Jacob's Ladder

TriStar Pictures | Release Date: November 2, 1990

4.5	USER SCORE Mixed or average reviews based on 212 Ratings

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JLauOct 5, 2021

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Army vet is experiencing hallucinations that are also shared by the rest of his platoon and these turn out to be caused by an experimental military drug that increases aggression in soldiers but actually, no, he's been dead for the entire film.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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TheQuietGamerJan 17, 2018

I feel that Jacob's Ladder was ahead of it's time. So much so in fact, that it wasn't quite able to pull off all of it's lofty ambitions in the most satisfying of ways. Part psychological horror film and part political-thriller. The latter ofI feel that Jacob's Ladder was ahead of it's time. So much so in fact, that it wasn't quite able to pull off all of it's lofty ambitions in the most satisfying of ways. Part psychological horror film and part political-thriller. The latter of these is what receives the most attention. So what we end up with is less The Shining, and more The Manchurian Candidate with the occasional bits of grotesque imagery. Outside of a disturbing party sequence and a twisted trip to a hospital's psych-ward, the rest of the "scary" scenes are handed in such a way where the majority of the movie feels like the early build up moments one would find in any other horror film. The kind that are meant to ease the viewers into the experience before diving into the really freaky stuff. Jacob's Ladder missed that opportunity to go all in with it's demonic visions, instead devoting the majority of it's focus to the wartime conspiracy story.

Disappointing for sure, but the brilliance is still here so the movie never stopped being influential. Particularly to the Silent Hill video game series, which I feel really perfected the idea here of a person being tormented by nightmarish entities of a symbolic nature in order to come to terms with the more tragic of life's events. Things take a philosophical turn towards the end. As wrapped up as I was in the mystery, it's the message that made it all worthwhile. Jacob's Ladder has something to say that gives it meaning. Not all horror films can say that. Not entirely well-executed, but is significant and interesting enough to be worth a watch for the more discerning horror fans that are into the genre for more than just blood and cheap thrills.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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BroyaxJan 25, 2017

Un film sur la guerre du Vietnam et la folie, l'angoisse et le deuil... entre autres. D'excellentes idées dans cette histoire mais on ne s'en rend compte qu'à la fin, une fois que le scénario a fini de brouiller les pistes. Non pas qu'on luiUn film sur la guerre du Vietnam et la folie, l'angoisse et le deuil... entre autres. D'excellentes idées dans cette histoire mais on ne s'en rend compte qu'à la fin, une fois que le scénario a fini de brouiller les pistes. Non pas qu'on lui en veuille, car c'est justement tout l'intérêt d'égarer le spectateur en conjectures...

Mais -et le mais est rédhibitoire- putain que c'est laborieux pour en arriver là ! la narration est d'une lenteur terrible -en dépit de la prestation de Tim Robbins- qui entraîne de nombreux décrochages de l'attention, caractérisés par des baillements inopinés... Malgré cette histoire originale et presque poétique, la réalisation bancale d'Adrian Lynne, son apathie, débouche sur un film raté mais encore à peu près regardable pour qui en a la patience.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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