Jack (1996 film)

Last updated
Jack
Jack 1996.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Francis Ford Coppola
Written by
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography John Toll
Edited by Barry Malkin
Music by Michael Kamen
Production
companies
Distributed by Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
Release date
  • August 9, 1996 (1996-08-09)
Running time
113 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$45 million [1]
Box office$78 million [2]

Jack is a 1996 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The film stars Robin Williams, Diane Lane, Jennifer Lopez, Brian Kerwin, Fran Drescher and Bill Cosby. Williams plays the role of Jack Powell, a boy who ages four times faster than normal as a result of a unique medical condition.

Contents

Jack was released in the United States on August 9, 1996. The film received negative reviews from critics but grossed $78 million against its $45 million budget.

Plot

During a costume party, guest Karen Powell goes into labor and is rushed to the hospital by her husband Brian and their friends. The baby boy, named Jack, inexplicably looks full-term and healthy despite having been born in the 10th week of gestation. Medical exams reveal that Jack suffers from a unique condition that results in his growing four times faster than normal.

Ten years later, at age 10, Jack has the body of a 40-year-old man. One day, four boys are lurking outside of his house, intrigued by rumors of a monster inhabiting it. Jack scares them away by dipping a fake eye into slime and throwing it at them from his window. Jack has grown childish due to this secluded life, having had socialized only with his parents and his tutor, Lawrence Woodruff, who suggests that he attend school. Jack's parents initially reject the suggestion, fearing that school could be traumatic to him, but they eventually agree.

When he first attends school, Jack is rejected by most kids due to his appearance. His father gives him some encouragement by installing a basketball hoop to help him learn to fit in. One day, a boy named Louis picks him for his team to play basketball, and they end up winning against some bullies. After school, Louis asks Jack to pose as the principal to avoid punishment from his mother, Dolores. Afterward, they become friends and Louis invites him to a clubhouse with the other kids, eventually enlisting him to get adult items for them.

Jack develops his first crush on Miss Marquez, his teacher, but, when she rejects him, he becomes deeply saddened and collapses going down the stairs. At the hospital, Jack is revealed to have begun developing cardiovascular problems, a sign that he is aging. Realizing the dangers that it might entail for his health, his parents decide to withdraw him from school, which upsets him.

Jack sneaks out of the house and goes to a bar, where he gets drunk, befriends a man named Paulie and tries to hit on Dolores. However, he gets into a fight, and both are arrested. Dolores bails out Jack and comforts him after dropping him off at home. He locks himself in his room and does not come out for weeks. Karen speculates that Jack realized the fragility of his life and is now scared of facing the outside world again.

Meanwhile, his friends continue to come to his house, hoping that he will come out and play, but he refuses. Finally, Louis manages to lure Jack out of the house by bringing over the entire class, spending the day playing in the front yard. The next day, Jack decides to return to school.

Seven years later, an elderly-looking Jack and his four best friends are at their high-school graduation. He delivers the valedictorian speech, reminding those in attendance that life is short, and he encourages his classmates to make the best of it as they all head into the future.

Cast

Production

In January 1995, it was announced that Robin Williams would star in Jack with Francis Ford Coppola set to direct. [3] John Travolta was interested in playing the lead role of Jack, but due to an apology from Disney to Robin Williams regarding royalties from Aladdin , Williams was guaranteed the role. [4]

Release

Jack debuted at number one at the US box office and grossed roughly $58.6 million in the United States and Canada, and $78 million worldwide, on a budget of $45 million. [1] [2]

Reception

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 17% of 35 critics have given the film a positive review, with an average rating of 4.4/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Robin Williams's childlike energy is channeled in all the wrong places with Jack, a bizarre tragedy that aims for uplift but sinks deep into queasy schmaltz." [5] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 31 out of 100, based on 14 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews. [6] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "B+" on a scale of A+ to F. [7]

Todd McCarthy of Variety called it a "tedious, uneventful fantasy" that wastes the talents of the filmmakers. [8]

Accolades

Jack was nominated for Worst Picture at the 1996 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards but lost to Striptease . [9]

