S Gray

Largely based on stereotypes, which is what makes it both fun and corny. Enjoyable as long as you don't take yourself too seriously.

This movie starts with an interesting premise; a man that can see slightly into the future. After the promising initial action sequence in the casino and escape sequence, it stumbles over a clunky plot and bad dialogue that not even Barbie Doll Jessica Biel can save. Julianne Moore is laughable as the "tough gal" FBI agent. Who cast her in that role? Cage is decent, but honestly seems too old, especially when trying to charm Biel. His hair is b-a-d, second only to ConAir, which make it even funnier to watch. There has to be a spoof of this somewhere, as it is just BEGGING for one. The special effects are actually pretty cool, but the plot is just so ridiculous that you can't take it seriously. This could only sell to a dumbed-down audience that refuses to engage their brains on any level, which thankfully for Cage's career, is an accurate description of much of the US.

There is a lot of story within this story. Odd, human, believable, and unpredictable, this film explores the internal man from two completely different personality types, and the coping mechanisms that each uses when their world is shaken by the experience of war. One is the extrovert type-A, a stereotypical go-getter and man's man. The other, reclusive and fragile, is living on the edge of reality and losing grip on it more and more as the story progresses. It deals somewhat realistically with the nature of friendship, and how opposites are drawn together and complementary to each other. Quirky, yet somehow weirdly believable, it's definitely worth seeing. The ending felt a little bit off the mark and forced, but was at least surprising and ended a heavy movie on a light note. While it didn't ring true, it was actually very smart commercially, as it didn't end as the total downer one would have expected throughout the last half. This has to stand as one of the most unique plots ever written. If it falls down anywhere, it would have to be the shaky and unrealistic dialogue, which seems forced and stereotyped at times, mostly by the supporting characters.

The premise is promising, and the imagery is at first interesting, but there's nothing beyond it to take the plot forward. The movie stalls halfway through and never delivers anything but the initial dread of claustrophobic monotony. The ending is predictable.