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Next

Next title card

Year - 2007
Studio - Paramount
Stars - NIcolas Cage, Julianne Moore, Jessica Biel
Director - Lee Tamahori
Writing Credits - Gary Goldman, Jonathan Hensleigh, Paul Bernbaum (screenplay), Philip K. Dick (novel)
Music - Mark Isham

Synopsis

"Here's the thing about the future... Every time you look at it, it changes. And that changes everything." - Chris Johnson

Chris Johnson (Nicolas Cage) possesses psychic abilities allowing him to foresee two minutes into his future. Not wanting to have his abilities exploited by others, he works as a stage magician in Las Vegas, and also uses his talent to make small gambling wins. Although his paranormal ability is otherwise confined to seeing his own future, he is obsessed with a recurring vision of a beautiful woman at a restaurant.

FBI Agent Callie Ferris (Juliianne Moore) has been observing Chris, convinced that his talent is genuine and wants to recruit him to help prevent the detonation of a nuclear bomb by terrorists. When she confronts him, he runs away and is able to evade capture by the agents by anticipating their every move.

Chris goes to the restaurant at the time he knows the woman of his vision will be found. She is Liz Cooper (Jessica Biel) and finding this stranger to be intriguing, she agrees to drive him to Flagstaff from Los Angeles. On the way, they make a stop at the Grand Canyon where she is a volunteer teacher to Native American children.

The couple are being sought by not only the FBI, but by the terrorists who have become aware that Chris has the ability to thwart their plans for destruction.

Next poster

Trailer

Like Source Code and The Adjustment Bureau, Next is an action thriller, but its major themes of romance and science fiction/fantasy qualify it as a marginal Film Blanc.