Jumper (2008 film)
Jumper is a 2008 American science fiction action film directed by Doug Liman and written by David S. Goyer, Jim Uhls and Simon Kinberg. Loosely based on the 1992 novel by Steven Gould, the film stars Hayden Christensen as a young man capable of teleporting, as he is pursued by a secret society intent on killing him. Jamie Bell, Rachel Bilson, Max Thieriot, AnnaSophia Robb, Diane Lane, Michael Rooker, and Samuel L. Jackson also star.
The script went through a rewrite prior to filming, and the roles for the main characters were changed during production. Filmed in 20 cities and 14 countries from 2007 to 2008 and released on February 14, 2008, the film grossed $225 million worldwide and received generally negative reviews from critics, mostly because of the many changes to Gould's novel, rushed plot, and anticlimactic ending.
Plot
After falling into the Huron River, 15-year-old David Rice discovers that he can teleport, or "jump". He escapes his abusive father and moves to New York City, where he robs banks by jumping into their vaults.Eight years later, David follows a luxurious, hedonistic lifestyle. He is confronted by Roland, leader of the Paladins—a religious organization that believe Jumpers are abominations to mankind and should be eradicated. Despite Roland's specialized equipment that disrupt a Jumper's abilities, David manages to escape by jumping to his childhood bedroom in his hometown of Ann Arbor, Michigan. David reconnects with his childhood crush Millie, and runs into a former bully, Mark. While in a bar fight with Mark, David jumps them both into a bank vault, leaving him and jumping back to the bar. Roland later questions Mark.
Meanwhile, David charms Millie into traveling to Rome. When the guards at the Colosseum turn them away, David teleports in. While Millie is still outside, David is ambushed by the Paladins. He is saved by Griffin O'Connor, another Jumper, who has been following him. Griffin curtly warns David about the Paladins' crusade and teleports away. David accidentally enters Griffin's "jump scar", a short-lived wormhole that Jumpers create with their ability, and ends up at Griffin's desert safehouse. Griffin has been tracking and hunting Paladins.
From Griffin's photos, David discovers that his mother Mary, who left him as a child, is a high-ranked Paladin. David returns to Rome, where he is detained. Mary shows up and helps him escape before the Paladins arrive. David escorts Millie to the airport then returns to Griffin's. David convinces Griffin to partner up to kill Roland and keep Millie safe.
David catches up to Millie in her apartment and reveals his powers. When the Paladins arrive, he jumps her to Griffin's lair. Using a machine to keep jump scars open, Roland's team invades Griffin's lair and a chaotic fight ensues. Griffin and David fight off the group. Griffin steals the machine, but the Paladins manage to capture Millie.
David wants to save Millie, but Griffin has instead prepared a bomb, counting on Roland having set up an ambush in Millie's apartment. David, desperate to save Millie, steals the detonator and teleports away. He and Griffin engage in a lengthy battle that ends with them jumping to a Chechen battlefield, where David traps Griffin in tangled high-voltage wires, which disrupt his ability.
The Paladins later trap David and connect him to a wall in Millie's apartment. Unable to teleport just himself away, David jumps the whole apartment with Millie and the Paladins into the Huron River. After getting Millie to safety, David jumps Roland to the Grand Canyon, choosing to leave him alive with a warning instead of killing him. Later, David tracks down Mary, who has been protecting him by hiding his information from her colleagues. He bids her farewell, and then jumps away with Millie.
Cast
Production
Script and storyboards
In November 2005, New Regency Productions hired director Doug Liman to helm the film adaptation of the science fiction novel Jumper by Steven Gould. Screenwriter Jim Uhls was hired to rewrite an adapted screenplay by David S. Goyer. However, Liman desired another rewrite and Simon Kinberg assisted in completing the script. Liman said about using the novel for developing the script: "This is 100% Steven Gould's story, it's just reinvented as a movie." In an interview, Gould revealed that he approved of the deviations from the novel. Before filming was to begin, the studio announced plans to develop a trilogy based on the novel's premise.While other films tend to use only one storyboard artist, Jumper required six, who each worked on an individual action sequence. The artists were given specific instructions on the rules of the teleportation used in the film, to ensure accuracy in the storyboarding. One of them, Rob McCallum, reflected on the instructions: "I was just thinking, 'How would a guy that can teleport fight?' So you were really pushing yourself to try to think of inventive, cool, spectacular ways that you could use this jumping talent that these characters have."
Casting
In April 2006, actors Tom Sturridge, Teresa Palmer, and Jamie Bell were cast for Jumper with Sturridge in the lead role. The following July, actor Samuel L. Jackson was cast as Roland Cox, with producer Simon Kinberg rewriting the original screenplay draft by Goyer. Principal photography was scheduled to take place in Tokyo, Rome, Toronto, and New York. Production was stopped in June 2006 after producer Tom Rothman told Liman "The lead is 18. Wouldn't the movie be better if he were 25? You have a huge movie here and adults won't go and see an 18-year-old. They'll consider it a children's movie. You could make a bigger movie than that." Liman agreed on casting older actors for furthering the romantic aspect of the film. In August, actor Hayden Christensen replaced Sturridge in the lead role as David just two weeks before the beginning of shooting, as the studio "became concerned about not having a more prominent actor in their trio of young stars." The studio would also push for Liman to cast rapper Eminem in the role, but Liman insisted on casting Christensen. After Christensen was recast for the lead role, Liman replaced Palmer with Rachel Bilson.Filming
In September 2006, Jumper was filmed at various locations in Peterborough, Ontario and principal photography began in Toronto in October. In December 2006, Liman negotiated with the Rome Film Commission for rare access to film for three days in the Colosseum. The scene in the Colosseum was originally written for the Pantheon, where exterior shots were also filmed. The crew was required to keep equipment off the ground by using harnesses and had to rely on natural light for filming. Filming took place for 45 minutes in the morning and in the evening so as not to disturb the public touring the amphitheater throughout the day. In order to maximize the short period for filming, four steadicams were set up to ensure time was not wasted in reloading the camera. A visual effects supervisor explained how visual effects were needed for various aspects after filming: "There were three kinds of shots: there were shots where they were able to get most of what they needed in the Collosseum itself; and then there were shots on a set that needed extensions beyond the limits of the set; and then there were shots where we needed to create the Coliseum basically from scratch." After filming in Rome, scenes were filmed in Toronto during December 2006 to January 2007 and wrapped at the Canadian location on January 19.On January 26 in Toronto, 56-year-old David Ritchie, a set dresser, was fatally struck by frozen debris while dismantling an outdoor set in wintry conditions. Another worker was injured and was sent to a hospital with serious head and shoulder injuries. After Toronto, the cast and crew traveled to Tokyo to film scenes. One scene required over 30 shoots as the scene could only be filmed in between traffic light changes. As a result of director Liman insisting Christensen perform his own stunts, the actor injured his hand, split open his ear, and developed a hyperdilated pupil that required hospital care while filming various scenes. In February 2007, the next filming site was set up at Gallup Park in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Sixty students from the nearby Huron High School were cast as extras for the film. Since additional filming was required of the area, twenty other students were used for a day of filming in September. Altogether, filming took place in 20 cities in 14 countries.