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102 MINUTES | BOSTON COMMON + FENWAY + FRESH POND + CIRCLE + SUBURBS Nicolas Cage’s Dave Spritz is a TV weatherman for whom it’s always raining. Although his job has made him a quasi-celebrity, he’s empty and unfulfilled. His ex-wife (Hope Davis, shrill and joyless) can barely contain her rage, and his two children are a mystery. None of that changes during the film, but Dave becomes more aware, and that makes life sunnier, or something. Cage used to embrace the crazy in his characters, risking absurdity but often hitting on the sublime; here his performance is so deadpan, it barely registers. Director Gore Verbinski, better known for straightforward entertainments like Pirates of the Caribbean, seems to be making his bid for mature adult drama, but this film is so self-conscious, it hurts. Only Michael Caine, as Cage’s father, offers any respite from the chilly suffering.
BY BROOKE HOLGERSON
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