When I 1st saw "Jacob's Ladder" in the early 90s, what appealed to me was the surrealistic horror and nightmarish atmosphere it creates, and its bittersweet ending.
As years have gone by and having seen this film over a dozen times, I've grown to appreciate not only the aspects I mentioned before, but also its intense religious subtext and Jacob's intense guilt feelings for losing his youngest son.
For starters, I'm not a very religious guy, yet the biblical overtones are hard to ignore and become fascinating once you tie the pieces together.
In a nutshell, "Jacob's Ladder" tells the fight of Jacob Singer during his last minutes of life after being brutally stabbed in the stomach with a bayonet. A lot of people have complained they felt the film was all over the place and has a disorienting effect. While this is true, it's like this for a reason. What we see as "flashbacks" of Jacob's time in Nam is actually the REAL timeline. The rest of the movie is in Jacob's head as he fights to stay alive, creating himself a life after the war, working as a mailman and living with his girlfriend Jezebel. Within this "created life", he has flashbacks of his REAL life: his wife Sarah and their three children, the loss of their youngest son and their eventual break up.
It's the loss of his youngest son, Gabe (an uncredited Macaulay Culkin, just a few months from becoming a household name with "Home Alone") that's the saddest part of this movie. Did Jacob feel guilty for his death? Was his son's death the reason for his marital break up?
Even though Jacob was dreaming of a life after Nam, his love for his family and specially Gabe was very real, that's why the ending has so much weight. When Jacob sees Gabe sitting on the stairway, he goes to him, not knowing if he's dreaming again or if it's real (within his death dream). Gabe embraces his dad and tells him that they should go "up". Heaven? The afterlife? Gabe becomes his saving Angel, he reunites with his most cherished son in the end. It's beautiful scene, being "rescued" from hell by a loved one must be the perfect way to go.
Adrian Lyne was pitch perfect with this film. He could've easily done some typical early 90s style horror, with demons and all that stuff, but most of it is implied, save for a few terrifying scenes. Tim Robbins gives a brilliant performance, just as brilliant as his "Shawshank Redemption" one a few years later. It's a shame the Academy (as usual) passed on this great, great performance. Elizabeth Peña, as Jacob's made up girlfriend "Jezzie" is also brilliant as well as Danny Aiello's brief but extremely important scenes and dialog.
Maurice Jarre's score is both, horrific and painfully beautiful and haunting. The music for some of the horrific scenes sound like stuff you would hear on an Einstürzende Neubauten album (brutal industrial music), while the main theme is a beautiful piano piece, both haunting and sad, very sad. Probably my favorite Jarre score, as good if not better than "Ghost" (from that same year).
As with Kubrik films, you will find new details with repeated viewing. Sure, it's a harrowing film experience, but those brave enough will savor each new viewing. I've grown to love this film as time goes by. Give "Jacob's Ladder" a chance and you too will also love it.
As years have gone by and having seen this film over a dozen times, I've grown to appreciate not only the aspects I mentioned before, but also its intense religious subtext and Jacob's intense guilt feelings for losing his youngest son.
For starters, I'm not a very religious guy, yet the biblical overtones are hard to ignore and become fascinating once you tie the pieces together.
In a nutshell, "Jacob's Ladder" tells the fight of Jacob Singer during his last minutes of life after being brutally stabbed in the stomach with a bayonet. A lot of people have complained they felt the film was all over the place and has a disorienting effect. While this is true, it's like this for a reason. What we see as "flashbacks" of Jacob's time in Nam is actually the REAL timeline. The rest of the movie is in Jacob's head as he fights to stay alive, creating himself a life after the war, working as a mailman and living with his girlfriend Jezebel. Within this "created life", he has flashbacks of his REAL life: his wife Sarah and their three children, the loss of their youngest son and their eventual break up.
It's the loss of his youngest son, Gabe (an uncredited Macaulay Culkin, just a few months from becoming a household name with "Home Alone") that's the saddest part of this movie. Did Jacob feel guilty for his death? Was his son's death the reason for his marital break up?
Even though Jacob was dreaming of a life after Nam, his love for his family and specially Gabe was very real, that's why the ending has so much weight. When Jacob sees Gabe sitting on the stairway, he goes to him, not knowing if he's dreaming again or if it's real (within his death dream). Gabe embraces his dad and tells him that they should go "up". Heaven? The afterlife? Gabe becomes his saving Angel, he reunites with his most cherished son in the end. It's beautiful scene, being "rescued" from hell by a loved one must be the perfect way to go.
Adrian Lyne was pitch perfect with this film. He could've easily done some typical early 90s style horror, with demons and all that stuff, but most of it is implied, save for a few terrifying scenes. Tim Robbins gives a brilliant performance, just as brilliant as his "Shawshank Redemption" one a few years later. It's a shame the Academy (as usual) passed on this great, great performance. Elizabeth Peña, as Jacob's made up girlfriend "Jezzie" is also brilliant as well as Danny Aiello's brief but extremely important scenes and dialog.
Maurice Jarre's score is both, horrific and painfully beautiful and haunting. The music for some of the horrific scenes sound like stuff you would hear on an Einstürzende Neubauten album (brutal industrial music), while the main theme is a beautiful piano piece, both haunting and sad, very sad. Probably my favorite Jarre score, as good if not better than "Ghost" (from that same year).
As with Kubrik films, you will find new details with repeated viewing. Sure, it's a harrowing film experience, but those brave enough will savor each new viewing. I've grown to love this film as time goes by. Give "Jacob's Ladder" a chance and you too will also love it.