Adrian Lyne’s Influential Thriller ‘Jacob’s Ladder’ Returns To Theaters In A New 4K Restoration
One of the greatest and most underrated horror films of the 1990s, Jacob’s Ladder, is coming back to theaters this October in a newly remastered 4K edition courtesy of Rialto Pictures and Studiocanal.
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This restoration of the 1990 psychological horror film by director Adrian Lyne (Flashdance, Fatal Attraction, Indecent Proposal) will have its World Premiere at the American Cinematheque’s Beyond Fest in LA on September 28th before opening at the IFC Center in NYC on October 3rd, with a national release to follow after that.
Written by Academy Award-winning screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin (Ghost), the film takes place in 1975 and follows Tim Robbins (Bull Durham, The Shawshank Redemption, The Hudsucker Proxy, Mystic River) as the tragic protagonist, Jacob Singer. A Vietnam veteran who was wounded in battle, he returns home to New York City and tries to lead a normal life as a postal worker, but he’s haunted by hellish visions of terrible creatures, and the memory of his son (an uncredited Macaulay Culkin), who died in an accident before the war.
Torn between both traumas, Jacob begins to lose his grip on reality when the night terrors start to invade his waking life. Jacob’s girlfriend (Elizabeth Peña) only adds confusion to his life by drawing him into a web of sexual intrigue, and the only person he can trust is his “angelic” chiropractor (Danny Aiello).
The film also features early roles from Ving Rhames (Pulp Fiction, Rosewood, Mission: Impossible), Jason “Serenity Now!” Alexander (Seinfeld), and one of those actors who’s in a bunch of movies, but nobody ever recognizes him, Matt Craven (Meatballs, A Few Good Men, K2, Crimson Tide, Public Enemies, X-Men: First Class), with a chilling musical score by Maurice Jarre (Lawrence of Arabia, Dr. Zhivago).
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Despite opening at #1 in North America, it was not a commercial success at the box office. The film’s overall domestic gross was a modest $26.1 million against a $25 million budget, barely breaking even, and quickly fading from theaters after its initial run. It wasn’t until the movie hit VHS that it became a cult classic among horror fans and those who enjoy an extra helping of surreal mayhem.
The disturbing, abstract imagery inspired such pop culture staples as American Horror Story: Asylum, the Silent Hill video game and the 2006 movie, The X-Files, The Sixth Sense, and even Christopher Nolan admitted that it was an influence while making his 2023 Oscar-winning film, Oppenheimer.
The film is an unsettling look into the nightmare that is warfare, and the horrific aftereffects that plague the psyche of all who’ve experienced it. It also explores how a highly troubled mind processes grief, along with just how tenuous the border is between reality and hallucination. Plus, it contains one of the kinkiest dance floor sequences of all time, and an ice bath scene that will make even the toughest soldier wince with unease.
The 4K restoration of Jacob’s Ladder is scheduled to be released nationwide this October. Until then, here’s the trailer, and make sure to stay away from acid that’s laced with BZ:
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