The Greatest Action Thriller of 2000 Doesn't Deserve Its 25% Rotten Tomatoes Rating

Nicolas Cage is returning to the blockbuster realm—on the small screen. The Oscar-winning character actor will reprise the Spider-Man variant he voiced in 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in the period-era series Spider-Noir. The Amazon series marks another career transition point for Cage, similar to his leap from prestige dramas to ’90s high-concept action pictures such as The Rock and Face/Off. In 2000, Cage reached the pinnacle of his action-hero persona with Gone in 60 Seconds.

Released one year before The Fast and the Furious took cinematic pop culture by storm, Gone in 60 Seconds attempted to revitalize interest in street racing on the big screen. A remake of the 1974 cult classic, the Jerry Bruckheimer production—directed by Dominic Sena (Kalifornia, Swordfish)—was packed with an all-star cast led by Cage, Angelina Jolie, and late screen icon Robert Duvall. It also featured eye-popping CGI car stunts that predate the more cartoonish spectacle of later Fast & Furious sequels. The $90-million heist thriller grossed $237 million worldwide. However, critics dismissed Gone in 60 Seconds as a two-hour car wreck, reflected in its 25% Rotten Tomatoes score. Over time, the film has received a second look—not just because of its talented ensemble, but because it contains an element that Rob Cohen’s modestly budgeted street-racing film lacked: a classic ’70s heist-movie feel.

What Is 'Gone in 60 Seconds' About?

Ex-car thief Randall “Memphis” Raines (Cage) is lured back into the criminal underworld when his brother Kip (Giovanni Ribisi), an aspiring thief, lands in trouble with British gangster Calitri (Christopher Eccleston) following a botched luxury-car heist. Memphis is forced to settle Kip’s debt by stealing 50 cars in three days—or the Raines family faces fatal consequences. To complete the job, Memphis turns to his longtime mentor, Otto (Duvall), to help assemble a crew.

Memphis and Otto recruit several former classmates, including Memphis’s former mechanic and girlfriend, Sway (Jolie). They track the locations of all 50 vehicles, with a 1967 Ford Shelby GT500 serving as the grand-finale prize. Along the way, their plan is threatened by a rival gang leader (Master P) and a relentless detective (Delroy Lindo) who holds a personal grudge against Memphis. As the clock winds down, Memphis must face the biggest chase of his life.

Why ‘Gone in 60 Seconds’ Is Better Than Critics Say

Gone in 60 Seconds works because of its simplicity, despite its negative critical reception. It emphasizes the mythology surrounding the bond between man and machine. Where The Fast and the Furious explored the competitive nature of illegal street racing and the larger family dynamic of Dominic Toretto’s crew, Gone in 60 Seconds frames its characters as Old West bandits and the cars as coveted treasure. Cage’s Memphis harbors a deep obsession with the Shelby Mustang he dubs “Eleanor.”

Artistically, the film carries the signature glossy cinematography and MTV-style quick-cut editing that filmmakers like Michael Bay and Tony Scott perfected in various Bruckheimer productions. Sena stages the Los Angeles car chases with a dreamlike quality, contrasting with the original Fast installment’s more grounded, practical approach. He films luxury vehicles like traditional commercial centerpieces, elevating them to the status of co-stars. This approach culminates in the film’s finale, featuring a CGI trailer shot of the Mustang jumping off a ramp on the Vincent Thomas Bridge.

Nicolas Cage at His Coolest

What keeps Gone in 60 Seconds in conversations about underrated action movies of the 2000s is Cage himself. Dialing back the meme-worthy excess he was often known for, Cage brings a slick professionalism to Memphis that echoes classic Hollywood icons such as Paul Newman and Steve McQueen. With blond hair and a cool leather trench coat, he fits squarely within the tradition of Donald Westlake's Parker film adaptations that inspired many great ’70s heist thrillers. Cage plays Memphis as a man addicted not to crime, but to mastery—the satisfaction of pulling off the impossible. His performance grounds the film emotionally, lending weight to scenes that might otherwise feel like mechanical connective tissue between chases.

Gone in 60 Seconds represents peak-era Cage fully embracing the Bruckheimer formula for escapist entertainment. There’s no globe-trotting or soap-opera excess as the Fast sequels later became known for. Instead, the film is balanced by the star power of Cage and Jolie in the driver’s seat, legends like Duvall adding gravitas in the back seat, and a narrative engine powered by streamlined, high-octane storytelling.