20th Century Fox and Regency Enterprises present a PG-13, 88 minute action, adventure sci-fi directed by Doug Liman and starring Hayden Christensen (David Rice), Jamie Bell (Griffin), Rachel Bilson (Millie), Diane Lane (Mary Rice), Samuel L. Jackson (Roland), Michael Rooker (William Rice) with AnnaSophia Robb (Young Millie), Max Thieriot (Young David), Jesse James (Young Mark), Tom Hulce (Mr. Bowker), Kirsten Stewart (Sophie), Teddy Dunn (Mark Kobold) and Barbara Garrick (Ellen).
David a young man from Ann Arbor, pretty much standing on the top of the world can travel any where, any time and as quickly as he wants within the flash of an eye. At the age of fifteen he attends high school, has a love interest, Millie, and is the target of the school bully, Mark. David attempts to present Millie with a gift which Mark sees fit to throw out on to an icy river that flows a short distance from their school. When David tries to retrieve the gift, a snow globe, he falls threw the ice which leads to his first jump and his realization that he has this power. Feeling that since his mother ran away when he was five years old he can do the same at fifteen leaving behind his father, William and Millie, the love of his life.
Eight years later, after fleeing to New York City, David has decided to use his abilities to further his standard of living by robbing banks. But someone by the name of Roland is hot on his trail and out to destroy him. Roland, a black man with white hair, is a paladin, a member of a religious group that believes only God should have the power to be all places at all times. After eight years of searching for David he has found him. David once again jumps after fighting off over 1000 watts of electricity which makes it tougher for him to use his powers. David always knew he was different but in the eyes of the paladins he will always be a jumper. It was the maternal love of one woman, Mary, that reached out after all those years away from her son that helped him in a time of need. When David was five, Mary had a choice to make which was to kill him or leave him since her son was a jumper and she was a paladin.
David returns to his hometown to search for Millie and hide out for a while trying to have a bit of normalcy. Ten hours later though he and Millie are off, my plane, to her dream destination, Rome. Albeit nothing goes as planned, he befriends another jumper, Griffin, while visiting the Coliseum with Millie, who helps him fight off some paladins out to kill them both. Welcome to the war, the battle of old becomes anew to David which happens to now envelope an innocent Millie. Paladins stop at nothing and will kill anything or anyone that gets in their way. The film takes a higher adrenaline rush as both Griffin and David jump from one destination in the world to another trying to outrun and out-smart Roland and the rest of the paladins.
Jumpers have been around throughout history and the paladins were always there to hunt them down before they turned bad. Other than robbing banks, cars and traveling without wings, mechanical or otherwise, the writers lose a bit of the plot by not explaining the meaning of "bad". It almost appears that the paladins are truly the bad ones versus the jumpers since they were out to kill and kidnap! The film was truly high on action but a bit weak on motives leaving many holes open along the way. Liman, who directed the "Bourne Identity" once again did a phenomenal job, capturing your attention throughout every scene which left you feeling a bit cheated in the end wishing that the story was longer than 88 minutes. Take a deep breath before you jump into the cinematography because it will truly take your breath away, making you feel like your a competitor in the "Amazing Race", a series on television.
Christensen, was a delight to watch in another role outside of "Stars Wars" even though the premise was not a far cry from the action, thriller, adventure genre. Bell, played a good sidekick to his lead adding a small touch of levity to the story line. Bilson, portrayed her leading lady, damsel in distress role with believability but leaving you wanting a bit more to her character. Lane although in a minimal role is always a pleasure to watch on the big screen but a bit more so in the romantic comedy category. Jackson, is truly a great character actor able to make even a bad role into a potential blockbuster. Ok, forgive him for "Snakes on a Plane", but it wasn't all that bad! Overall the casting department did a good job with this film. The score was intense and dramatic adding to the intensity of every jump whether Egypt, Rome, New York, the jungles or a war zone. Even though this film lacked a bit in script, it definitely made up for it in action and adventure. With a ton of marketing, a decent cast and a series of high octane action scenes that lead you all over the world, this film should attract many jumpers to the box office.
Reporting for Talkin' Pets, I'm Jon Patch.