The Weather Man Photo

Weather Man

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Hope Davis, Michael Caine, Gemmenne de la Pena, Nicholas Hoult

Directed by: Gore Verbinski

RS: 2of 4 Stars

2005 Paramount Pictures Comedy

Nicolas Cage deserves points just for playing David Spritz, a Chicago TV weatherman who rubs people the wrong way. His fans hurl milkshakes at him. His ex-wife (Hope Davis) despises his hairy body. His father (Michael Caine), a Pulitzer-winning author, disdains David's lack of talent and ambition. His overweight daughter (Gemmenne De La Pena) recoils from his barely disguised contempt. His son (Nicholas Hoult) hates his neglect, which transfers into a near-disastrous encounter with a pedophile counselor (Gil Bellows). Cage works hard to find traces of humanity in a man that God forgot, as do screenwriter Steven Conrad and director Gore Verbinski. But in the face of a character no one cares about, can audiences be faulted for asking: Why should we?