Jacob's Ladder is a 1990 psychological horror film directed by Adrian Lyne, based on a screenplay by Bruce Joel Rubin. It starred Tim Robbins as "Jacob Singer," Elizabeth Pena, Danny Aiello, and Jason Alexander. Actor Macaulay Culkin appears briefly in an uncredited performance that predates his wider fame. The film examines the disturbing experiences of Vietnam War veteran Jacob Singer, who begins to have hallucinations as he and other members of his former unit are pursued by unknown killers. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 406 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (512 × 755 pixel, file size: 64 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) This image is of a film poster, and the copyright for it is most likely owned by either the publisher of the film... Adrian Lyne (born 4 March 1941 in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England) is an English filmmaker and producer. ... Bruce Joel Rubin (born March 10, 1943 in Detroit, Michigan in the United States) is a screenwriter best known for the supernatural romance, Ghost for which he won an Oscar. ... Bruce Joel Rubin (born March 10, 1943 in Detroit, Michigan in the United States) is a screenwriter best known for the supernatural romance, Ghost for which he won an Oscar. ... Tim Robbins at Cannes, 2001 Height: 6 ft 4 in / 1. ... Elizabeth Pena is a Cuban-born actress. ... Danny Aiello Daniel Louis Aiello, Jr. ... Jason Alexander (born Jason Scott Greenspan on September 23, 1959) is a Jewish American television, cinema and musical theatre actor, best known for his role as George Costanza on the hit television series Seinfeld. ... Irving Rameses Rhames (born May 12, 1959) is a Golden Globe-winning American actor. ... Maurice Jarre (born in Lyon, France, September 13, 1924) is a French composer of film scores, noted for his use of the Ondes Martenot, and for the scores of many films including a series of David Lean films, Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago (1965), Ryans Daughter (1970) and A... The TriStar Pictures logo from 1993 to the present TriStar redirects here. ... November 2 is the 306th day of the year (307th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 59 days remaining. ... The year 1990 in film involved some significant events. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Adrian Lyne (born 4 March 1941 in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England) is an English filmmaker and producer. ... Bruce Joel Rubin (born March 10, 1943 in Detroit, Michigan in the United States) is a screenwriter best known for the supernatural romance, Ghost for which he won an Oscar. ... Tim Robbins at Cannes, 2001 Height: 6 ft 4 in / 1. ... Elizabeth Pena is a Cuban-born actress. ... Danny Aiello Daniel Louis Aiello, Jr. ... Jason Alexander (born Jason Scott Greenspan on September 23, 1959) is a Jewish American television, cinema and musical theatre actor, best known for his role as George Costanza on the hit television series Seinfeld. ... Macaulay Carson Culkin (born August 26, 1980) is an American actor. ... Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000...

Director Adrian Lyne employed an innovative special effect in which actors shaking their heads quickly were filmed at four frames per second; the scenes were then replayed at the standard rate, creating the appearance of impossibly fast spasms of the head and neck. This created a disturbing and abnormal depiction of a human being and inspires an almost subliminal sense of fear or panic. The film is credited as being one of inspirations for the Silent Hill videogame and movie horror series.^[2] Adrian Lyne (born 4 March 1941 in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England) is an English filmmaker and producer. ... Groundbreaking special effects were used in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith Special effects (abbreviated SPFX or SFX) are used in the film, television, and entertainment industry to realize scenes that cannot be achieved by live action or normal means. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Subliminal may refer to: Subliminal messages Subliminal (rapper), an Israeli rapper and producer Subliminal (record label), an electronic music label known for the Subliminal Sessions compilation series. ... Panic is the primal urge to run and hide in the face of imminent danger. ... This article or section contains a plot summary that is overly long or excessively detailed. ... A computer game is a game composed of a computer-controlled virtual universe that players interact with in order to achieve a defined goal or set of goals. ...

Plot Summary

The film opens on October 6, 1971. Jacob Singer (Tim Robbins) is a U.S. Air Cavalryman in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Helicopters pass overhead, carrying supplies for what appears to be preparation for a big Viet Cong offensive. Without any warning, Jacob's unit comes under fire. The soldiers try to take cover, but begin to exhibit strange behavior for no apparent reason. Jacob tries to escape the unexplained insanity, only to be bayonetted by an unseen enemy. October 6 is the 279th day of the year (280th in leap years). ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. ... Tim Robbins at Cannes, 2001 Height: 6 ft 4 in / 1. ... Air cavalry are infantry units that use air units like the helicopter for mobility and firepower. ... Mekong River Delta from space, February 1996 Mekong Delta, February 2005. ... A Viet Cong soldier, heavily guarded, awaits interrogation following capture in the attacks on Saigon during the festive Tet holiday period of 1968. ... The US Marine Corps OKC-3S Bayonet A bayonet (from French baïonnette) is a knife- or dagger-shaped weapon designed to fit on or over the muzzle of a rifle barrel or similar weapon. ...

