Review of Jacob's Ladder (1990) by Thequietgamer — 17 Jan 2018

I feel that Jacob's Ladder was ahead of it's time. So much so in fact, that it wasn't quite able to pull off all of it's lofty ambitions in the most satisfying of ways. Part psychological horror film and part political-thriller. The latter of these is what receives the most attention. So what we end up with is less The Shining, and more The Manchurian Candidate with the occasional bits of grotesque imagery. Outside of a disturbing party sequence and a twisted trip to a hospital's psych-ward, the rest of the "scary" scenes are handed in such a way where the majority of the movie feels like the early build up moments one would find in any other horror film. The kind that are meant to ease the viewers into the experience before diving into the really freaky stuff. Jacob's Ladder missed that opportunity to go all in with it's demonic visions, instead devoting the majority of it's focus to the wartime conspiracy story.

Disappointing for sure, but the brilliance is still here so the movie never stopped being influential. Particularly to the Silent Hill video game series, which I feel really perfected the idea here of a person being tormented by nightmarish entities of a symbolic nature in order to come to terms with the more tragic of life's events. Things take a philosophical turn towards the end. As wrapped up as I was in the mystery, it's the message that made it all worthwhile. Jacob's Ladder has something to say that gives it meaning. Not all horror films can say that. Not entirely well-executed, but is significant and interesting enough to be worth a watch for the more discerning horror fans that are into the genre for more than just blood and cheap thrills.