Sidewalks On The Corner

"Star Wars"-ers Hayden Christensen and Samuel L. Jackson are reunited in the action-packed JUMPER. Can the two former Jedis jump throughout the world and make a new film franchise based on a 1992 sci-fi novel?

Follow up:

JUMPER
Twentieth Century Fox

Director: Doug Liman
Screenplay by: David S. Goyer, Jim Uhls and Simon Kinberg
Cast: Hayden Christensen, Jamie Bell, Rachel Bilson, Samuel L. Jackson, Diane Lane

STUDIO SYNOPSIS:
The science fiction thriller leaps into a new realm with JUMPER, which begins the epic adventures of a man who discovers that he possesses the exhilarating ability to instantly teleport anywhere in the world he can imagine. From New York to Tokyo, from the ruins of Rome to the heart of the Saharan Desert, anywhere is possible for David Rice (Hayden Christensen, "Star Wars - Episodes 2 and 3"), until he begins to see that his freedom is not total, that he's not alone . . . but part of an ongoing, global war that threatens the very survival of his rare and extraordinary kind.

David Rice has grown up with a mysterious power of which many have dreamed. He is completely and utterly mobile, able to zap through wormholes in the space-time fabric to any city, any building, any place at all that his mind desires. In the blink of an eye, he can "jump" from one side of the earth to the other and back again - he can tour twenty different sunsets in one night, he can have breakfast on the Egyptian Sphinx, spend the day surfing in Australia, then pop over to Paris for dinner and enjoy dessert in Japan. He can pass through walls and locked bank safes and enter the most forbidden chambers. So far, he has used his powers to run away from his past, to take advantage of unlimited wealth, to remain fiercely independent. He's never known limits or boundaries or consequences. Or true connection. Until now.

But when David discovers another young man like himself, a fiery, globetrotting rebel named Griffin (Jamie Bell, "Billy Elliot"), the truth of his existence begins to dawn. He is not just a lone freak of nature, but part of a long line of genetic anomalies known as Jumpers, none of whom are safe. Now, David has now been identified by the secret organization sworn to kill him and all Jumpers. And he is about to be relentlessly pursued in a chase that will literally bound around the planet - as he becomes a key player in an unseen battle that has been raging, invisible to most of humanity, through the ages.

J.P.'s TAKE:
With great power comes great responsibility. So, what would you do with your powers? Would you help your fellow man and become a hero? Or would you take the selfish route and use your power for evil and end up hurting the ones you love the most…or worse? This is the question David Rice (Max Thieriot as young David; Christensen as older David) was faced after he first discovered his unusual powers. The story is a real one in the sense that many teenagers have often felt like outsiders because of their social / financial status. I'm sure tons of kids have wanted to just disappear from society altogether. That's just what David Rice did, literally. He gave new meaning to the phrase "Wanna Get Away."

“Jumper“ is a comic book brought to life and, in some ways, that's the problem with this film. Based on the novel by author Steven Gould, the film version tries to be too slick in its approach and style. That's where the train ran out of steam. I felt like I was cheated out of a real sci-fi movie, because it wasted much of the opportunity given, to finish the story it started. The plot of a jumper became vague; therefore the characters became just as vague. You weren't really sure what their purpose was. Instead of coming up with an understandable storyline, “Jumper” chooses to settle for flash and dash. Sure the special effects were brilliant, but the action taken by the characters were robotic and very routine.

I didn't believe enough in Rachel Bilson's (TV's The O.C.) performance as Millie, David's childhood friend (played in earlier scenes by two-time Sidewalks guest AnnaSophia Robb) and later girlfriend, as she wondered from happy to angry, then sad, back to happy, then angry again all in one scene. The only time I felt sorry for Christensen's character is during one scene when his tears flowed as his past came back to haunt him. However, Christensen's performance suffered from lack of realism in certain areas of the film that required him to show the proper emotional response. The whole thing resolved into mellow drama. As a result, the dynamics between Christensen and Bilson were completely thrown off.

As David begins to learn how to use his unique powers, he is chased throughout the film by Roland Cox (Samuel L. Jackson, "Snakes on a Plane"), a leader of the Paladin organization, whose goal is to kill jumpers. I thought Jackson was a cookie cutter thug with some interesting toys to make him look fiercer than he really was. In M. Knight Shyamalan's film "Unbreakable," Jackson's character of Elijah Price (a.k.a Mr. Glass) was much more diabolical and fleshed out, than the futuristic barbarian he plays in this film.

It's unfortunate when someone as talented as Diane Lane ("Unfaithful") is placed in a role that is a complete waste of time. She plays David's mother, Mary Rice, and is only in three scenes. It was such a disappointment that she was underused (maybe she has a bigger role in potential sequels?). I like the acting of Michael Rooker ("Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer"), who played David’s abusive drunk father, William Rice. He was convincing during his limited scenes.

I really wanted to like this film. The concept was original -- if by a small margin. The FXs were excellent, but I wanted more. I expected more! Unfortunately, that just wasn't enough to keep me involved in the characters’ lives. The ending lacked some much-needed strength and -- in a cheesy way -- tried to explain who David Rice was. In other words, it wasn't a satisfying ending. The writers should have written a better resolution to whole fiasco that unfolding on screen. This is a film for the comic book buffs, mainly the 11 to 13 year olds who think squirting cheese whiz through their noses is cool. Sci-Fi nuts will be a little disappointed. You can expect sequels to arrive. I would rent "Jumper" after all the hype has worn off.