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From Amazon.co.uk
In Jacob's Ladder, Vietnam veteran Jacob Singer (Tim Robbins) thinks he is going insane. Or worse. When his nightmares begin spilling into his waking hours, Jacob believes he is experiencing the after-effects of a powerful drug tested on him during Vietnam. Or perhaps his post-traumatic stress disorder is worse than most. Whatever is happening to him, it's not good. Director Adrian Lyne sparks our interest and maintains high production values, but this confusing film chokes on its "surprise" ending. It owes much to Ambrose Bierce's haunting and more straightforward short story, An Occurrence at Owl Creek. Written by Bruce Joel Rubin, who also explored the "other side" in Ghost and My Life, Jacob's Ladder ultimately feels like an exercise in self-indulgence. A spirited performance by Elizabeth Peña outshines Robbins, who is surprisingly lethargic. --Rochelle O'Gorman
Product Description
Divorced Vietnam veteran turned postman Jacob Singer (Tim Robbins) is disturbed when he begins to be plagued by bizarre and violent hallucinations, both of the family he has abandoned and a bloody battle he could not previously remember. So strong are the images that the line between past and present, real and unreal, begins to dissolve. Desperate for help, Jacob turns to his ex-wife, Sarah, and chiropractor Louis (Danny Aiello).
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
32 of 33 people found the following review helpful
By Paulo Andre
Format:DVD
Reviewing this movie is a difficult task for it's very easy to spoil the movie for the reader, due to its nature. Therefore, I will try to focus my comments on the technical side rather than on the story.
Tim Robbins delivers a unique performance as Jacob (perhaps only comparable in his career to The Shawshank Redemption where he, however, needs to share the credit with Morgan Freeman), a Vietnam warrior who gets seriously wounded in combat and finds himself in a desperate struggle for life. And between life and death, heaven or hell, where does Jacob belong? That's something Jacob will have to find out for himself and that'll be the fight of his life.
Robbins is absolutely irreprehensible from start to end, and the rest of the cast includes other somewhat well known names like Eriq La Salle, Elisabeth Peña, Macaulay Culkin on one of his first roles (yeah, the Home Alone kid!) and even Jason Alexander from Seinfeld. The film is filled with symbolic meaning and that's one of its strenghts. Director Adrian Lyne did a really great job on that front as he was able to capture all that meaning, treating it well and presenting it to the reader in the most fascinating and yet subtle way. Not only that, this includes perhaps the very finest psychological horror I've ever seen (or should I say felt?) in my life.
This is perhaps one of the most underrated movies out there, but you know what? I think that adds something almost mystical to it. Get it on your DVD/Video player and see for yourself.
5 stars. No less.
39 of 44 people found the following review helpful
By RM
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
..make sure that you get the full uncut 18 version, not the DVD 15 version that I was duped into getting because of false advertising. If you are unable to get the full version on DVD, just buy it on VHS. Believe me, it's worth it because there are multiple scenes which are cut from the DVD version.
15 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Definitely a cult classic of its genre, magnum opus of Adrian Lyne. But, I must warn that "Jacob's Ladder" is not for everyone, ideally suited for mature, patient and attentive viewers because, as being difficult to follow and hard to digest, it is not an easy pill to swallow. It gets more and more cracked and convoluted at every turn, but ultimately so much rewarding if you could sit through from beginning to end.
The plot is multi-layered, segueing from alternate "realities" to the odd bouts of hallucinations. First layer is Jacob's lurid experience in Vietnam, a sinister battle in Mekong Delta, where his guts were pierced by a deadly bayonet thrust by an unseen assailant; Then, his post-Nam NYC "life" comes with flashbacks showing the days with his girlfriend Jezzie, who is compelled to cope with his intermittent psychotic episodes and gradual mental degeneration; Suddenly, we cut to his pre-Nam days during which he lives happily with his ex-wife and kids. At one point he is visited by his dead son, and haunted by his death scene.
These phantasmagoric trips occur between the pre-Nam/post-Nam worlds and the viewer gets overwhelmingly baffled whether which of these worlds were real and which were fantasy. And in all these worlds, he incessantly struggles to battle his inner demons appearing everywhere in "outside" world. Is he slipping into insanity; are all these mess a result of being doped by a mind-altering drug, making the soldiers hyper-violent war machines during the battle; is there a conspiracy by government to silence him; is he alive or is he dead? What a mishmash... You would be bombarded with such questions, and some red herrings throughout the film.... Read more ›
The plot is multi-layered, segueing from alternate "realities" to the odd bouts of hallucinations. First layer is Jacob's lurid experience in Vietnam, a sinister battle in Mekong Delta, where his guts were pierced by a deadly bayonet thrust by an unseen assailant; Then, his post-Nam NYC "life" comes with flashbacks showing the days with his girlfriend Jezzie, who is compelled to cope with his intermittent psychotic episodes and gradual mental degeneration; Suddenly, we cut to his pre-Nam days during which he lives happily with his ex-wife and kids. At one point he is visited by his dead son, and haunted by his death scene.
