Review: Nicolas Cage's Supernatural Thriller 'Pay The Ghost'

The confounding career of Nicolas Cage has, at this point, surely been the focus of hundreds of graduate theses, attempting to explain away the pile of shockingly disastrous, straight-to-VOD films that he churns out every year, and reconcile with the fact that the man is still a superstar — despite the ubiquitous knowledge that he’s become a sort of scenery chewing ham. However, from time to time, the Oscar winner (a tag all of his movies still proudly tout) makes films like “Joe,” where he actually acts, in a movie with characters and complexities and depth. And, the truth is, with the right material Cage can still be interesting as a performer. Which makes just about every film of far lesser quality, all that more painful to watch.

Like, for instance, “Pay The Ghost,” a decidedly B-movie supernatural thriller that blatantly looks to capitalize on the coming Halloween season. Cage plays actor Nicolas Cage playing professor Mike Lawford who is characterized only by the fact that...