Jumper

Hayden Christensen is back as a new version of Anakin Skywalker. Luckily, George Lucas didn't write the script for this film or we'd be in real trouble. A young man discovers that he holds extraordinary powers but then finds himself in the midst of a war that has been going on for a millennium between the forces of good and the forces of darkness. He must choose sides with his parent or with his girlfriend (who, thank God, doesn't end up being his sister.) I'm making it sound worse than it really is. I like the idea behind Jumper, it certainly has potential, and it certainly was entertaining; Christensen is even a descent actor if you can believe it. But there was too little character development, and too much ado about nothing and not enough ado about everything. If that makes sense.

David Rice is just a kid when he discovers that he has the power to transport himself anywhere he's seen before. Egypt, Rome, New York, Paris, anywhere. Dave leaves his less-than-great home life behind to start a new life. He can steal money from banks without breaking a lock after all, so he wants for nothing. Except love. And excitement. Dave finally gets up the nerve to ask his high school sweetheart (played by the mawkish Rachel Bilson) out on a date. To Rome. Unfortunately, Dave's carelessness is about to get him caught. While exploring the Colosseum, he learns that he's not the only one with transporting powers and evil religious fanatics are out to eradicate the transporters. It's a fight for his life that can have no happy ending.

Jumper is pretty entertaining until about the last 15-20 minutes, during which it starts to go a little downhill. At 88 minutes, it barely makes the cut for a feature-length film, and you can tell. This is an epic tale, or it could be; it's supposed to be this big story, big-picture film, but it's not. Even Sam Jackson can't breathe life into this walking corpse as lightsaber toting, Bible-quoting, Mace Windu-meets-Pulp Fiction Dude. But the effects are pretty good, and it's interesting to see Christensen in a mainstream film again. But overall, the director of the Bourne Identity has really taken a step down.

Conclusion: If you're a Sam Jackson fan or a Hayden fan, go see it, but you could skip it and I wouldn't blame you.

Rated: PG-13 for for sequences of intense action violence, some language and brief sexuality. [The brief sexuality is nonexistent, all person keep their clothes on]

Trivia:

• The crew was allowed to film inside the Colosseum for three days under the condition that no equipment could be placed on the ground. The only lighting allowed was natural sunlight.
• Two other actors were cast as before Christensen and Bilson but after 2 months of filming and inflating production costs, Hayden Christensen and Rachel Bilson were recast as the leads.

See the Trailer.