Jacob's Ladder
1990 · Directed by Adrian Lyne
Original language: English
- drama
- mystery
- horror
The story
After returning home from the Vietnam War, veteran Jacob Singer struggles to maintain his sanity. Plagued by hallucinations and flashbacks, Singer rapidly falls apart as the world and people around him morph and twist into disturbing images. His girlfriend, Jezzie, and ex-wife, Sarah, try to help, but to little avail. Even Singer's chiropractor friend, Louis, fails to reach him as he descends into madness.
What it’s like
Grimy, flickering night in New York, with sickly greens, bruised purples and the orange glow of subway tunnels, shot in a restless, hand-held style that makes ordinary streets feel slightly wrong. Its sound is unsettling: a low, dissonant score, distant machinery hum, and sudden wrenching silences that make every jolt land harder. The vibe is paranoid, fevered dread with a current of grief underneath. It suits a late night alone with the lights off, though it is far from comforting. Pacing is fractured and dreamlike, with cuts that blur memory and hallucination, and the emotional register stays raw and bleak as a traumatized man is pulled between the people trying to reach him and the images tearing him apart. Intensity is high: frequent frightening imagery, brief but brutal war and bodily violence, some gore in the hallucinations, a graphic sex scene, and sustained psychological horror. It is for viewers who want an unsettling, emotionally heavy psychological puzzle, not gentle viewing.
More films like Jacob's Ladder
Closest in mood, pacing and theme. Tell us why you loved Jacob's Ladderand we’ll explain which ones fit you.
