Jumper
Movie Review
"Jumper"
Review by Eric D. Snider
Grade: C
Rating: PG-13
Released: Thursday, February 14, 2008
Directed by:
Cast:
Add "Jumper" to the list of movies with nifty premises that are squandered by a sloppy, rushed execution. Based apparently rather loosely on Steven Gould's 1992 novel, it's about a young man who can teleport himself anywhere in the world, who is pursued by a mysterious organization that wants him dead. That's a fine idea for a sci-fi film, and Doug Liman is a competent director ("The Bourne Identity," "Mr. & Mrs. Smith"). So why is the finished product so hasty and vague and unrewarding?
Hayden Christensen plays David, a "jumper" since age 15. His clunky narration explains that "mom left when I was 5; as for Dad, well, let's just say he wasn't much of one." Now 23, he lives a carefree life in New York City, existing on money he's stolen from various banks by popping into their vaults, and constantly visiting all the corners of the earth just for fun. It is a good life, that of a jumper.
Until he meets Roland. Played by Samuel L. Jackson in an inexplicable white wig, Roland is a jumper hunter. "You are an abomination," he tells an unlucky teleporter who has fallen into his grasp. "Only God should have the power to be in all places at all times." Technically, jumpers are only in one place at a time, but you can't argue with zealots who want to exterminate your kind.
David escapes from Roland and, perhaps inspired by his brush with death and perhaps just because the movie thought it was time, he returns to Michigan to look for his high school crush. Her name is Millie (Rachel Bilson), and she now tends bar at an Ann Arbor tavern. She and everyone else in Ann Arbor thought David was dead. Why has he waited eight years to return? And why isn't the whole "we thought you were dead" thing addressed? You'd think Millie's surprise at seeing him again would be a little deeper than a simple "Hey, I haven't seen you in ages!" Michiganders evidently roll with the punches pretty smoothly. A dead man can show up to order a drink and be greeted with a hug.
Eventually David meets another jumper, Griffin (Jamie Bell), who knows a lot more about Roland's group than David does, and the two reluctantly decide to work together to fight Roland and save themselves. Yet even with Griffin's hurried explanations, you get the feeling that a lot of backstory and mythology have been cut out. Certain dialogue here and there suggests much greater complexity -- the history of Roland's group, the technology they use to find and trap jumpers, the physical laws governing teleportation, Griffin's motives -- that has obviously been excised in favor of a dopey CW Network romance and small-scale action scenes.
The screenplay is credited to three writers: David S. Goyer ("Blade," "Batman Begins"), Jim Uhls ("Fight Club"), and Simon Kinberg ("XXX: State of the Union," "Mr. & Mrs. Smith"). I suspect that too many cooks -- and too much studio interference -- have spoiled the broth. There's a very cool sequence late in the film that involves David and Griffin jumping all over the world while fighting, and it briefly energizes what is otherwise a lackluster movie. It also hints at what a good movie this could have been if it were tighter and smarter. The book has a sequel, and the movie transparently leaves the door open for one, but I doubt things'll get that far. I suspect this is both hello and goodbye for "Jumper."
Grade: C
Rated PG-13, a little profanity, one F-word, moderate action violence
1 hr., 28 min.
Copyright © Eric D. Snider.
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This item has 12 comments
February 14, 2008 at 4:43 am
I saw Jamie Bell interviewed by (UK chat show host) Jonathan Ross about the film. He explained a little about the "rules/laws" of jumpers. For example, a Jumper can only "jump" to somewhere he has physically been before. (So I guess if Hayden Christensen's character is "constantly visiting all the corners of the earth just for fun" as a Jumper, he must have used his bank-vault money to actually fly to those places at some point previously.) The clip of the film they showed looked vaguely "Matrix"-y.
It's always good to see "little Billy Elliot" working as a grown-up, but I wish they would release "Hallam Foe" over here instead of crap like this. (But interestingly enough, I believe "Jumper" is also being released on Valentine's Day in the UK.) (Oh--and Jamie Bell had to explain to the British TV audience that the title had nothing to do with the characters wearing a lot of sweaters. Do any of the Jumpers actually wear "jumpers" in the film?)
