Jacob's Ladder (1990/I)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Adrian Lyne

Writer (WGA):

Bruce Joel Rubin (written by)

Release Date:

2 November 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

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

Cast

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

Also Known As:

Dante's Inferno

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

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

Filming Locations:

New York, USA

Company:

Carolco Pictures

Trivia:

Actors who were allegedly interested in playing the leading role of Jacob Singer included Dustin Hoffman, Al Pacino and Richard Gere. For the role of Jezzie, director Adrian Lyne auditioned roughly 300 women, including Julia Roberts, Andie MacDowell, Madonna and Jennifer Lopez. The role eventually went to the very first person who auditioned - Elizabeth Peña.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: A support wire is clearly visible on one of the demon's wings during the party scene.

Quotes:

Army Officer: Mr. Singer. What an appropriate name for a man who can't shut up.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Dialogue: An Interview with Screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin (2007) (V)

Soundtrack:

MY THANG

Anguishing, Intriguing, Original, Unique

On 06 Oct 1971, in Mekong Delta, Vietnam, the American soldier Jacob Singer (Tim Robbins) is wounded by a bayonet during an attack to his platoon. He wakes up in New York subway while going home late night after working overtime in the post office. He is divorced from Sarah (Patricia Kalember), lives with his colleague and lover Jezebel (Elizabeth Peña) is a small apartment in Brooklyn and misses his young son Gabe (Macaulay Culkin), who died in an accident where Jacob feels responsible for. Along the next days, Jacob is chased by demons and finds conspiracy in the army, while having different visions of different moments of his life.

Yesterday I saw "The Jacket" and I decide to see once more "Jacob's Ladder", maybe for the fifth time. This anguishing and intriguing story is one of the most original and unique I have ever seen, and has been plagiarized many times mainly in the foregoing mentioned "The Jacket". Tim Robbins gives another top-notch performance in the role of a troubled man resolving his life, due to the feeling of guilty for the loss of his younger son. Bruce Joel Rubin, who also wrote and produced "Ghost", "Jacob's Ladder" and "My Life", shows that is very connected with spiritual issues, approaching this theme in his films. The Brazilian title of this movie, "Alucinações do Passado" ("Hallucinations From the Past"), wrongly induces the viewer and destroys the dubious sense of the original title: Jacob is the lead character, "Ladder" is the name of the experiment his platoon and him had been submitted in Vietnam; but the interpretation of "Jacob's Ladder" in the Bible is that this is the only means to reach the total ecstasy, the plenitude, however, we need first supersede the obstacles that we find in our ascension. Further, "Jacob experienced a vision in which he saw a ladder reaching into heaven with angels going up and down it, a vision that is commonly referred to as Jacob's Ladder" (from "Wikipedia"). Another interesting aspect is that all the characters have biblical names. For example, Jezebel is considered the most wicked woman in the entire Bible (the character of Elizabeth Peña was responsible for the separation of Jacob and Sarah and maybe he was blaming her for keeping him far from his family); and Gabriel is the angel that explained signs from God and announced the conception, birth, and mission of Jesus to Mary. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Alucinações do Passado" ("Hallucinations From the Past")

Note: On 19 May 2009, I saw this movie again, now on DVD.