Directed by: Doug Liman
Written by: David Goyer, Jim Ulhs, Simon Kinberg
Based on the novel by Steven Gould
Starring: Hayden Christensen, Jamie Bell, Samuel L. Jackson, Rachel Bilson, Diane Lane, Michael Rooker, Max Thieriot
Distributed by 20th Century Fox & New Regency Productions
Available on two disc DVD at Amazon for $22.99
Review by Ray DeRousse
FILM: 
DVD:
THE FILM
How on earth do you take a concept like this and completely waste it??
HAYDEN CHRISTENSEN stars as David Rice, an outsider who inadvertently discovers that he has the power to teleport himself anywhere in the world with just a thought. As anyone would do in similar circumstances, David teleports – or, jumps – into bank vaults and steals everything inside. Soon, he is filthy rich and literally living on top of the world, eating lunch on top of a sphinx and jumping onto Big Ben for the hell of it. Unfortunately for David, a group of random antagonists led by SAMUEL L. JACKSON want to kill all Jumpers because they are jealous of their powers.
Christensen is much better here than in any of the STAR WARS prequels; he has always been a good actor, but he was simply pinched under the stale direction of GEORGE LUCAS. Here he captures the excitement and cocky bravado of a young man that can have whatever he wants. Jackson, on the other hand, retains the same stilted line readings that he used to detrimental effect in the prequels. He is apparently willing to let his horrible blond hair do all of the acting and character nuance for him. What happened to this guy in front of Lucas’ green screens anyway? He used to be one of our most charismatic actors, and now he is a zombie.
Despite the far-reaching destinations on display via David’s jumps, this film feels small. Part of the blame lands on the terrible idea to focus most of the film’s final act on David’s romantic interest with an old flame. Despite a terrific, naturalistic performance from RACHEL BILSON as David’s girlfriend, the film fails to feel as epic as it seems to aspire. At one point, David meets another Jumper who declares during a battle, “welcome to the war.” What war? We only see two Jumpers in this move, and limited battling. Like I said, the entire enterprise feels small when it’s trying to be much more than that.
Even worse is the motivation of the group of National Security Agency goons led by Jackson’s blond-haired Roland. He runs around with a huge knife, trying to capture Jumpers and then stab them to death. Why, you ask? His reason, given early in the film, is that “only God should have that power.” It’s groan-inducingly stupid, and so transparently phony that one can never feel a sense of dread. Let’s see … if only God should have the power of teleportation, then shouldn’t God alone have the power to kill or judge? And if we’re playing with the idea of God in this scenario, then from where did David derive his ability if not from God? Roland’s motivation in this movie nearly destroys all credibility, and truly ruins a magnificent idea.
Here’s how it could have been done better: David discovers he has this ability, and he even meets other Jumpers. But they are being hunted by Roland so that they can be captured and re-programmed into an elite assassination/soldier force of unassailable power. David resists, and the war is on. At least with this configuration, you give Roland a believable motivation that sells the idea of Jumping, and why the ability is valuable enough that Roland relentlessly pursues Jumpers. I can’t believe they passed up an opportunity to really show off this awesome concept in order to feature a storyline of such transparent nonsense.
DOUG LIMAN is a terrific action director, and he combines some of the camerawork of his acclaimed BOURNE series with some impressive special effects. He also wisely allows the audience to learn and understand David’s newfound powers along with the character. I kept expecting a fight scene with the jaw-dropping choreography of Nightcrawler’s attack on the White House in X-MEN 2, but the film never quite matches those heights. Instead, we have some nice subtle character moments that highlight the many uses of this power. Unfortunately, we become so enraptured by the power that we are ultimately let down by the script’s poor use of it on a grander scale.
Based on the premise alone, I was interested in this film. But in execution, much is wasted. What a shame.
EXTRAS
What a DVD!! For a film that wastes much of its potential, this DVD is packed with extras.
DAVID’S STORY: AN ANIMATED GRAPHIC NOVEL – An actual cartoon, roughly animated, that tells additional material about David’s life. Not impressive, really.
DOUG LIMAN’S JUMPER UNCENSORED – Not as risque as the title suggests, this doc looks behind the scenes at the technical aspects of filmmaking. Very insightful and thorough.
JUMPING AROUND THE WORLD – A look at many of the locations used in the film, as well as some of the techniques used to bring it to life.
MAKING AN ACTOR JUMP – A very tecnical glimpse at the special effects used in the film, many of which are quite impressive.
JUMPING FROM NOVEL TO FILM – This examines the history of the novel, and its adaptation to the screen and beyond. I didn’t know about the novel beforehand, so this was welcome information.
My only gripe is that Hayden himself rarely appears on the extras. Did he refuse to participate in any other material? I would have liked an interview with this fairly reclusive actor.
OVERALL
If you like pulpy science fiction, then this film will be fairly enjoyable … just don’t think too much. However, the DVD is spectacularly put together and thorough, and anyone who enjoyed this film at all should get it.