The film shifts between Vietnam, to Jacob's memories (and delusions) of his son Gabriel (Macaulay Culkin, uncredited) and former wife Sarah (Patricia Kalember), to his present relationship with a woman named Jezebel (Elizabeth Peña) in New York. During this time, Jacob faces several threats to his life and has severe hallucinatory experiences. It is revealed that his son Gabriel was hit by a car and killed before Jacob went to Vietnam. Macaulay Carson Culkin (born August 26, 1980) is an American actor. ... Patricia Kathryn Kalember (born December 30, 1956[1] or 1957) is an American actress. ... Elizabeth Pena or Elizabeth Peña (born September 23, 1961) in Elizabeth, New Jersey, is a Cuban-American actress who graduated from New Yorks famed High School of Performing Arts in 1977. ... NY redirects here. ... A hallucination is a sensory perception experienced in the absence of an external stimulus, as distinct from an illusion, which is a misperception of an external stimulus. ...

Jacob's friend and chiropractor Louis (Danny Aiello) states the main thematic point of the film: in effect, hell is really purgatory, and those who are ready to let go of their lives do not find the experience 'hellish'. Chiropractic treatment uses manipulative therapy to correct subluxation, which has been shown to have some efficacy in treating back and neck pain, headache, and other symptoms of spinal-related conditions. ... Danny Aiello Daniel Louis Aiello, Jr. ... “The Inferno” redirects here. ... Illustration for Dantes Purgatorio (18), by Gustave Doré. Purgatory refers to the Catholic doctrine of the the final purification of the elect which states that, all who die in Gods grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they...

As the hallucinations become increasingly bizarre, Jacob learns about chemical experiments performed on U.S. soldiers in Vietnam. He is approached by a man named Michael Newman (Matt Craven), who claims to have been a chemist working with the Army's chemical warfare division in Saigon. He worked on creating a drug that increased aggression in soldiers. Tests of the drug (code-named "the ladder" in reference to the effect) were first given to monkeys and then to a group of enemy POWs, with gruesome results. Later the ladder was given to Jacob's unit, through the platoons' C-rations. However, instead of targeting the enemy, the men in Jacob's battalion attacked each other indiscriminately. Matt Craven (born on 10 November 1956 in Port Colborne, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian character actor. ... Chemical warfare is warfare (and associated military operations) using the toxic properties of chemical substances to kill, injure or incapacitate an enemy. ... Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnamese: Thành Chí Minh) is the largest city in Vietnam, located near the delta of the Mekong River. ... For the TV show Monkey see Monkey (TV series) Cynomolgus Monkey at Batu Caves, Malaysia A monkey is any member of two of the three groupings of simian primates. ... Geneva Convention definition A prisoner of war (POW) is a soldier, sailor, airman, or marine who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. ... Meal, Combat Individual (C-ration) was the name of field rations issued by the United States of America from World War II to the 1980s. ... Symbol of the Austrian 14th Armoured Battalion in NATO military graphic symbols A battalion is a military unit usually consisting of between two and six companies and typically commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel. ...

We finally learn that Jacob never made it out of Vietnam; the entire series of experiences turns out to have been a dying hallucination. Jacob's experiences appear to have been a form of purgation in which he releases himself from his earthly attachments, finally joining his dead son Gabriel to ascend a staircase toward a bright light.

At the end of the film, a message states that the U.S. Army allegedly experimented with an hallucinogenic drug called BZ, but the Pentagon denies it. The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... Hallucinogenic drug - drugs that can alter sensory perceptions. ... Diagram of a BZ molecule 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB), empirical formula C21H23NO3, full chemical name 1-azabicyclo[2. ... The United States Department of Defense (DOD or DoD) is the federal department charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government relating directly to national security and the military. ...

Because all of the movie's events are a dying hallucination related by an unreliable narrator, the film's plot is considered a variation on Ambrose Bierce's 1886 short story An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, which was made into a short film in 1961 and later popularized as a 1964 episode of the television show, The Twilight Zone. Illustration by Gustave Doré for Baron Münchhausen: tall tales, such as those of the Baron, often feature unreliable narrators. ... Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce (June 24, 1842 – 1914?) was an American editorialist, journalist, short-story writer and satirist, today best known for his Devils Dictionary. ... Year 1886 (MDCCCLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge (sometimes called An Incident at Owl Creek Bridge) is a famous short story by Ambrose Bierce. ... Year 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone. ...

Trivia

• Antonia Rey can be seen in the beginning of the film as a subway passenger.

Antonia Rey (born in 1928 in Havana, Cuba) is a Cuban actress. ...

