Jacob's Ladder [DVD]

This film blew my mind many years ago, and just rewatched it. Does not disappoint twenty years later- just a epic story arch, amazing acting, cinematography, setting- it is unparalleled.

Having owned this film since it was on VHS, I was glad to see this was finally on blu ray. Jacob's Ladder is a twisted frightened view of death and the ghosts that haunt us in our everyday life.

Jacob's Ladder open's with New York postal worker Jacob Singer waking on a subway train having just experienced a nightmare flashback to his time in Vietnam. Upset and confused he tries to ask his fellow passengers if he has missed his stop but as he passes them he sees flashes of tails and horns in the uncommunicative people whom he approaches for help. Exiting the train he finds the stairs to the subway locked and on crossing the tracks he narrowly misses being hit by a train coming in the other direction and whilst lying on the track he witnesses yet more disturbing images as the train passes by. Unsure whether these images are real or as a result of some form of post traumatic stress disorder from his time in `Nam, he struggles to keep his grip on sanity as his life becomes a nightmare, with his days punctuated by visions of demons, his first wife and his dead son. His life begins to unravel and the line between reality and delusion becomes ever more fragile.This is, in my opinion, by far and away Adrian Lyne's best movie, which may surprise some people given the fact his CV includes big box office hits such as 9 ½ Weeks, Indecent Proposal and Fatal Attraction. His direction is subtle, considered, well-paced and as near as you'll get to perfect. The cinematography is also excellent and the use of special effects are relatively understated but effective, which is something that can rarely be said since the advent of CGI. As for Bruce Joel Rubin's screenplay no praise is too high. It is intelligent, intricate and complex and it keeps you guessing until the end. In fact there is so much in this movie that second time around you'll find yourself picking up clues that you missed first time around and appreciate the cleverness and different levels of the story even more. Tim Robbins is excellent as Jacob, whom he succeeds in making a very sympathetic and vulnerable character, whose life literally becomes a nightmare. The supporting cast is excellent too with Elizabeth Pena (La Bamba, Rush Hour etc) and Danny Aiello (Leon, Do The Right Thing) in particular putting in notable performances. Jacob's Ladder also features supporting performances from Matt Craven (The Life of David Gale), Jason Alexander (Seinfeld) and Eriq La Salle (ER).I first saw Jacob's Ladder at the cinema when it first opened back in 1990. I had read an article about it in a magazine, which was complete with disturbing still photographs from the movie. The article was intriguing in that it said that the screenplay, written by Bruce Joel Rubin (Ghost) had been doing the rounds in Hollywood for several years but that although everybody agreed it was an excellent screenplay it had been considered unfilmable until Director Adrian Lyne got hold of it. On the day before seeing `Jacobs Ladder', for the first time, a review in the now defunct British newspaper `Today' described it as a five star classic and I still remember watching it in the cinema on its opening night, transfixed by the story and disturbed by the images, whilst jumping out of my seat a few times. I have loved this movie ever since and have loaned out my old VHS copy many times since then but what still surprises me is that so few people seem to know this movie or have seen this movie, which to me seems like a crime.Perhaps Jacobs Ladder's lack of box office success can be put down to it often being classified as a horror movie, which is to do it an enormous disservice. Sure there are elements of Jacob's Ladder that can be compared to the horror genre but it is so much more than that. Complex, downbeat but also spiritually uplifting it was perhaps too intelligent and too disturbing to achieve a mass appeal. However, it still amazes me and saddens me that real dross such as Vanilla Sky has many people waxing lyrical when something as good, sorry excellent as this slips by relatively unnoticed. Jacob's Ladder I would suggest is a superior forerunner to movies such as Vanilla Sky and even The Sixth Sense and I highly recommend it!

Jacob’s Ladder is a psychological thriller featuring Tim Robbins as Jacob Singer. He was a Vietnam veteran who should have died in the war but survived. When he returned to New York City he started seeing visions of monsters and demons. The movie focuses upon the horrors he sees because of his near death experience. It ends up playing with the concepts of reality and fantasy in a fantastic and original tale.The story constantly surprises the viewer. At one time Jacob sees a homeless man with a tale. The next he thinks he’s up against a giant government conspiracy involving his army unit from Vietnam. Then things turn towards the surreal. Each one of these twists and turns really throws the audience off because you’re not sure if Jacob is actually seeing these things, having a dream, perhaps he’s just going crazy or maybe the government or someone else is messing with his mind?Jacob’s Ladder really is a unique story. It will completely mess with your mind in a good way and question what you just saw.

Freaky, sometimes hard to follow but it is based on facts.

