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Movies / On DVD / Jacob's Ladder
Jacob's Ladder

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Jacob's Ladder (1990)

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Reviews Counted:46

Fresh:33

Rotten:13

Average Rating:6.7/10

Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Adrian Lyne's JACOB'S LADDER moves in time and space between Vietnam and New York with hallucinatory force. Something bad happened on the Mekong Delta, on October 6, 1971, and it is still affecting... Adrian Lyne's JACOB'S LADDER moves in time and space between Vietnam and New York with hallucinatory force. Something bad happened on the Mekong Delta, on October 6, 1971, and it is still affecting war veteran Jacob (Tim Robbins) in Brooklyn as he attempts to live a normal life with coworker and girlfriend Jezzie (Elizabeth Peņa). Louis (Danny Aiello), an understanding chiropractor, tries to help him cope with his nightmarish visions--some of which occur at night, while others intrude into his daily life. When Jacob gets a call from Paul (Pruitt Taylor Vince), who was with him in Vietnam, it seems that Jacob is not alone in his visions. The film offers impressive and compelling performances by Peņa, Aiello (no ordinary chiropractor), and Ving Rhames and Eriq La Salle (the latter of ER) as Jacob's comrades from Vietnam. Macaulay Culkin appears uncredited as Jacob's young son, Gabe. Director Lyne also guides an unerring interpretation of Bruce Joel Rubin's screenplay in Robbins's powerfully restless, searingly searching performance as Jacob; brilliant editing additionally rounds out this engrossing, disturbing film. JACOB'S LADDER is a jolting experience that is not easily forgotten. [More]

Starring: Tim Robbins, Elizabeth Peņa, Danny Aiello, Bryan Larkin

Starring: Tim Robbins, Elizabeth Peņa, Danny Aiello, Bryan Larkin, Matt Craven, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Jason Alexander, Patricia Kalember, Eriq La Salle, Ving Rhames, Brian Tarantina

Director: Adrian Lyne

Director: Adrian Lyne
Composer: Maurice Jarre
Screenwriter: Bruce Joel Rubin
Producer: Alan Marshall

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Aug 21, 2001

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Jacob's Ladder

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1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating)
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No review available.

comment Comment
04/20/04
Alex Sandell
Alex Sandell
Juicy Cerebellum

Jacob's Ladder is a hammerhead movie, one that bashes the audience to death with its jazzy technique.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Chris Hicks
Chris Hicks
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

No review available.

comment Comment
10/11/02
Christopher Smith
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)

[Falls] ultimately flat on its surrealistic face, the victim of too many fake-art sequences.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
06/30/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

Lyne indulges more in misdirection than in direction; he's a magician turning a sleazy trick.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Hal Hinson
Hal Hinson
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Despite all the confusion, it's a simple case of the script being too ambitious. It may emulate a man experiencing flashbacks, but it doesn't help the audience.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
03/27/09
Ian Nathan
Ian Nathan
Empire Magazine

Good premise undercut by too much last-minute editing

comment Comment
10/04/02
James Sanford
James Sanford
Kalamazoo Gazette

Pretentious tripe from Adrian Lyne with a plotline not unlike the 'surprise' of The Sixth Sense.

comment 1 Comment
03/18/03
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Pretentious tripe from Adrian Lyne with a plotline not unlike the 'surprise' of The Sixth Sense.

comment Comment
03/18/03
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

No review available.

comment Comment
01/12/07
Michael Dequina
Michael Dequina
TheMovieReport.com

No review available.

comment Comment
05/23/03
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Dull, unimaginative and pretentious.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
06/19/08
Variety Staff
Variety Staff
Variety

Unfairly dismissed on its original release, this really deserves to be better known: the ultimate example of bad-trip mainstream cinema.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
03/27/09
Channel 4 Film

Truly frightening and visually unique, this messy, challenging film is anchored by Tim Robbins' remarkable performance.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
03/27/09
TV Guide's Movie Guide

No review available.

comment Comment
07/30/05
Andy Klein
Andy Klein
Los Angeles CityBeat

Some of the most disturbing things you've ever seen in a horror film . . . should you have a problem with sleeping too well at night, try watching this movie a few times

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
03/19/03
Brian Mckay
Brian Mckay
eFilmCritic.com

An interesting film to stick with and repeatedly reassess what's real and what's just a dream.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
Brian Webster
Brian Webster
Apollo Guide

No review available.

comment Comment
11/17/03
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus

Will scare the bejesus out of you.....one of the cleverest films of the 90's

comment Comment
05/06/05
Clint Morris
Clint Morris
Film Threat
 
 
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Latest News for Jacob's Ladder

August 25, 2005: Keanu & Zeta to Head Lyne's Lana Turner Tale
Catherine Zeta-Jones and Keanu Reeves are in talks to star in Adrian Lyne's as-yet-untitled biopic about the love affair between movie star Lana Turner and mob affiliate Johnny... More...

June 02, 2005: Winkler & Rubin Want to Deliver "A Perfect Divorce"
More...

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