Evaluation

"The Ladder"

Jacob is told that the horrific events he experienced on his final day in Vietnam were the product of an experimental drug called "The Ladder", which was used on troops without their knowledge. This is an ambiguous element in the film, particularly since Jacob is given the information by a character in his own imagination. He is told that the drug was named for its ability to cause "a fast trip straight down the ladder, right to the primal fear, right to the base anger", although the name "The Ladder" also has a metaphorical and religious significance beyond this, which is relevant to Jacob's predicament: it is notable that he ends his hallucination on a staircase. At the end of the film, a message is displayed mentioning the testing of a drug named BZ, NATO code for a potent deliriant and hallucinogen known as 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate that was rumored to have been administered to Vietnam troops by the government in a secret attempt to increase their fighting power. The effects of BZ, however, are different from the effects of the drug depicted in the film. The angels climb Jacobs Ladder on the west front of Bath Abbey. ... NATO 2002 Summit in Prague. ... The deliriants (or anticholinergics) are a special class of dissociatives which are antagonists for the acetylcholine receptors (unlike muscarine and nicotine which are agonists of these receptors). ... Diagram of a BZ molecule 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB), empirical formula C21H23NO3, full chemical name 1-azabicyclo[2. ... Diagram of a BZ molecule 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB), empirical formula C21H23NO3, full chemical name 1-azabicyclo[2. ...

Effects

Director Adrian Lyne uses a technique, possibly the first of its kind, in which an actor is recorded waving his head around in fast motion. The scenes were shot at four frames per second and then played back at standard rate, making it look as if the person were experiencing remarkably powerful spasms of the head and neck. Adrian Lyne (born 4 March 1941 in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England) is an English filmmaker and producer. ...

The effect is now more often generated by digitally removing frames from footage shot at a normal rate.

The horror videogame franchise Silent Hill borrows this technique in the second and third sequel of the game, although it is not seen in the Silent Hill movie. Other films to use the "fast-head" motion include Stir of Echoes, The Ring, Oldboy (2003), Trauma (2004), 1999's House on Haunted Hill, Dead Life, Lost Highway, The Amityville Horror (2005) and the Saw series. This article or section contains a plot summary that is overly long or excessively detailed. ... It has been suggested that Silent Hill 2 (film) be merged into this article or section. ... ‹ The template below (Expand) is being considered for deletion. ... The Ring is a 2002 American film, a remake of the Japanese horror mystery Ring (1998). ... Oldboy (Hangul:올드보이) is a 2003 South Korean film directed by Park Chan-wook. ... Trauma is a 2004 psychological thriller directed by Marc Evans and written by Richard Smith. ... Year 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar). ... House on Haunted Hill is a 1999 Warner Brothers horror movie, directed by William Malone, written by Dick Beebe and starring Geoffrey Rush as Stephen Price. ... Lost Highway is a 1997 psychological thriller directed by David Lynch. ... The Amityville Horror is a best-selling book by the author Jay Anson which was published in September 1977. ... Saw is a 2004 horror movie, and the first installment of the Saw film series. ...

The effect also shows up in an episode of Supernatural and in the X-Files Episode "Requiem", where it was applied to anyone entering the alien time distortion field in the Oregon woods. The music video for "Stupify" by Disturbed, "Payback" by Flaw, and Sober by Tool also use the technique. The Shalebridge Cradle level of the video game Thief: Deadly Shadows has creatures which display this effect. Supernatural is an American paranormal drama television series that debuted on September 13 2005 on the WB, and is now part of The CWs lineup, where the second season premiered on September 28 2006. ... The X-Files is a Peabody- and Emmy Award-winning science fiction television series created by Chris Carter, which first aired on September 10, 1993, and ended on May 19, 2002. ... Stupify is Disturbeds first single off their album, The Sickness. ... Disturbed is a rock band from Chicago, Illinois. ... Revenge is retaliation against a person or group in response to wrongdoing. ... Flaw is an alternative metal/hard rock music group from Louisville, Kentucky. ... Sober is a song on Tools first full-length album, Undertow. ... Tool is an American rock band, formed during 1990 in Los Angeles, California, that consists of drummer Danny Carey, bassist Justin Chancellor, guitarist Adam Jones, and vocalist Maynard James Keenan. ...

Lyne also made sure that there were no optical visual effects - all of the visual effects were physical and on-set - and that Jacob Singer never appeared in the same shot with the visual effects.

See also

• Twist ending
• BZ - a real-life chemical warfare agent causing similar hallucinations; the film is alleged to dramatize military experiments in BZ use.

A twist ending or surprise ending is an unexpected conclusion or climax to a work of fiction, which may contain an irony, or cause the audience to reevaluate the rest of the story. ... Diagram of a BZ molecule 3-quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB), empirical formula C21H23NO3, full chemical name 1-azabicyclo[2. ...

References

1. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099871/
2. ^ Silent Hill: New Interview with Christophe Gans settles some things once and for all. LiveJournal.

External links

• Jacob's Ladder at the Internet Movie Database