Leaving Las Vegas is out now on 4K Blu-ray, and is the film which gained Nicolas Cage (The Surfer) an Oscar for his role as Ben Sanderson, a man who works in the movie industry, but for whom the pressure of work, life and everything is taking its toll and turning him into an alcoholic of great proportions. Upon losing his job, he sells up and moves to Las Vegas where he plans to drink himself to death.
By chance he bumps into a hooker, Sera (Elisabeth Shue – Greyhound), who has enough problems of her own from her working life as well as her nasty pimp Yuri (Julian Sands – The Survivalist), but then who’s ever heard of a nice pimp? A relationship develops between the pair, but it’s doomed to fail since they have an understanding: he won’t ask her to give up her job and she won’t ask him to stop drinking, but they’re both not at all easy to give up.
Prior to this, I can’t say I was a big fan of Ms Shue’s as she just didn’t compare to Claudia Wells, when taking over for Back To The Future Parts II and III, and when I first saw this on TV, the chemistry between the pair led to a film from which I expected nothing, but it delivered everything. It’s also interesting to note that only Elisabeth Shue was considered for the role by writer/director Mike Figgis.
Cage’s performance is a tour-de-force throughout its entirity, the jazz score is unsurpassable and the locations around Vegas make for stunning viewing. Plus, there’s a ton of cameos in this film. Firstly, a welcome appearance from Full Metal Jacket’s R. Lee Ermey, as a man Sera tries to crack on to in a bar.
There’s also Curb Your Enthusiasm‘s Richard Lewis as former colleague, Peter, Carey Lowell as a bank teller, bar patron Valeria Golino, Laurie Metcalf as Sera’s landlady, cabbies Xander Berkeley and Lou Rawls, and as bartenders, Danny Huston, and even Julian Lennon!
Classic 1995 Nicolas Cage Movie! – DVDfeverGames
The film is in 1.85:1 and in 2160p high definition, and does look gorgeous and free of any issues, and was originally shot on 16mm film.
The sound is in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. It’s not an action-packed epic, obviously, but the excellent soft, sombre tunes from the likes of Sting (performing Angel Eyes, It’s a Lonesome Old Town and My One and Only Love) and Michael McDonald (Lonely Teardrops) come across beautifully.
The extras begin with a very brief featurette that’s a classed as a ‘Making Of‘ (5:42), some B-Roll on-set footage (10:20), and a brief Deleted Scene with Jessica Alba (1:43), as Ben is seen following her in the park.
However, without much fanfare, there IS a great extra on here, simply labelled The Shoot (61:33), but which runs for just over an hour, featuring clips from the film, and on-set footage, mixed with chat from the cast and crew. It’s also split into six chapters.
There’s also brief interview clips with Nicolas Cage (3:22), Elisabeth Shue (3:13), Julian Sands (3:00) and Mike Figgis (3:14).
To round it off, is a feature-length Audio Commentary from Mike Figgis, as well as a fantastic 20-page booklet, which is featured in my video above.
Unfortunately, it’s a bit disappointing that the main menu is static and silent, though.
Leaving Las Vegas is released on Monday on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray.
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FILM CONTENT PICTURE QUALITY SOUND QUALITY EXTRAS |
10 10 8 5 |
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OVERALL |
8 |
Cert: 
Running time: 112 minutes
Year: 1995
Chapters: 12
Cat.No: OPTUSB4693
Distributor: Studiocanal
Released: May 18th 2026
Picture: 2160p High Definition
Language: English
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Widescreen: 1.85:1 (16mm)
Subtitles: English SDH
Disc Format: BD100
Director: Mike Figgis
Producers: Lila Cazès, Annie Stewart
Novel: John O’Brien
Screenplay: Mike Figgis
Music: Mike Figgis
Cast:
Ben Sanderson: Nicolas Cage
Sera: Elisabeth Shue
Yuri: Julian Sands
Peter: Richard Lewis
Marc Nussbaum: Steven Weber
Sheila: Kim Adams
Debbie: Emily Procter
Terri: Valeria Golino
LA Bartender: Graham Beckel
Bank Teller: Carey Lowell
Conventioneer: R. Lee Ermey
Bartender #2: Danny Huston
Landlady: Laurie Metcalf
Biker Girl: Shawnee Smith
Bartender #3 in Biker Bar: Julian Lennon
Cynical Cabbie: Xander Berkeley
Concerned Cabbie: Lou Rawls
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.