Next

Year: 2007
Director: Lee Tamahori
Cast: Nicolas Cage, Julianne Moore, Jessica Biel

After Paycheck, Minority Report and Total Recall, here comes yet another film adaptation of Philip K Dick's literary work. Next is based on Dick's novel The Golden Man, about a man who can see a few minutes into the future.

Nicolas Cage plays Cris Johnson, who can see two minutes into the future. This allows him to do a variety of things, from doing magic tricks to cheating at the casino tables to escaping the authorities. With his power, he can play out every possible scenario before actually doing anything. So far, Cris has been able to keep a low profile by becoming a magician in Vegas. But of course, eventually his gift draws attention.

Julianne Moore plays FBI agent Callie Ferris, whose current assignment is to track down a group of terrorists planning on detonating a nuclear bomb on American soil. She believes that Cris may be able to help her find them, using his gift. Cris, knowing what it's like to be prodded and probed for what he can do, refuses. But eventually he gives in when his new girlfriend Liz, played by Jessica Biel, gets kidnapped by the terrorists. There is a special connection between Cris and Liz, besides matters of the heart. In Liz's presence, Cris can see further than two minutes. So now, Cris agrees to help Callie find the nuclear bomb and stop the terrorists before it's too late.

So what we have here is a good action film, helmed by Lee Tamahori, who has made great films like The Edge and Along Came A Spider. The main star is Cage, who has been known to pull off great performances despite being in a bad movie. So does Next work for the audience? Well, yes and no. It depends on what you're really looking for. If you're looking for a good action film, this will do just fine. But if you want a smart movie, you won't get it here. First of all, the plot is obviously illogical. Why would the FBI seek out a guy like Cris to find a nuclear bomb? Do they even watch 24? Because that show has a lot more excitement in one hour than this entire film offers. And worse, the bad guys' motivation for wanting to blow up a nuclear warhead is never explained, making them the most hollow of villains in cinema history.

Cage of course, does no wrong in his role as the protagonist. You'll love watching him use his skills to evade his pursuers, dodge bullets and detect traps. Even in the stupidest of scripts, Cage can make himself look good. Moore does a convincing job playing an agent who probably shouldn't even exist in the real world. I can't think of anyone who would rely on a fortune teller to find terrorists. But to Moore's credit, she comes through. Biel unfortunately is better at looking pretty than actually being able to act. As for Tamahori, he succeeds in making a film that keeps you on the edge, but severely fails in getting it to make sense. His past work is certainly much better than this one.

A valiant effort, but not good enough. (3/5)