By Sam Jemielity

You think Rumsfeld botched national defense? He looks like Tsung Tsu next to the FBI agents in Next, who decide that the only way to stop terrorists from detonating a nuclear bomb in Southern California is to turn to struggling Vegas illusionist Johnson, who goes by the stage name Frank Cadillac. FBI agent Callie Ferris (Julianne Moore) is convinced that Johnson can see far enough into the future to tell them when and where the bomb will explode. One problem: Johnson seems more interested in using his powers to get into the pants of a potential girlfriend (Jessica Biel) and, really, can you blame him? He also uses his flash-forward vision to clean up at blackjack, escape casino security, avoid getting smashed by a train while fleeing the cops in a Dodge Charger, dodge bullets Matrix-style and walk through Fallujah-level firefights without a scratch.

In films like The Rock, Cage pulls off the geeky, reluctant hero with charm and humor. Here he seems to be a self-parody, romping through Vegas in a ruffled tuxedo shirt or leading a SWAT team through a kill zone (remember, he's a magician) with the line, "Listen to me, and you'll get out alive." Moore drops lines like, "With freedom comes responsibility," with so little conviction, she doesn't even appear to believe them, while Biel pretty much just has to show off her healthy skin. The film's final twist is so unsatisfying, it almost makes you want to see alternate endings on a DVD, just to see what other conclusions director Lee Tamahori (Die Another Day) could possibly have deemed worse. Whatever they were, you don't need ESP to know he made the wrong choice.