Jacob's Ladder Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Jacob's Ladder Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 11, 2023

Adrian Lyne's "Jacob's Ladder" (1990) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Via Vision Entertainment. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new program with screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin; new program with critic Michael Gingold; archival audio commentary recorded by Lyne; deleted scenes; promotional materials; and lot more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Jacob Singer (Tim Robbins, The Shawshank Redemption), a postal worker in New York City and Vietnam War veteran, is losing his mind. When he is asleep, he has violent nightmares. When he is awake, he feels that someone is following him. He knows that something isn’t right, but there is no one he knows that he could talk to about his condition, not even his good friend and terrific chiropractor Louis (Danny Aiello, 2 Days in the Valley). His good friend knows how to fix his back. Jacob needs someone that knows how to fix his head.

Jezzie (Elizabeth Pena, La Bamba), Jacob’s wife, also feels that something isn’t right. She can tell that Jacob is suffering but does not understand why. What frustrates Jezzie even more, however, is that Jacob does not want to talk to her about his condition. Instead, he prefers to talk on the phone with people she does not know, and even meet some of them late at night when she needs him to be with her.

While celebrating with friends, Jacob collapses and nearly dies. Instead of checking into a clinic, however, he heads to a sleazy bar on the outskirts of the city where he meets an old friend, also a veteran, who tells him that he is starting to lose his mind, too. He has been seeing demons coming through the walls and men with guns trying to kill him.

Adrian Lynn’s Jacob’s Ladder is a terrific psychological thriller that allows one to draw multiple conclusions about the fascinating story it tells. In it, reality and fantasy are so closely intertwined that it is practically impossible to separate the two. As a result, during parts of the film one feels as frustrated and lost as its main protagonist does.

The point of origin for the chaos that flourishes in Jacob’s Ladder is a scene where Lynn shows the main protagonist getting stabbed by a bayonet. After this scene, almost everything in the film can be interpreted in a variety of different ways. The finale does offer a coherent closure to the story, but certainly not a definitive one, which is what makes Jacob’s Ladder such a fascinating film to deconstruct.

Robbins is perfectly cast. His struggle to make sense of the events around him is very convincing. During a few of the more intense nightmares, one could almost feel the pain that torments his character’s soul. His lines are also very well written and their delivery is superb as well.

Pena is just as good. Her reactions to the strange behavior of her husband are natural and never pretentious. She asks questions anyone would have, and when she does not get proper answers she looks and feels as frustrated as anyone placed in a similar situation would.

In comparison to Robbins and Pena, Aiello's performance is more subdued and comforting. His character is the one that effectively brings balance throughout the entire film. There is one short segment where he goes berserk, after he rushes into the hospital and takes Jacob away from the medical staff, but even there he looks like a man of reason.

The screenplay is loosely based on Ambrose Bierce's short story "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge". It was written by Bruce Joel Rubin (Ghost), but Lynn did several corrections to it before the shooting of the film began.

The BZ drug mentioned at the end of Jacob's Ladder refers to a real substance called 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate, which the U.S. Army tested during the Vietnam War.

Jacob's Ladder Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Jacob's Ladder arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Via Vision Entertainment.

The release appears to have been sourced from the same master that StudioCanal worked with to produce this release in 2010. I believe that this master is a bit older as well. Unsurprisingly, the age of the master already shows, especially if it is compared to the type of new 2K and 4K masters that are being prepared on current equipment.

