He thought the relationship between Ben Sanderson and Sera was one of "the coolest" he'd ever seen and based his performance on Kris Kristofferson's in A Star Is Born and Albert Finney's in Under the Volcano.
Cage went so far as to hire a "drinking coach" to help him create a realistic performance, whom he'd have on set with him. "The poor guy would be curled up in a fetal position in my trailer as I'm playing bongos," he recalled. "But he would say the most poetic, drunken things."
In the scene where Ben flips over the blackjack table in the casino, Cage was legitimately pretty hammered.