“Next” — A Movie Pulse Review

With a title like “Next” hopefully the studio is prepared for the inevitable ridicule likely to afflict their movie, unless it transcends its trite name with spectacular substance and quality. It doesn’t. However, Nicolas Cage’s most recent actioner does contain an ample amount of thrills and an intricate storyline that is surprisingly unpredictable for a movie whose main character (and therefore the audience) can see two minutes into the future. But if you learn anything from this movie, it’s that it doesn’t really matter what happens Next.

Based on the short story The Golden Man by Philip K. Dick, Next follows the precarious life of Cris Johnson (Nicolas Cage), a man both gifted and tormented by his unique ability to see a few minutes into his future. To stay off the radar of those wishing to exploit his powers, Johnson poses as a magician in Las Vegas and supplements his income with risk-free gambling. Desperate to avoid a nuclear terrorist attack on Los Angeles, FBI agent Callie Ferris (Julianne Moore) begins a search for the magician in order to use his intuitive prowess to discover the precise target location. Initially unwilling to help, Cris is eventually apprehended by Callie and agrees to cooperate to save the girl he loves from a horrifying fate. But even with his superhuman intuition and the aid of the FBI, will Cris be able to reach her in time? Does it even matter?

A quick narration by Cage informs the viewer of Cris Johnson’s powerful premonitions and sets strict parameters concerning his abilities. He can only see the events pertaining to his own life and then only for two minutes in advance. Then probably less than that amount of time later, they break these rules and every possible exception is made, posing the question of why guidelines were introduced at all. Even with such a premise, Next manages to keep the audience guessing – a feat more impressive than it sounds, and if you can see the ending coming then this movie was probably based off of you. But unexpected unpredictability aside, many sequences will probably remind you of effects and situations from such predecessors as Minority Report, The Matrix, and Déjà Vu, and that same startling conclusion ultimately negates everything the movie worked so hard to build and cements the concept that it doesn’t really matter how the movie ends, so long as it is wholly unsatisfying.

Of the condensed cast, Cage is easily the most interesting character, but not because of his visionistic aptitude, but rather his sarcastic humor and cocky bravado. With the ability to see the future, no matter how brief, Cris is a force to be reckoned with, and many of the most entertaining sequences are such due to the displays of those powers, be it in combat or in wooing Jessica Biel. Moore is adequate as the domineering FBI agent, though her talents seem wasted after her performance in Children of Men. Biel lends her attractiveness and little else as Cage’s mysteriously fated girlfriend and proves Cage moves fast with the charm – but to be fair he does only have 96 minutes to get the girl and save the world. As for the antagonists, a more stereotypically lackluster and standard group of villains one would be hard pressed to find, although the random mix of languages they speak, including French, is anything but typical from Hollywood terrorists.

With a plot so outlandishly realized that you can’t help but wonder what will happen next, Lee Tamahori’s sci-fi thriller seems destined for something greater, but stumbles with a conclusion equal parts clever, unanticipated, and unfulfilling. Bouts of clever dialogue and fun action only go so far, and while the film stretches these elements to their limits, several bland characters and an unfortunately ridiculous execution of interesting concepts produces a movie that feels more like the last thing you saw and less like the Next.

- Joel Massie
MoviePulse.net