February 14, 2008 at 2:38 pm
So I take it since there is no mention of it in the review that Hayden Christensen's acting isn't the worst thing of the film? There was a little skit with him on American Idol last night and I was cringing just seeing him "act" like himself.
February 15, 2008 at 7:56 am
"You can't argue with zealots who want to exterminate your kind."
That gave me a laugh.
February 15, 2008 at 10:19 am
I saw this last night before reading the review (which I must do with any movie since the reviews here generally have tons of spoilers) and I must agree with most of what Eric said--although, technically, this is not a sci-fi movie, but a fantasy movie set in modern day. I was expecting, pre-disposed, even, to like this movie. But what the writers forget is that you need some reason to like the main character other than that He Can Do Cool Stuff. This movie COULD have worked if they had A) cast someone other than Hayden Christensen in the lead (that guy annoys just about everyone I know) B) gone more into the backstory, mythology, etc. as Eric suggested, and C) given the main character even an ounce of nobility instead of selfish hedonism. They also could have done something different with SLJ's hair. I mean, that was hella distracting.
February 16, 2008 at 1:02 pm
So if what #1 says is true and jumpers can only jump to places they've been before, how on earth did this kid get access to bank vaults in the first place? Whoops, sorry, I'm putting too much stock in continuity.
February 16, 2008 at 1:20 pm
#5: I don't know what Jamie Bell said in interviews, but the movie itself only indicates that a jumper must have *seen* a place before, not necessarily that he must have visited it personally. Photographs seem to be good enough. As for the bank vault, the kid makes a point of asking to use the bathroom at a bank, which means the security guard has to lead him past the vault, so he's able to visualize it later. Of course, that doesn't explain how he's able to jump into other vaults at other banks (unless he uses the same bathroom trick), nor even how he was able to jump *into* the first one, since he didn't really get to see what it looked like on the inside. Basically, the movie's answer is, "He can jump anywhere he wants. Shut up and accept it."
February 16, 2008 at 7:49 pm
It looks like someone has put Jamie Bell's interview on YouTube in two parts:
Part One
Part Two
Jamie Bell starts talking about "Jumper" about 4 minutes into Part Two. Please be warned that British chat shows are not as "family friendly" as the American variety. (The house band on the Jonathan Ross show are called "Four Poofs and a Piano" to give you some idea.)
Anyhow, on re-watching the interview I see that Jamie Bell was rather more ambiguous than I remembered. He says that to teleport a jumper "must already have been to a place/must have seen a place". . .(Well, WHICH IS IT, Jamie?!?) So I guess Eric's basically got it all summed up when he says "He can jump anywhere he wants. Shut up and accept it."
February 17, 2008 at 9:37 am
This movie is definitely stupid but most of it is moderately entertaining. The end is a complete hack though. The Griffin character is really annoying with his persistent "I can't believe you don't know this" attitude; Clearly it's just a way for the director to get out of explaining anything. Millie is annoying too - every line of dialogue is said in the same whiny tone. And Hadyn Christiansen is of course, an incompetent actor.
And what kind of bank puts its public bathrooms in view of the vault?
February 22, 2008 at 9:09 am
I'm guessing that the one F-word was said by Samuel Jackson, he can't do a movie without saying it at least once.
"I'm tired of these motherf****** snakes on this motherf****** plane!!!!"
February 28, 2008 at 1:09 pm
This movie doesn't even look appealing. Aiden Christensen is not an actor I generally like to go see.
March 6, 2008 at 12:35 pm
Hayden.
June 15, 2008 at 2:39 pm
***SPOILERS***
I generally found this movie to be disappointing and crap piled on top of crap, but one part did stick out to me:
Hayden: Hey Millie! Long time no see! So...you want to come to Rome with me?
Rachel: Well David I haven't seen you for eight years and everyone thought you were dead but...Rome sounds great! I'll just drop everything and we'll be in Rome in ten hours! Yippee!
Wow, it's great to see the cinematic (and acting and writing) geniuses at work here. Bravo, guys.