If you could see two minutes into the future, you could have a quick look, then choose not to read this article.
Before yesterday, this was about all I knew about the 2007 Nicolas Cage movie, Next.
There were a whole slew of Philip K. Dick adaptations in this period following the success of Minority Report (2002), and Next is very much part of that noughties Dick-fest (there’s a phrase to interest the search engine bots).
Next is very loosely based on the story ‘The Golden Man’. That’s a story set in the near future about mutants with abilities. Cris Johnson’s ability allows him to see two minutes into the future. The name Cris Johnson and the ability to see into the future are about the only aspects that remain from Dick’s story.
As a writer, I’m always interested in the process of adaptation from the page to the screen. They cannot be the same. They shouldn’t be. They’re different mediums with different structures. Sometimes, though, it feels like it’s an adaptation in name only, trying to jump aboard a bandwagon rather than trying to truly bring that story to life. It must be very frustrating for those wanting to see Dick’s work given a degree of respect.
There are a number of problems with the movie. We learn that this ability has made Cris’s life difficult. As such, he wants nothing to do with any kind of government organisation. Unfortunately, the government want him, because some terrorists have a bomb, and they seem to believe seeing two minutes into the future will help them to stop the bomb. Inexplicably, the terrorists also want to find Cris Johnson, because they fear, somehow, he can stop them, so they want to stop him first. It really doesn’t make a lot of sense. There’s a hint that there’s someone on the terrorist’s side that has some kind of intel, but we never find out who the shady mastermind of the plot is. In fact, the movie doesn’t really finish at all. I can’t believe the movie was allowed to end the way it does. It really needs to be seen to be believed.
So, how’s Cage in it? As the creator of the Cage Off 2024, that’s the important thing to me. He has some good lines. I’d like to have seen more of him as a magician. His stage name here, Frank Cadillac is brilliant. Without a hint of irony we’re told the name is based on two of his favourite things: Frankenstein and Cadillacs.
It’s short on other moments like this, unfortunately. The action set-pieces work well, with Johnson able to see perils and ducking under falling cars and dodging bullets. It’s a lot of fun, though ultimately empty. His failed attempts to chat up Jessica Beil’s character are a rare comic moment, though a bit creepy if you think to much about it.
The short story, as it is wouldn’t necessarily work as a movie, but this doesn’t either. It’s very much of its time with that fear of terrorism at the forefront. There’s plenty of scope for something so much better. At the end of the day, it was a fun, but frustrating 92 minutes.
Oh, and Columbo’s in it.
For more Cage fun, check out the Nicolas Cage Puzzle Book.