No other film has been so misunderstood.Jacob's Ladder is a film about the pain and fear felt by a man coming to terms with his imminent death. In the movie Jacob is stabbed with a bayonette and lie dying in the jungle. That's real. While laying there he struggled to live and that struggle manifested itself in the chaos that went through his mind. The real success of the film is that we the audience participate in his death and the terror of his dying through the flashback sequences with Jezebel, the chiropractor, Sarah and Gabriel. When Jacob fought his death he was always in distress and always with Jezebel. She was a literary construct to torment him. When he would accept his death he was always happy, with the ones he loved such as the chiropractor, his wife Sarah, and of course his son Gabriel. The movie goes back and forth with his struggle to live or die. What makes it so successful is how the film imparts the terror and pain of a dying man onto the viewer. That's what did it for me. No other film in cinematic history has accomplished this task. Although Jacob's death took place in Vietnam the movie is NOT about Vietnam, hallucinogenic drugs, demons or psychotic ex-girlfriends.The character in the movie that explains the movie's plot - and literary mechanisms - is Danny Aiello's character the chiropractor. The chiropractor explains so eloquently that "if you fight your death you'll see demons tearing away at your life. But if you accept your death, the devils are really angels setting you free." Dante. The flashbacks in the movie are deliberately misleading deliberately terrifying. Jacob kept flashing back and forth between Jezebel and Sarah. Live or die. Jezebel was the dark manifestation of his fear tearing him away from the life he loved with Sarah. The metaphor of "The Ladder" is Jacob's ascension to heaven where he is met at the gate by Gabriel his deceased son.It's one of the most beautifully written screenplays of all time but for obvious reasons difficult to follow because of the chaos created by the flashbacks. What you have to understand is that in all likely hood Elizabeth Penas character never existed because he never made it back to New York. He had no life after Vietnam because he died in Vietnam. Jacob died on the table in Vietnam with a smile on his face after finally accepting and making peace with his life. What do the doctors say in the very last scene of the movie? "Put up a hell of a fight. The guy looks kinda peaceful." I hope this helps your understanding of the film. I cherish it.

This is one of my all time fave horror films. Whilst not a slasher its horror is served through the eyes of the title character as he journeys through the film with strange visions and distortions on his reality and also through the PTSD he suffers as a result of vietnam which keeps flashing the audience back to certain times and places. It is a journey for the audience too and whilst the film has been labelled by some as nonsensical (friends of mine) and hard to follow because it is a strange trip to take. I wont spoil it but there are characters in the film that do give us an answer as to what the film means. Jacobs doctor also lets us in on what may or may not be happening as he plays the much needed light in all this darkness. The imagery is very disturbing and shocked me to the point of sleeplessness when I first saw this and it plays on you not wanting to see. I always say that the "shakey demon" fx which means monsters and people moving in an impossible fast way was first used here before House on haunted hill. Very scary. Thrilling and emotional joyride.

Jacob's Ladder is a hallucinogenic psychological thriller that made myself hallucinate. Another film that has garnered cult status over the years, more so for its unique nightmarish flashback narrative structure. I honestly had to sit in silence for a good ten minutes and attempt to string some words together to surmise this film. Simply put: "A confusing mystery of confusing confusion". *sigh*...I'm going to need my notebook next time. Jacob is wounded during the Vietnam war, years later he starts to see hallucinations and experience depressing flashbacks which leads him to investigate the sudden mental visions. I mean...how do I even collate adjectives and superlatives to create a review for this? It's so bizarrely executed that it left me questioning if this was a hidden masterpiece or just difficult for the sake of melting the brains of the audience. Currently, I sit in the middle. It's an intriguing perspective into a heightened mind during a visceral heart-pumping experience such as the Vietnam War, where secret experiments with hallucinogens were utilised as a means to increase aggression. That aside, the primary appeal to this thriller is the intricate narrative structure. Is it real? Fabricated? Nostalgic memories or malicious nightmares? The careful construct of the plot will leave you questioning every scene up until its conclusion (which still left me scratching my head occasionally). It's rapid pacing, consistently blending ghostly fantasies with reality, which certainly needs to be adjusted to. The constant transitions between flashbacks is jarring, particularly for the first half, but stick with it and all will be answered. Robbins gives yet another exceptional performance as a man undergoing psychological delusions. My main negative is the fact it was so...how to put it..."in your face", that actually I cannot remember the majority of scenes. It's like a jigsaw puzzle, you don't remember slotting each piece in but you do acknowledge the final product. Jacob's Ladder is just that, an absurdly hallucinogenic jigsaw puzzle that definitely needs to be revisited again.

I hadn't seen this film for a long time (I had a VHS copy many years ago) and thought I'd upgrade to the Blu-ray version. I was a bit worried due to some of the negative reviews about the picture quality etc. but I took the plunge anyway. I'm so glad I did, obviously, the film itself is fantastic - thought provoking, dark and moody. It still stands up today as a bit of a classic for me.In terms of picture and sound quality for Blu-ray, it's not too bad (although I've seen way better) and a definite improvement on any VHS copy I may have previously owned. For the price, which was part of a 2 for £10 offer, I'm happy. There are no special features which is a bit disappointing but the film is great.

Con: no subtitles of any kindPro: very good movieI really enjoy the movie. I am not a native english speaker so sometimes I can miss some words if there is a person with a accent in the movie and that can be a bit irritating, so I miss there was english subtitles. But overall I am happy i saw this movie, it was amazing.

Disturbing psychological thriller about a Vietnam vet who survived the war and personal family tragedy for his life to begin suffering flashbacks and dying ex service colleagues.Is Jacob descending into into paranoia or is it real?????If you’ve not see it and physiological thriller/horror is you thing you will not be disappointed.