Street Date: June 10

Official Synopsis:
David is a Jumper who can teleport himself anywhere in the world, which creates a fun and exciting life. But things turn deadly when David finds himself pursued by a secret organization sworn to kill Jumpers. Forming an uneasy alliance with another Jumper he becomes a player in a war that has been raging for thousands of years.

  
Our Take:

Jumper is a loose adaptation of the novel of the same name that tells the story of a young man who can teleport himself anywhere he chooses . While action movies filled with special effects aren’t my first choice, I really liked the story of Jumper.  There’s enough action, breathtaking locations and exciting twists to hold my attention.

Samuel L. Jackson is terrifically unnerving as the righteous Roland, and it’s nice to see Rachel Bilson in a role other than that of a ditzy socialite.  Jamie Bell made the movie the movie for me, though, and it’s hard to believe he’s the same kid that played Billy Elliot.  And while Diane Lane’s part was small, it was important; is it just me, or does she just get more beautiful every year?

In fact, I liked everything about the film except for lead actor Hayden Christensen. I found his  portrayal of David to be just another version of Anakin Skywalker or the troubled teen he played in the ABC Family show Higher Ground.  He’s smug and has only two facial expressions; sulking and grimacing.

The 2-disc DVD featuresmany excellent bonus features, including:

Ø       Commentary - By director Doug Liman, writer/producer Simon Kinberg and producer Lucas Foster.

Ø       Jumpstart: David’s Story (8 minutes) – An animated graphic novel.

Ø       Doug Liman’s Jumper: Uncensored (35 minutes) – A completely candid making-of feature which I found hysterical.

Ø       Jumping Around the World (10 minutes) - Shows all the locations the movie was shot in and how they were important to the film.

Ø       Making an Actor Jump (7 minutes) - Gives a revealing look at how they created the effects of “jumping.” 

Ø       Jumping from Novel to Film: The Past, Present and Future of Jumper (8 minutes) - Shows how the filmmakers took the base concept of the novel and created a whole universe with possible future sequels. Ironically, in this feature, they compare Griffin and David to Luke and Han Solo from Star Wars.

Ø       Deleted Scenes (11 minutes) – These are a must-watch, and filled in some gray areas for me.

Ø       Previz: Future Concepts (4 minutes).

Ø       Trailers.

Jumper works for action junkies and non-action junkies alike.  The special effects and camera work are great, but for me it was carried by the story the filmmakers created.

Overall Picture:
Movie: B
DVD: A

- Marcia Keefe
Staff Writer