Into the West

I really wasn't that much of a fan of Hayden Christensen in the Star Wars movies, but I decided to give him another chance with Jumper. If nothing else, he's really cute in a hoodie.

Although I think his acting is definitely improving, I was frustrated with the movie for a few other reasons. First, I would have liked the relationship between him and Griffin (Jamie Bell) to have been explored more. I found it fascinating that Griffin would spend so much time tracking him down, and then seem so nonchalant about helping him. You would think that after being so alone one would really want some companionship - especially from someone in similar circumstances. Obviously, my own desires for male intimacy are coming into play here. Still, it would have been an interesting dynamic to spend more time exploring. My second frustration with this film is somewhat related to the first. Mostly it has to do with the ending. For starters, it was rather anti-climatic - Hayden jumps Roland (Samuel Jackson) to a cliff in the grand canyon, meets his mom (who wants to kill him - how messed up is that?) and then jumps off with his girlfriend. I guess part of me was hoping that Hayden would die (am I really that tragic?) or for a greater climax. Things could have even been setup to allude to the possibility of a sequel - maybe something similar to the ending of X-Men. The other problem I had with the ending was with the implied morality of Hayden's two final decisions. He leaves his friend Griffin trapped in an electrical tower in Chechnya (where he is almost certain to die) while at the same time he saves Roland - his sworn enemy who will continue to do nothing but try and kill him and those he loves. Overall, the movie had a cool concept, I just think things got kind of muddled in the end.

If you're looking for more Jamie Bell, he gives a great performance in Defiance, which I highly recommend.