Jacob’s Ladder, the psychological thriller from 1990 starring Tim Robbins, will arrive on streaming just in time to conclude spooky season. Deemed one of the scariest movies of all time,Jacob’s Ladderwill be added to Prime Video’s library on November 1, which should help relieve those post-Halloween blues. Well, kind of.
Directed by Adrian Lyne(9½ Weeks,Fatal Attraction,Flashdance) and written by Academy Award-winner Bruce Joel Rubin (Ghost,Deep Impact),Jacob’s Ladderis a great example of an underrated thriller that still falls between the cracks on best-of lists. With a narrative that moves between drama and thriller,Jacob’s Ladderis a terrifying experience that hasn’t lost its effectiveness as the decades passed, and many consider it to be the scariest “non-horror” film there is.
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Jacob’s Ladderfollows Jacob Singer (Robbins), a Vietnam veteran whois experiencing PTSD. After barely surviving an attack in Vietnam, Jacob is physically unharmed, but his mind is still broken. He constantly hallucinates things that aren’t there, but when some of his visions become more “tangible,” he’s forced to seek some help.
The problem is that Jacob isn’t the only one who’s suffering from these breakdowns. While he has trauma from other past events, those who survived Vietnam claim they have also seen things, and there are men in suits trying to capture them. Jacob goes deeper into the conspiracy, only to find more pissed-off monstrosities that “could” cross over to our realm.
Released in 1990, the film had a good reception at first, but it fizzled out quickly at the box office. The reception by critics was positive from the start, with many highlighting the film’s depiction of trauma as something otherworldly and Robbins' exceptional performance. FamedChicago Sun Timescritic Roger Ebertsaid the following aboutJacob’s Ladder:
“This movie left me reeling with turmoil and confusion, with feelings of sadness and despair. Those are the notes it strives for.
I got involved in a conversation about the underlying reality of the film. Was it all a flashback – or a flashforward? What was real, and what was only in the hero’s mind? Are even the apparently ‘real’ sequences the product of his imagination? More than this I should not say, because the film should have the opportunity to toy with you as it toyed with us.
This is a film about no less than life and death, and Jacob seems to stand at the midpoint of a ladder that reaches in two directions. Up to heaven, like the ladder that God put down for the Biblical Jacob in Genesis. Or down to hell, in drug-induced hallucinations. This movie was not a pleasant experience, but it was exhilarating in the sense that I was able to observe filmmakers working at the edge of their abilities and inspirations. Not every movie has to be fun.”
The Influence of Jacob’s Ladder is Undeniable
If you’re into trippy films with confusing narratives, then chances are pretty good that you enjoy movies influenced byJacob’s Ladder. Even Christopher Nolan admitted tobeing inspired by the filmfor some of the more abstract sequences in the Academy Award-winning epicOppenheimer.
In terms of nightmare sequences, there’s probably nothing better thanJacob’s Ladder, and its legacy is clear in those scenes that progress toward the absurd, but take their time to reveal"it’s all part of a nightmare.“Lyne’s horror thriller delves into these realms for far too long, making the experience truly unsettling. However, the most notable influence of the film can be seen in theSilent Hillvideo game series. This is mostly visible in the first two entries of the series, as different characters navigate a broken world that can only be defined as a customized version of Hell.