These phantasmagoric trips occur between the pre-Nam/post-Nam worlds and the viewer gets overwhelmingly baffled whether which of these worlds were real and which were fantasy. And in all these worlds, he incessantly struggles to battle his inner demons appearing everywhere in "outside" world. Is he slipping into insanity; are all these mess a result of being doped by a mind-altering drug, making the soldiers hyper-violent war machines during the battle; is there a conspiracy by government to silence him; is he alive or is he dead? What a mishmash... You would be bombarded with such questions, and some red herrings throughout the film.... Read more ›
14 of 16 people found the following review helpful
By Craig Martin
Format:Blu-ray|Amazon Verified Purchase
I'm a big fan of Jacob's Ladder and have been ever since I saw the film during its initial release in cinemas. Some reviewers think it a shame that the film didn't perform well but that may have had to do with how closely it was compared with Ghost at the time, and critics generally didn't respond well to the big (or perhaps understated) reveal in the denouement. I prefer to celebrate this film as a well-kept secret for patient and adventurous cinephiles. It's hardly a pop-vehicle and any attempt to drum up that sort of mass interest just does it a disservice because its just not that type of film. I recently purchased the Blu-Ray version from Amazon.co.uk and I'm mega-pissed. From the get-go you can tell that it has been transferred from VHS as the opening titles swim on the screen (typical of VHS). I already have a VHS player and if I wanted a VHS copy I would have bought one. I was hoping for something remastered, crisp and clean, but what I got was a lazy-arsed transfer that is not worth the money paid. Do yourself a favour and don't follow my lead in buying this appalling transfer and maybe -just maybe - those greedy distributers will get the message (yeah, right!). Blu-Ray is Hi-Def gadgetry and it makes ZERO sense selling such inferior transfers - especially for a film like Jacob's Ladder that has a solid and very loyal following.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By Paul
Format:DVD
Beware, you could be in for a rough ride. If you choose to view this film as a horror story with a twist, then there are many other films in that genre that will shock you more - but what will really shock you is if you dare to get into the symbolism.
It's the story of a man seeing a life pass before his eyes, although not necessarily his own life in the conventional sense. It's said that we need to put our past behind us before we can move on, likewise, Jacob Singer has to do this but perhaps it's not his literal past but ashes of emotions and psychology scars that need to be abandoned.
Every scene drips with double-meanings; the heavy use of Judeo-Christian references: Jacob's ladder, a lover named Jezebel, being mugged by Santa Clause, etc.
It raises a question of what is real. The life we think we know is based on the choices we took and the roads we travelled but what of the infinite number of other realities filled with those other choices and those other roads? Are there other parts of us walking those roads? Even in this world we are conscious of the relativity of time, space and energy; we know that every moment can be brimful of space yet still filled with time, yet still filled with light and sound and memories. Many worlds co-exist and Singer moves between worlds.
Something has happened to Singer that we don't understand, he's in a place we don't recognise, but is it less real?
But, as dark and as grim as it gets, this film is ultimately one of hope and redemption. "You look like an angel", Singer says to his chiropractor, a chiropractor that straightens deeper knots than mere physical joints and tissues.... Read more ›
It's the story of a man seeing a life pass before his eyes, although not necessarily his own life in the conventional sense. It's said that we need to put our past behind us before we can move on, likewise, Jacob Singer has to do this but perhaps it's not his literal past but ashes of emotions and psychology scars that need to be abandoned.
Every scene drips with double-meanings; the heavy use of Judeo-Christian references: Jacob's ladder, a lover named Jezebel, being mugged by Santa Clause, etc.
It raises a question of what is real. The life we think we know is based on the choices we took and the roads we travelled but what of the infinite number of other realities filled with those other choices and those other roads? Are there other parts of us walking those roads? Even in this world we are conscious of the relativity of time, space and energy; we know that every moment can be brimful of space yet still filled with time, yet still filled with light and sound and memories. Many worlds co-exist and Singer moves between worlds.
Something has happened to Singer that we don't understand, he's in a place we don't recognise, but is it less real?
But, as dark and as grim as it gets, this film is ultimately one of hope and redemption. "You look like an angel", Singer says to his chiropractor, a chiropractor that straightens deeper knots than mere physical joints and tissues.... Read more ›
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4.4 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Was It A Flashback?
"With fellow critics, I got involved in a conversation about the underlying reality of the film. Was it all a flashback - or a flash forward? Read more
Published 3 days ago by prisrob
4.0 out of 5 stars
Philosophical and supernatural take on war, life, family and death
The title of this movie, Jacob's Ladder, references the bible story of the same name. In the bible story, Jacob is on the run having angered his brother Esau for stealing his... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Phillygirl
5.0 out of 5 stars
Snakes and Ladders
The Vietnam War, hallucinogenic drugs, a Pentagon cover-up, we've heard of all this before. But this movie had me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. Read more
Published 2 months ago by lycidas
5.0 out of 5 stars
Still spooky after all these years
This very moving film improves with repeated viewing. The way it sustains a series of bewildering, disjointed, nightmare sequences without being tiresome is a mark of genius. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Cath
5.0 out of 5 stars
My Favorite film.
This has to be the granddaddy of many a psychological horror. From Event Horizon, right to the demented gates of the now sadly forgotten survival horror genre - e.g. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Gerard Gray
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jacob's Ladder
A Vietnam vet's private hell of intrigue and paranoia composed of a multitude of interweaved realities. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Diprotodonald
5.0 out of 5 stars
Superb
Whoever doesn't like this film clearly doesn't get it. As 1 idiot wrote 'bad points, ignorant fanboys who put this in there top 10 films'! How is this a bad point to a film? Moron. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Ledgepak
4.0 out of 5 stars
great film!
really enjoyed this film. not the best film every made but a very good psychological (action) thriller with some jumpy bits. holly-ann
Published 17 months ago by salsa-star
5.0 out of 5 stars
Spectacular
This is one of the truly great films! The extras - a 30 minute film of the making of Jacob's ladder was superb, it's only a pity that rather than showing the deleted scenes as an... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Earl
5.0 out of 5 stars
Inspiring
This film is brilliant - I love the concept of some kind of wierd world that exists between life and death.
Published on 3 May 2011 by Tony
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