I still think that the master is good, but to get the best of it this release should have been very carefully optimized. Indeed, the bulk of the film looks good -- and admittedly often the heavy stylization, which features plenty of light and shadow manipulation, helps hide encoding weaknesses -- but the larger your screen is, the easier it will be to spot some shaky areas. For example, in darker footage, the grain can become too noisy, while elsewhere finer nuances would struggle to appear as they should. Close-ups tend to look nice, but they can look fresher and more vibrant as well. Color balance is good. However, saturation levels can be better, and if they are properly addressed, the dynamic range of the visuals will benefit a lot. To be honest, I think that this is the area where a future 2K or 4K master will excel the most -- the dynamic range of the visuals -- because at present it is where the age of the current master shows the most. Image stability is good. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

Jacob's Ladder Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I viewed the entire film with the 5.1 track and checked a few areas with the 2.0 track. The two tracks appear to be replicas of the ones that are found on the old StudioCanal release of Jacob's Ladder. I did not encounter any issues on the 5.1 track to report in our review. However, I suspect that if one day the film is fully remastered the audio will be redone as well. Jacob's Ladder produces some tremendous dynamic contrasts and I think that there are a couple of areas -- like the abrupt attack in the very beginning and psychiatric ward later -- where dynamic surround activity could be enhanced and improved. At present, I just feel that there could be more oomph, though obviously I could be wrong. But do not worry because the current 5.1 track is still very solid. The 2.0 track is very good as well.

Jacob's Ladder Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Theatrical Teaser - presented here is a vintage theatrical teaser trailer for Jacob's Ladder. In English, not subtitled. (1 min).

• Theatrical Trailer - presented here is a vintage theatrical trailer for Jacob's Ladder. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

• Commentary One - in this archival audio commentary, Adrian Lyne recalls how the original screenplay for Jacob's Ladder popped up on his radar and discusses its production. The commentary has plenty of interesting information that fans of the film would appreciate, but from time to time Lyne focuses on the film while trying to refresh his memory.

• Commentary Two - this exclusive new audio commentary, film historian and host of "The Projection Booth" Mike White discusses the key themes and tone of Jacob's Ladder, Jeffrey Kimball's cinematography, the casting choices, the evolution of "the Vietnam film", etc.

• Building Jacob's Ladder - this archival featurette focuses on the production and complex narrative of Jacob's Ladder. Included in it are clips from interviews with screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin, Adrian Lyne, and Tim Robbins, among others. In English, not subtitled. (27 min).

• Additional Scenes - presented here are three additional scenes that can be seen with an optional audio commentary by Adrian Lyne. In English, not subtitled. (14 min).
  
  1. The Antidote
  2. The Train Station
  3. Jezzie's Transformation

• Archival Interviews - presented here are three archival interviews with comments about the conception, casting choices, and production/special effects of Jacob's Ladder. In English, not subtitled.
  
  1. Adrian Lyne (8 min).
  2. Tim Robbins (8 min).
  3. Elizabeth Pena (8 min).

• "Prepare the Way" - in this new program, screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin discusses a fascinating true experience that inspired him to produce the screenplay for Jacob's Ladder and his move to Hollywood where his career in the film industry suddenly started. Also, there are some very interesting comments about Mr. Rubin's interactions with Adrian Lyne and how the original story evolved. In English, not subtitled. (21 min).

• "Where is the Ladder?: The Locations of Jacob's Ladder" - in this new program, critic/journalist Michael Gingold discusses and visits the various locations in New York City where different parts of Jacob's Ladder were shot. In English, not subtitled. (18 min).

• "Hidden in Plain Sight: Spirituality in Jacob's Ladder" - this brand new video essay was created by critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas. In English, not subtitled. (22 min).

• "Something's Wrong with My Head: Vietnam War Trauma and "Jacob's Ladder" - this brand new video essay was created by critic Josh Nelson. In English, not subtitled. (30 min).

Jacob's Ladder Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It is not at all difficult to argue that Adrian Lyne's Jacob's Ladder is one of the great films the 1990s produced. I think that it remains relevant today because there are a lot of war veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan that have visited the same dark places Tim Robbins' character does. Via Vision Entertainment's release is sourced from an older master but has an excellent selection of exclusive new and archival bonus features. While Jacob's Ladder can look better in high-definition, I think that fans of the film should consider picking up this release because some of the bonus features are very interesting. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.