''Nicolas isn't afraid to expose himself and his emotions and vulnerabilities nakedly on screen. Because of that, he can fit into any movie or part.'' -- ELISABETH SHUE

Is he the goofball of Peggy Sue Got Married? The suicidal cynic of Leaving Las Vegas (for which he won the Oscar)? Cage, 34, is as difficult to pin down as quicksilver; he's not identified with a single genre but excels at all of them. In comedy, he can be as sweetly overwhelmed as Charlie Chaplin. In drama, he takes on the doomed world-weariness that Kleenex was made for. Even in the most formulaic action films, his method is a unique helter-skelter madness.

DON'T MISS: Wild at Heart (1990), Leaving Las Vegas (1995), Face/Off (1997)

NEXT: Brian De Palma's Snake Eyes (Aug. 7); Joel Schumacher's 8mm (early '99); Martin Scorsese's Bringing Out the Dead


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