rated PG-13

It’s nice to see that a filmmaker need not waste millions on computer animation to achieve that glassy, lifeless dead-eyed look in his characters onscreen. All one needs do, apparently, is hire Nicolas Cage.

At his best, Cage can bring a manic, some would say unhinged, unpredictability to roles that in other hands could be as thin as the script paper. He elevated the otherwise thankless drinking-himself-to-death role in “Leaving Las Vegas” to a full-on Oscar win. His decision to read the Big Daddy part in last year’s “Kick-Ass” in the voice of Adam West was pure lunatic genius. However, this experimental nature is decidedly haphazard, and, more often than not, his realization of the personalities he’s paid to embody begins and ends with whatever ludicrous hairpiece the makeup crew glues to his noggin. It’s a shame enough to the actor, but is becoming more and more of an insult to his audience. With a spate of recent pictures like “Sorcerer’s Apprentice” and “Bangkok Dangerous,” Cage seems to have whole-heartedly given over to playing dress-up instead of playing characters.