Jumper
(2008/Fox Blu-ray)
Picture:
B+ Sound: A- Extras: D Film: D
Doug
Liman has been getting by on thin stories, slick gimmicks, slick editing,
plentiful CG effects and big names, but with Jumper, he hits a wall, even if
his main character can go through them.
The underused and underrated Hayden Christensen is David, who discovers
he can teleport anywhere in the world, but he is a mutant and therefore must
die, at least since other forces are not happy “he and his kind” exist and want
to hunt them down. Faster than you can
say X-Men 3.5, he’s talking like a
smartass throughout his voiceover and teleporting all over like a 21st
Century Scotty meets Robin Leech. Too
bad it is not that interesting.
Good
actors like Jamie Bell, Rachel Bilson, Michael Rooker, Diane Lane and Samuel L.
Jackson are also wasted in this goofy romp that is just too silly and sometimes
too violent for its own good. Sure, the
camera likes Christensen, though he does not play his character in the
opening. This is an expensive, elaborate
attempt at a franchise, but it just never worked out and though it did not do
well at the box office, this Blu-ray (and lesser home release versions) will
help it break even. Too bad the screenplay
(co-written by David S. Goyer, Jim Uhls & Simon Kinberg from a book that
had to be better than this) never really adds up to more than a videogame
mentality. Maybe they should have tried
for some more solid Science Fiction that silliness.
The 1080p
2.35 X 1 AVC @ 35 MBPS digital High Definition image is very good, shot in
Super 35mm and surviving more of the CG plastered all over than expected, but
the image can still be soft and color can be downgraded too much. Director of Photography Barry Peterson does
deliver some nice location images, with the highlight being shooting in Tokyo,
but the digital overdose sabotages much of this.
The DTS
HD Master Audio (MA) Lossless 5.1 mix includes D-BOX bass signals (if you have
that system) and is the highlight of this dud, with a fine soundfield and
dynamic range throughout. John Powell’s
music did nothing for me or the film, though, but it will make for a good sound
demo freed by the high DTS codec.
Extras include
the bonus low-def Digital Copy you can download to you DVD-Rom and use on your
PC or portable video device, while the main Blu-ray offers Previz; Future Concepts, picture-in-picture look at the locations
while you watch, an uncensored documentary of Liman in action, Making An Actor Jump featurette, Jumping From Novel To Film: the Past, Present
& Future of Jumper, Jumpstart:
David’s Story animated graphic novel and deleted scenes.
Even if
you do not like the film, this 50GB Blu-ray is a first rate production, but
just not Fox’s best in the new format.
- Nicholas Sheffo
