Jumper DVD Film Review
Jumper is a film about David Rice, a high school student in Ann Arbor, Michigan, who discovers through a near-death experience that he has the power to transport himself instantaneously to anyplace on earth. So, he does what any young man would—he zaps himself to New York City, robs a bank, and settles in the city to live the life of the rich and invisible. He travels wherever he wants to, whenever he wants to, and when he goes back home to see his crush, Millie, he decides to let her in on his little secret and zap her to Rome with him. From there, things get complicated as they meet another jumper, Griffin, who tells them that Roland Cox and his team of Paladins, supposedly employed by the government, are chasing jumpers.
Jumper is loosely adapted from Steven Gould’s series for young adults, and stars Hayden Christensen (The Star Wars franchise) as David Rice, Michael Rooker as his father, William, Diane Lane (Untraceable, Hollywoodland) as his mother, Mary, and Rachel Bilson (“The O.C.”, Last Kiss) as his one true love, Millie. Roland is played by Samuel L. Jackson (Freedomland, Coach Carter), and the “other” jumper, Griffin, is played by the likable Jamie Bell (Flags of Our Fathers, Billy Elliot).
The film is directed by Doug Liman (Mr. & Mrs. Smith, The Bourne Identity), and also stars young up and coming actor AnnaSophia Robb (The Reaping) as Young Millie, Kristen Stewart (Twilight), and Teddy Dunn (“Veronica Mars”).
Jumper is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen, with audio in Dolby Digital 5.1, optional Spanish and French Dolby 2.0 stereo tracks, and optional English and Spanish subtitles.
Extras include full length commentary with Liman, writer/producer Simon Kinberg, and producer Lucas Foster. The featurette “Jumping Around the World” discussed logistics of the various travels covered in the film, such as Rome, New York, Tokyo and Michigan, and the special effects of jumping itself are discussed in “Making an Actor Jump”. There are also some deleted scenes, and an animated graphic novel.
Jumper is rated PG13, which makes it suitable for most kids, although there is some violence, mild sexual situations, and foul language. It’s also a fast ride, clocking in at a brisk 88 minutes and packed with almost too much action for the short film.
Unfortunately, there’s not enough of Lane and Jackson seems to be phoning in his role as a villain, which leaves Christensen and Bilson to carry the film, and they don’t fare so well at it (not to mention their complete lack of chemistry). The only bright spot in the film is Bell, who brings the most depth to his character given he’s not the leading man. Mediocre acting aside, the film is short enough to make watching bearable, and the effects are pretty cool.
There’s also a morality lesson to be had in Jumper, which begs the age-old question—just because you can do something, does that mean you should?