn to him for help, but can he keep it together long enough to complete his mission? This unbelievably was a b-movie, yet a remarkably strong performance for Nicholas Cage, who randomly had to go between C.I.A. legend and confused old man. His performance is aided by the late Anton Yelchin, playing an analyst who admires Lake so much, that he goes against orders to help him with his mission. The whole dynamic between the man at the end of his career on his last mission, and the boy at the start of his career on his first mission, really added something different, that you don't typically see in espionage films. Dying of The Light really does have a lot to like about it, but one must remember, it is an espionage film and a direct-to-video one at that. The writing isn't spectacular and parts of it are more than somewhat confusing. They also throw in a lot of Evan's flashbacks and delusions at the completely wrong times, which really did start to bother me as the film got more intense. Overall, I did enjoy this film, I thought the acting was terrific, and I loved the dynamic and chemistry between the two leading men, despite the obvious age difference. Dying of The Light certainly isn't a perfect movie, but it's still an entertaining one.

(SPOILERS ALERT)Schrader is best remembered and known for helmeting classics the likes of Cat People and American Gigolo as well as scripting numerous famous movies, Taxi Driver and Raging Bull, and Scorsese's Bringing Out the Dead. Schrader's story revolves around America's tenacious fight against terrorism and in USA's dictionary Terrorism is only linked to Islam, but from a psychological angle portraying thepsychological damage the war has brought on Cage's character externally and internally and his obsession to nail and capture the terrorist, Mohamed Banir, who caused his ordeal. Both Lake's and the terrorist's illnesses play nicely into the story in heightening the dramatic suspense and tension as both race against time, one to get the bad guy, and the bad guy to get his medication. Facing another obstacle, Lake is forced to retirement after spending his last days working a desk job as a CIA intelligence analyst, and thus is compelled to go on his own by the aid of another CIA operative Milton (Yelchin). Milton's involvement gives the story a light of generational hope in the young, that somewhere out there there will always good fellows who are willing to fight the good cause for the right reasons and challenge all odds, and that is certainly reflected in Milton risking his job to help Lake. Schrader makes sure to incorporate some criticism against the CIA in his story, represented by Lake's grudge, accusing the CIA in letting go of the American values and caring for their own private benefits. I felt the premise was quite nice but rather weakly written especially towards the end when Lake faces Banir, it was not really clear what exactly was the point in making Lake's illness prevent him from killing Banir only to come back the next day to finish the job just because as Lake puts it: "it's my friend you shot back there", referring to Milton. So which is it? Was it the disease, his conscience, or both that made him up and leave the bad guy? Perhaps Schrader wanted to squeeze in another action scene before the final killing of Banir. I felt Lake's crave to kill Banir was all that was left of the American values, according to Lake, although the real value would have been in capturing Banir and not murdering him. So Lake's actions in the end are a mere mix of revenge and emotional justice, nothing more. so I guess violence adds another victim to its long list, the American value. Directorially, Schrader opted for a more documentary hand-held like style, playing the scenes out more realistically. Lake is by far Cage's most beautifully acted character so far in 2014. Anton Yelchin gives a great performance as well with his constrained wisdom and care for Lake and his cause.

I think this movie is being rated a bit lower than it should be. I think that's because some reviewers are comparing it to the movie it could have been, rather than rating it as the movie that it was. As it was, it was decidedly so-so. Easily the only genuinely good thing about it was Cage's acting. I'm sure he took the part specifically as a welcomed opportunity to get out of the action rut. He did a wonderful job in the role. Yelchun and Karim did okay with what they had to work with. Irene Jacob's talents were never give a chance, but she still managed to bring enough to the table (literally) to make you wish they had been.What is bad is the pain of seeing what it could have been, but was not. As you can see from the other reviews, it is painfully clear that someone had a really good idea for a movie, and that Schrader failed miserably to bring to life. Maybe it wasn't his idea. I'm pretty sure some decent editing could have made room for another 30 minutes or so; had the additional time been used to add some depth to the story, that would have gone along way to improve the quality of the movie per se, although still no guarantees it would still have been the movie it could have been. Looking over Schrader's filmography, I think he would be wise to give up trying to both direct and write the same film.I will add that I had to laugh at one reviewer (and wouldn't be surprised if there are more I didn't see), who predicted this movie would irrevocably damage Cage's career. If I had a dollar for every time I've heard that one in the past 25 years! Something about Cage (much like Costner) seems to attract a jealous fringe that loves to forecast doom at every turn. For the record, as I write this, he has 5 films in post-production, 2 just completed, 1 filming, and 1 recently announced. This doesn't include National Treasure 3, where his return to the role of Ben Gates is still at the "rumored" stage.Every actor should have such a doomed career, lol.