Jacob's Ladder (1990/I)

Note des utilisateurs:

7.5/10   

Réalisateur:

Adrian Lyne

Scénariste (WGA):

Bruce Joel Rubin (written by)

Release Date:

2 novembre 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Drame | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Accroche:

The most frightening thing about Jacob Singer's nightmare is that he isn't dreaming.

Plot:

A traumatized Vietnam war veteran finds out that his post-war life isn't what he believes it to be when he's attacked by horned creatures in the subway and his dead son comes to visit him.

Plot Keywords:

Vietnam | Subway | New York | Flashback | Army

Awards:

2 wins

Avis des utilisateurs:

More than a movie

Ensemble

Tim Robbins	...	Jacob Singer
Elizabeth Peña	...	Jezzie
Danny Aiello	...	Louis
Matt Craven	...	Michael
Pruitt Taylor Vince	...	Paul
Jason Alexander	...	Geary
Patricia Kalember	...	Sarah
Eriq La Salle	...	Frank
Ving Rhames	...	George
Brian Tarantina	...	Doug
Anthony Alessandro	...	Rod
Brent Hinkley	...	Jerry
S. Epatha Merkerson	...	Elsa
Suzanne Shepherd	...	Hospital Receptionist
Doug Barron	...	Group Leader

Autre(s) titre(s):

Dante's Inferno
L'échelle de Jacob (France) [fr]

Durée:

115 min

Pays:

USA

Langue:

Anglais

Couleur:

Couleur (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Son:

Dolby SR

Classification:

Argentina:16 | Iceland:16 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:PG (cut) | Philippines:R-18 | Netherlands:12 | Australia:M | Canada:18A | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Germany:16 | South Korea:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Emplacements De Pelliculage:

New York, USA

Company:

Carolco Pictures

Anecdotes:

In Bruce Joel Rubin's original screenplay, all of the demons who appear throughout the film were typical biblical demons with horns, wings, cloven hooves etc. Director Adrian Lyne felt that this kind of imagery could very easily come across as comic, which would destroy the film. He felt that the fact that the imagery was so far from human lessened its impact, and as such, he decided he wanted the demons to be humanesque, but not quite human. During his research into this (which was when he discovered the photography of Joel-Peter Witkin), Lyne came across the Thalidomide scandal. Thalidomide was a drug made available for purchase from 1957 to 1961. Ostensibly, it was designed to treat pregnant women; primarily as an antiemetic to combat morning sickness, and secondarily as a sleeping aid. However, prior to its release, inadequate clinical tests were carried out, leading to roughly 10,000 children in Africa and Europe being born with severe physical deformities because their mothers had taken thalidomide during their pregnancy. The most common defects were phocomelia, dysmelia, amelia and polymelia; all conditions which affect the appearance of the limbs. During his research, Lyne studied the Thalidomide case, and came to feel that the birth defects caused by the drug represented the perfect starting place for his redesign of Rubin's demons. The Thalidomide scandal was also the inspiration for David Cronenberg's Scanners (1981).

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: Numerous times, most noticeable in a mirror.

Guillemet:

Louis: If you're frightened of dying, and you're holding on, you'll see devils tearing your life away. If you've made your peace, then the devils are really angels, freeing you from the Earth.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Max Payne (2001) (VG)

Soundtrack:

HEARING SOLAR WINDS / Part 3: Arc Descents

More than a movie

This is a superbly crafted film that transcends mere entertainment and becomes an experience much greater than the sum of its parts. When you watch this movie, you are unleashing a very powerful force that short-circuits your natural ability to remain in control. It is like hypnotism, you have no choice...you are unable to think, act, or even believe apart from the intense feelings Jacob's Ladder inspires.

Tim Robbins is Jacob Singer, a warm and genuinely likable Vietnam veteran who, in spite of earning a doctoral degree, chooses to find employment working for the U.S. Postal Service. We learn in bits and pieces as the plot unfolds that his service in Vietnam included a very frightening battle, and the events set in motion on that fateful day parallel what could be his descent into madness.

Jacob's life suddenly begins to resemble Hell. He is literally chased by confusion, fear, and death, he sees unbelievably terrifying images, has horrific experiences that whether real or imagined are too frightening to bear alone. His only comfort comes in the form of the woman he lives with, Jezzie (Elizabeth Pena), and his chiropractor, Louis (Danny Aiello). Each of these people's relationships with Jacob represent more than just the roles they fulfill in his life, they are absolute forces at battle for his sanity, and possibly even his soul.

His torment begins to include the past as well, the undeniable love he still has for his ex-wife and painful memories of his son Gabe, who died tragically in an accident (played by a young and virtually undiscovered Macauley Culkin). As all these elements of the past, present and future collide in shocking hallucinations, Jacob slowly begins to suspect he could be the victim of a secret Army drug experiment gone terribly wrong.

With a haunted desperation, he embarks on a journey to find out what on earth happened to him - only his visions / flashbacks / flashforwards have become so delusional that reality and fantasy are hopelessly interwoven and nothing is as it seems. All that is decipherable is good and evil, life and death. And at the end of his nightmare, all he has to do is choose.

That's all I will share of the story. I'm not going to do you the disservice of spoiling the experience this movie is. Suffice it to say, there is much more to know, and nothing left to tell.

Meanwhile, there is not enough that can be said of Robbins' performance...although he has had better roles, never before or since has he portrayed his own emotions so nakedly. This is director Adrian Lyne's best by far, and by the way he's no slouch (Fatal Attraction, 9 1/2 Weeks).

This is not a horror movie as some may think, it is a human drama masterfully disguised as a supernatural thriller. The basic elements of Jacob's Ladder have been plundered several times in recent years. We have been suckered by flashy films with clever plot twists that cheat us on story, characters, and technical excellence. This film delivers all that and more. Movies like this are set apart from the rest of the pack because you don't just watch stuff like this, you feel it too.