Nicolas Cage says he rewatched 'Face/Off' to prepare for his new role playing himself and thinks the movie 'aged beautifully'

• Nicolas Cage revealed that he rewatched his 1997 film "Face/Off" to prepare for his new role.
• "I think that movie's aged beautifully," Cage told Insider during a red carpet interview at SXSW.

Nicolas Cage revealed that he rewatched one of his past films to prepare for his new role as himself in "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent."

"I looked at 'Face/Off' again, which I was really wowed by. I think that movie's aged beautifully," Cage told Insider during a red carpet interview at the SXSW premiere of "Massive Talent" in Austin, Texas on Saturday.

The actor added that he "was very wowed" and "fired up" by the film's director, John Woo, and his costar John Travolta in it.

Per Cage, he also rewatched older films, including the 1920 movie "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" in preparation for his upcoming role. The actor told Insider that German expressionism films like "Dr. Caligari" have helped influence his acting technique, which he's dubbed "nouveau shamanism."

Cage stars as a fictionalized version of himself in the new film "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent."

In the film, which is peppered with numerous references to Cage's past work, Cage befriends an eccentric Spanish millionaire, Javi (Pedro Pascal), who's secretly a huge fan of his. But after Cage is recruited by CIA agents who think Javi is responsible for the kidnapping of a foreign dignitary's daughter, things quickly take a turn for the actor.

While the premise sounds too wacky to work, the film is an absolute treat to watch, and undoubtedly some of Cage's best work to date.

"The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent" hits theaters April 22. You can watch the trailer below.