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Summary: [....]
Review: [....] This is a fabulous film, far better than the Sixth Sense and the recent Nicole Kidman flick the Others, both of which borrowed heavily from this masterpiece. You must see this film, especially for the ridiculously low price of eleven bucks!
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Summary: Onto the ladder of briliance
Review: ....Great acting, and a great story to tell. Really scary in a psychological way. You barely catch a glimps of the "demons" when they are after Jacob, that is until the freaky hospitol scene. Tim Robbins does all most too good a job acting, it makes the movie that more realistic. He reacts exactly like any person would if this was happening to them. The movie starts in Vietnam where it appears that Jacob gets wounded, but the next scene has him waking on a subway train. As the movie progresses Jacob has demons for the lack of a better term try and kill him. His Chiropracter (sp?) plays one of the more important roles in helping him over come everything. And it all makes perfect sense after the last few lines of dialog are spoken at the end. I definately recommend this to anyone who watches movies for a good storyline or great acting.
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Summary: Way out there!!
Review: This is absolutely one of the most amazing movies I've ever seen. The first time i watched it, I had no clue what was happening, and still I couldn't stop thinking about what was going on in Jacob Singer's mind. It is clear that somewhere in the movie he is dreaming, having flashbacks, insane, or something. It wasn't until the second or third viewing that I figured out what was happening, and then I only wanted to watch it again and again so I could pick up on every of the many details that go into this masterpiece. You like symbolism? Surrealism? Philosophy or psychology? Then watch this movie. The directing takes off to such another level, that nothing strikes you as ordinary. The camera angles intensify every shot. Last time I watched JL I just looked at the contrast of lights and colors. I have never seen such a flawless movie, because it takes you totally into another domain and never slips on the slightest point. Every component is designed to draw you in that much more, and it works.
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Summary: The Long Strange Fight for a Lost Soul
Review: Movie Summary: Jacob Singer is back from the Vietnam War. He lives in New York with his girl friend and delivers mail. Lately he has been having terrible dreams and flashbacks that are starting to spill over into his waking hours. They are gradually taking over his life and threaten to destroy his sanity. As the nightmares get worse, Jacob's grip on reality gets weaker. My Opinion: This is a tough movie. A lot of people have a hard time with it. It's not a straight forward story that is easily understood. It takes some work to get into and a lot of people won't want to work for their entertainment. I will try to explain why I like it without spoiling the entire plot. The IMDB says that Jacob's Ladder is also known as Dante's Inferno. This should hint at the fact that there is something deeper than a just a horror movie going on here. Keep in mind that the viewer has a lot to do with interpreting a movie and attributing meanings to it. If things are missed, invented, or misinterpreted, then different people can have far different feelings about a movie because they haven't really seen the same movie. Such is the case with Jacob's Ladder. Some people have complained that the ending negates the entire film. This isn't so. It is the entire film. It is a complete story from beginning to end. It just isn't the story that we thought it was. The ending may be a surprise, but it's not a surprise ending. It is the ending that the entire story worked toward. The drugs that may or may not have been given to the soldiers are not the point. They are something that Jacob grasped at to explain his nightmares and the viewer ends up doing the same thing. But we unlike Jacob are unable to let that explanation go. To me, this is an extreme example of every movie. It shows how different people can see the same thing and all come away with something completely different. That's one of the main things I love about movies. It also shows that there are smart people out there making movies for the smart people watching them. And that's nice to know because sometimes I feel a little lonely. DVD Quality: Widescreen Anamorphic 1.85:1 DD5.1 Picture and sound were great. There are a lot of great extras on this DVD including deleted scenes with and without commentary, commentary for the feature, a making of documentary, production notes and cast and crew bios. The is a fully packed DVD release at a great price. What You Should Do: Check it out if you are into thrillers that make you think and don't mind working at understanding it. Digest it. Watch it more than once and think. Check out the deleted scenes and see where else the story could have gone...
