Next: Nicolas Cage Saves the Day Once Again

Next, a film that is supposed to be based on a Philip K. Dick short story, would be a pretty mediocre action thriller except for one thing. That thing is that Nicolas Cage plays a guy named Chris Johnson who can see two minutes into the future. He can see further into the future when it involves a mysterious, beautiful girl named Liz, played by Jessica Biel, but that's another story.

Cage, who has made a career playing quirky, off beat heroes, is what saves Next from being something that would have been rejected as a plot line for a season of 24. He uses his gift to spice up his magic act in a Los Vegas hotel and make a little money on the side at the slots and blackjack. He is a little less careful than he thought, because his gift comes to the attention of three different groups of people.

First, the security apparatus of the casino where he is picking up extra money becomes perturbed that someone is beating the house and does not seem to be a card counter. Cage's character, of course, senses what's about to happen and decides to cash in his chips. There follows even worse trouble for him, which makes his gift all the more useful as he bobs and weaves his way through the casino, just missing the various security folks who are after him, as he makes his escape.

The second group of people who become interested in Cage's character is the FBI, led by Special Agent Callie Ferris, played by Julianne Moore as a kind of pale imitation of her much more famous FBI gal, Clarice Starling in the film Hannibal. The FBI and Moore's character certainly would like to have a word with Cage's character because the Bureau would certainly find his gift of great use. Especially since the FBI is on the hunt for a group of terrorists who intend to blow up Los Angeles with a stolen nuclear weapon.