Jumper (2008)

"There's enough kinetic energy in Jumper to light a thousand houses.  Chris Kaltenbach, Baltimore Sun
"Liman applies the same frenetic approach to action scenes that made "The Bourne Identity" such an engaging and exciting affair.  James Berardinelli's ReelViews
"...packs some cracking action into its brief running time and lays foundations on which a great franchise could be built.  Olly Richards, Empire

Editor's Note Based on Steven Gould's critically acclaimed novel, JUMPER leaps onto the screen courtesy of director Doug Liman. David (Hayden Christiansen) has inexplicably been given the power to teleport himself, or jump. He can jump into a bank vault, then to the top of the Sphinx, then back to his luxury Manhattan apartment. But despite all his power, he still misses his childhood love, Millie (Rachel Bilson, THE O.C.). When the opportunity arises, David jets off to Rome with Millie, but it's not all romance in the Italian city. David's unique abilities place him in the middle of a war between the jumpers and the paladins, a secretive group intent on hunting down the teleporters. Led by Roland (Samuel L. Jackson), the paladins track David and fellow jumper Griffin (Jamie Bell) across the world, and Millie may be caught in the crossfire. JUMPER moves as fast as its teleporting hero, condensing the novel into a slim, action-packed offering. The slick special effects and impressive locations are certainly on par with Liman's previous work in THE BOURNE IDENTITY and MR. AND MRS. SMITH, but JUMPER bears a closer resemblance to comic book adaptations. Like Spider-man and most other costume-clad protagonists with unearthly abilities, David grapples with his newfound talents. But unlike his tights-and-cape-wearing brethren, David doesn't use his ability for the greater good. Instead, it gets him piles of money and, perhaps, the girl he's been dreaming of since he was five years old. Though most action films are driven by the struggle between good and evil, JUMPER interestingly offers up a central character who lies somewhere in the middle. Slightly less ambiguous is the film's ending that leaves the option for a sequel completely open.

	AnnaSophia Robb
	Diane Lane
	Hayden Christensen
	Jamie Bell
	Michael Rooker
	Rachel Bilson
	Samuel L. Jackson
	Tom Hulce
	Barry Peterson - Cinematographer
	David S. Goyer, et. al. - Screenplay
	Doug Liman - Director
	Elinor Rose Galbraith, et. al. - Art Director
	John Powell - Original Music By
	Lucas Foster - Producer
	Marc S. Fischer - Executive Producer
	Oliver Scholl - Production Designer
	Saar Klein, et. al. - Editor
	Steven Gould - Based On Novel By

Total Film
4 stars out of 5 -- "JUMPER is an invigorating, grin-inducing cine-frappe, cool and refreshing....Christensen delivers in JUMPER." 04/01/2008 p.52

Empire
3 stars out of 5 -- "The Jumping effect...is faultlessly executed -- a sort of hazy implosion that leaves a sphere of destruction around it..." 04/01/2008 p.48

Rolling Stone 5 of 10
Talk about disappointing. Director Doug Liman exuded style and cool in Swingers, Go and The Bourne Identity. He lost his way in the star bloat of Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and now his mojo is buried in this amped-up sci-fi chase flick. It took three screenwriters to turn Steven Gould's novel into an unholy mess. Hayden Christensen, the kiss of death in movies since giving us the nightmare wimp version of Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequels, does a lot of posing as David Rice, called Rice Bowl by the bullies of his neighborhood in Ann Arbor, Michigan. David can jump (teleport) himself anywhere in the world, which allows Christensen to pose on the clock face of Big Ben, have lunch on top of a pyramid and rob a bank for quick cash. Hey, he leaves IOUs. Samuel L. Jackson, in scary white hair, wants to kill him. His girlfriend (Rachel Bilson, looking eager to jump back to The O.C.) wants to screw him between jumps. And Jamie Bell, the film's saving grace as a fellow jumper, wants to save him. Got that? It's not worth getting. Everything goes by in a blur. After eighty-eight incomprehensible minutes, all I wanted was for Liman to jump back in time and make Jumper go away. - Peter Travers

The Onion A.V. Club 6 of 10
One of the reasons superhero comics so often get held in contempt is because the shallowest (and commonest) ones are wish-fulfillment fantasies for adolescent boys, and adolescent boys tend to be pretty unnuanced, id-driven critters. For instance, they should be pretty pleased with Jumper, a naked power fantasy in which an ordinary kid abruptly gains a super-ability, quickly followed by wealth, ultimate freedom, no-strings sex, and the panting admiration of his hot dream-girl...First seen standing atop the Sphinx in Egypt and boasting to the audience about how he used to be "a normal person, a chump, just like you," Hayden Christensen plays a mildly dorky kid who discovers he can teleport...Those scenes are easily the best part of Jumper: They're unlimited by logic or physics, which makes them dynamic and unpredictable, and Liman brings them off well, with a lot of literal flash and bang. But no exciting action can cover the film's profound shallowness and repulsive attitude toward everyone but Christensen...a good chunk of the film is devoted to him easily impressing his high-school crush object Rachel Bilson, who's less a character than a bright-eyed mirror for his awesomeness. Come to think of it, maybe adolescent boys won't like Jumper after all; its irritating protagonist is more school bully than underdog hero. - Tasha Robinson