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Summary: Disturbing, chilling take on the illusion of reality
Review: Taking as its theme the more or less accepted theory that the US government experimented with hallucinogenic substances on its troops during the Vietnam war in an effort to "improve" their performance, Jacob's Ladder is a film of contradictions and surprises which succeeds, like hallucinogens, in disorienting, confusing and frightening the viewer. Tim Robbins is superbly understated as the gentle protagonist Jacob Singer, ripped from the bosom of his family and planted in the hell that was Vietnam. After his return from Vietnam, Jacob is plagued by distressing hallucinations, portentous dreams and encounters with mysterious men which invariably end in violence. The narrative constantly shifts between the "present", Vietnam and Jacob's life before Vietnam, and has the effect of destabilising the logic of the film so that ambiguity creeps into all aspects and a menacing air of uncertainty pervades the action - is Jacob hallucinating or really seeing monsters? What exactly happened to him in Vietnam? Are his memories accurate or have they been distorted by his experiences? Adrian Lynes' meditation on the nature of the past contains echoes of Proust - memories are all we have, but can they ever faithfully reflect what happened, or are they inevitably coloured by the events that succeed them? The fact that the director is English is, I think, an important point. As an outsider he brings a different perspective to Vietnam (similar to Alan Parker's excellent Birdie) that is more circumspect than the views of, say, Oliver Stone or Francis Coppola. The film's ending is shocking, but I would argue that it is rather more ambiguous than most reviewers assume. If you read it one way then yes, it does undermine the rest of the film. But I don't think Lyne intended it literally: if you accept that what happens is symbolic, then it makes a lot more sense, and can be taken to mean several things, none of which subverts the film's message: that unspeakable things happened in Vietnam that its survivors will go to any lengths to try to forget, and that the US government acted with astonishing dishonesty, hypocrisy and evil intent in what it did, not just to the Vietcong, but to its own troops. Jacob's Ladder is as powerful a film in its own way as Apocalypse Now was, though maybe its resonance was not as powerful at the time of its release. From a distance of a decade or more, however, the film has not diminished in any way and stands as a powerful testament to the way in which that terrible conflict burned into America's collective psyche and altered its view of itself irrevocably.
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Summary: I've lost respect for Leonard Maltin
Review: There are only a handful of movies I find myself watching over and over again. Jacob's Ladder, so much so, I've worn out my VHS completely and am now awaiting the release of the DVD. This movie is one of the most thought provoking, intelligent films made in my life time. The fact that Leonard Maltin did not understand it's content and found the ending "like a bad shaggy-dog joke--[negating] the entire film," awakens me as to why all modern films are written and marketed for the "stupid" movie goer. Leonard, the ending doesn't negate the story, it is the reason for the story. Jacob Singer's (Tim Robbins) journey to death is a battle for his soul. He finds out why he died, how he died, when he died and who is responible but never realizes he is dead. So the battle ensues. He is protected by his chiropractor/gaurdian angel (Danny Aiello) fending against demons like his girlfriend (Elizabeth Pena). Jacob never returns from Vietnam, as the flashbacks to Vietnam indicate. They say when you die, your life flashes before eyes. This movie suggests much more. The past, the present, the future, the imagination, the senses, the afterworld. Once he comes to grips with death, he can release his soul to heaven and leave the demons behind. While Leonard Maltin left the movie befuddled and confused, I wept. If you have not seen this movie, see it. If you have seen it and did not understand it's meaning, see it again.
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Summary: my my my.
Review: this movie starts and until the end makes you confused and slightly freaked out. A lot of turns and twists that just make you wonder. like the scenes of robbins getting chased by a car. it's scary. don't ask why. it just is. the last scenes, i admit i got teary eyed. not a movie for everybody but for those who can't acctually sit through it without wanting to stop it. i applaud you damn't.
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Summary: Avoid this movie at all costs!
Review: This is THE least enjoyable movie ever. No redeeming values. Watching this is a form of psychedelic torture. Nothing good happens in this movie. You'll finish the movie depressed and wanting a warm shower to get rid of the creeped-out ill feeling you will have. If you want edgy but good, go rent Reservoir Dogs, and let this dog die.
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Summary: must buy
Review: If you enjoyed the movie then you will love the dvd. The deleted scenes add a little extra. The documentary on how the film was created was also interesting.
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Summary: Must See!
Review: This is a suprise hit. When it first came out I didn't hear anything about it, I rented it because the movie I was looking for was checked out. That must have been fate because this was so much better than the movie I was originally looking for. Without ruining the story, this is a film about a Vietnam soldier who was subjected to an experimental drug: "Jacobs Ladder". The movie takes the soldier (Tim Robbins) from the jungles of Vietnam to New York city. Robbins is haunted by his memories of the war and the effects of the experimental drug. The story has many twists and turns, you struggle to understand what is going on. By the end of the movie you realize what all the plot twists really meant. I had to watch it again to fully appreaciate the story. Everytime you watch the movie you pick up on different things and develop new theories on the plot. This is a good example of fine acting and great writing. However I must caution you, this may not be what you are looking for. Before you buy this, rent it first. Most people I have talked to either hated or loved this movie...no middle ground here.
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