Are we having fun yet, Kevin Spacey?

“Reckless abandon.” That’s how Kevin Spacey described his approach to playing Mel Profitt, the manic-depressive, paranoid crime boss he portrayed for a glorious half season on the TV series “Wiseguy.” And it’s that sense of reckless abandon that permeates all of his best roles — and what’s clearly lacking from the performances that just don’t work. Because when Kevin Spacey is on, he radiates energy — much the way a great band does during a live performance. Perhaps that’s why Spacey’s remained a theater rat at heart, because above all else he loves to connect with an audience.

In the 1990s, Spacey had an incredible streak of great films: “Glengarry Glen Ross,” “The Ref,” “Swimming with Sharks,” “The Usual Suspects,” “Se7en,” “L.A Confidential,” “Hurlyburly” and “American Beauty.” He won two Academy Awards: a best-supporting actor statue for “The Usual Suspects” and best actor for “American Beauty.” It was as if he could do no wrong. Oh, yeah, he did some mediocre studio fare in those days: “The Negotiator,” “A Time To Kill,” “Outbreak,” “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” and “Consenting Adults” but he was either the best part of the movie — the thing that almost saved it — or it was hard not to feel kind of sorry for him because he seemed straight-jacketed by a pedantic story or a play-it-safe director. It never felt like it was Spacey himself at fault.

Then came the year 2000, and that millennium bug that didn’t cause computers to crash all over the world somehow seeped into Spacey’s career: “Pay it Forward,” “The Big Kahuna,” “K-Pax,” “The Shipping News, “The United States of Leland,” “The Life of David Gale” and “Beyond the Sea.” The man who could do no wrong suddenly seemed to be making every wrong choice. And he was no longer the best part of a mediocre movie — he was part of the problem.

All the characteristics that worked for him in previous films now rang false: The smugness that made his John Doe character so subtlety frightening in “Se7en” makes you root from his character to face his death sentence in “Life of David Gale.” The meekness that made his Verbal Kint so deceptively appealing in “The Usual Suspects” makes you want to shake mild-mannered school teacher Eugene Simonet in “Pay it Forward.” And yes, these are bad movies; Spacey cannot be held solely responsible for a movie as loathsome as “K-Pax” or one as impenetrable “The Shipping News.” But it’s hard not to shake your head in awe at some of these massive career missteps.

Born at the wrong time
Now, “Beyond the Sea” is not a bad movie. In fact, it’s a pretty good one with one glaring problem — Spacey is too old for the part. And though he tries to address that issue within the movie, it’s impossible to forget. As good a singer and dancer as Spacey is, and as charming as he is in the film, it’s just impossible to let go of the fact that Bobby Darin died before he hit the age Kevin Spacey was when he portrayed him on film.

Interestingly, the movie does illustrate how comfortable Spacey might have been in the movies of the 1930s and ’40s. He could have played the hard-boiled yet charming detective roles that Humphrey Bogart conquered so ably — Spacey proved as much in his Dean Martin-inspired turn as Jack Vincennes in “L.A. Confidential.”

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He could have been an actor like James Cagney, equally comfortable in gangster pictures and musicals. He could have had the freedom to approach roles with a lot more of that trademark reckless abandon. In those days actors weren’t afraid to chew a bit of scenery — and have a bit more fun. It’s very easy to picture Spacey in Bogart’s role in the “Maltese Falcon,” which combines both charm and gravitas (please, no remakes, please).

But unlike in “The Maltese Falcon” where Bogart is allowed to vary his personality throughout the film, Spacey gets shackled by formulaic films. His “Pay it Forward” character doesn’t work, in part, because the story doesn’t allow him to be anything other than a guy trying to get over his past. That’s it. Spacey looks as if he’s trying to act within a very small box.

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The best scenes in the movie are in the classroom when he interacts with the kids — his Eugene Simonet has some zip and some sass. Frankly, other than the fact that she doesn’t have many other prospects, it’s not clear why Helen Hunt’s character would want anything to do with the mild-mannered shlub he turns into when he’s around her.

In “The Negotiator,” it’s Paul Giamatti who gets the meaty, small scene-stealing role, while Spacey almost disappears beside Samuel L. Jackson’s bombastic leading role. Anyone could have played Spacey’s role in “The Negotiator.” The character is that bland. But in his best films, you can’t imagine anyone but Spacey playing the part.

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