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Issue date: 3/17/08 Section: Arts & Culture

Jamie Bell in 20th Century Fox's Jumper.(jumperthemovie.com)

Jumper
Grade: B+

Reuniting Star Wars alums Hayden Christenson and Samuel L. Jackson, Jumper, based on the 1992 science fiction novel of the same name by Steven Gould, beamed into theaters for sci-fi fans to devour.

The premise of the film is simple enough. Certain individuals are born with the ability to teleport themselves, other people and movable objects anywhere from a few feet to thousands of miles away.

The beginning of the film starts with an adolescent David Rice as he learns of his ability to teleport. Realizing the potential to escape his abusive father David uses his abilities to make a new life for himself.

Needless to say, he gives into the temptation of capitalizing on his newfound abilities for personal gain.

He's living the good life in New York City, unaware that an entire society of religious zealots called Paladins are hunting him down to kill him.

The Paladins, led by Roland Cox (Jackson), feel that jumpers are an abomination to God and therefore must be hunted down and eradicated.

Upon David and Roland's initial confrontation the film becomes an international game of cat and mouse as David tries to rekindle a romance with his teenaged crush Millie (Rachel Bilson).

This proves to be a fatal mistake as, unknown to David, the Paladins' employ brutal tactics, including killing anyone who interferes with their pursuit of a jumper.

During his jumps, to eldue the Paladins, he comes into contact with another jumper named Griffin (Jamie Bell) who has been secretly watching David.

Unlike David, who only seeks to escape from Paladins, Griffin uses his abilities to track down and kill Paladins just as they do jumpers.

While David is at times unsure of the extent of his abilities, Griffin uses his powers with deadly efficiency and the best action scenes of the movie are between he and David using their abilities in battles against the Paladins or in pursuit of each other.

The film is directed by Doug Liman of Bourne trilogy fame and the action is reminiscent of the spy thriller although lacking the intrigue and subterfuge.

There are a few revelations in the film but for the most part it's an uninhibited action flick.

The one critical flaw of the film is that its opening is left wide open for a sequel.

While this is obvious, it's also frustrating knowing that it will be at least a couple of years before there is any cinematic conclusion or progression in the story.

The film's features decent performances from the entire ensemble, including brief but effective appearances from Diane Lane and Michael Rooker as David's parents.

Jackson is menacing and efficient in his roll and Christenson successfully conveys the exuberance of a young man who has the ability to go any place at any time.

The continuous allusion to age-old conflict between jumpers and Paladins gives the film an almost irresistible setup for future films.

The special effects in the film are efficient and the potential for story development in future sequels makes this a must see for any science fiction fan.

As an action/adventure film, Jumper, without a doubt, delivers.

Brian C. Browley

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