Response from Francis Ford Coppola

About the film's reception, Francis Ford Coppola said, "Jack was a movie that everybody hated and I was constantly damned and ridiculed for. I must say I find Jack sweet and amusing. I don't dislike it as much as everyone, but that's obvious—I directed it. I know I should be ashamed of it but I'm not. I don't know why everybody hated it so much. I think it was because of the type of movie it was. It was considered that I had made Apocalypse Now and I'm like a Marty Scorsese type of director, and here I am making this dumb Disney film with Robin Williams. But I was always happy to do any type of film." [10] [ better source needed ]

Music

The film's theme is "Star", performed by Canadian musician Bryan Adams. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francis Ford Coppola</span> American filmmaker (born 1939)

Francis Ford Coppola is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He is considered one of the leading figures of the New Hollywood film movement of the 1960s and 1970s and is widely considered one of the greatest directors of all time. He is the recipient of five Academy Awards, six Golden Globe Awards, two Palmes d'Or and a British Academy Film Award (BAFTA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marlon Brando</span> American actor (1924–2004)

Marlon Brando Jr. was an American actor and activist. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential actors of all time, he received numerous accolades throughout his career, which spanned six decades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, one Cannes Film Festival Award, and three British Academy Film Awards. Brando is credited with being one of the first actors to bring the Stanislavski system of acting and method acting to mainstream audiences.

<i>The Conversation</i> 1974 film by Francis Ford Coppola

The Conversation is a 1974 American neo-noir mystery thriller film written, produced, and directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Gene Hackman, John Cazale, Allen Garfield, Cindy Williams, Frederic Forrest, Harrison Ford, Teri Garr, and Robert Duvall. Hackman portrays a surveillance expert who faces a moral dilemma when his recordings reveal a potential murder.

<i>American Graffiti</i> 1973 US film by George Lucas

American Graffiti is a 1973 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film directed by George Lucas, produced by Francis Ford Coppola, written by Willard Huyck, Gloria Katz and Lucas, and starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Harrison Ford, Charles Martin Smith, Cindy Williams, Candy Clark, Mackenzie Phillips, Bo Hopkins, and Wolfman Jack. Set in Modesto, California, in 1962, the film is a study of the cruising and early rock 'n' roll cultures popular among Lucas's age group at that time. Through a series of vignettes, it tells the story of a group of teenagers and their adventures over the course of a night.

<i>Peggy Sue Got Married</i> 1986 film by Francis Ford Coppola

Peggy Sue Got Married is a 1986 American fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola starring Kathleen Turner as a woman on the verge of a divorce, who finds herself transported back to the days of her senior year in high school in 1960. The film was written by husband-and-wife team Jerry Leichtling and Arlene Sarner.

<i>Grease 2</i> 1982 film by Patricia Birch

Grease 2 is a 1982 American musical romantic comedy film and the sequel to the 1978 film Grease, adapted from the 1971 musical of the same name by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. Originally titled More Grease, the film was produced by Allan Carr and Robert Stigwood, and directed and choreographed by Patricia Birch, who choreographed the original stage production and prior film. The plot returns to Rydell High School two years after the original film's graduation, with a largely new cast, led by Maxwell Caulfield and Michelle Pfeiffer in her first starring role.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Caan</span> American actor (1940–2022)

James Edmund Caan was an American actor. He came to prominence playing Sonny Corleone in The Godfather (1972) – a performance that earned him Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actor. He reprised his role in The Godfather Part II (1974). He received a motion-picture star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jason Schwartzman</span> American actor and musician (born 1980)

Jason Schwartzman is an American actor and musician. Schwartzman made his film debut in Wes Anderson's 1998 film Rushmore, and has since appeared in six other Anderson films: The Darjeeling Limited (2007), Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009), Moonrise Kingdom (2012), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), The French Dispatch (2021), and Asteroid City (2023). He also has co-writing credit on The Darjeeling Limited.

<i>Fathers Day</i> (1997 film) 1997 American film

Fathers' Day is a 1997 American comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and starring Robin Williams, Billy Crystal, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Nastassja Kinski. It is a remake of the 1983 French film Les Compères.

<i>Blow Out</i> 1981 film by Brian De Palma

Blow Out is a 1981 American neo-noir mystery thriller film written and directed by Brian De Palma. The film stars John Travolta as Jack Terry, a movie sound effects technician from Philadelphia who, while recording sounds for a low-budget slasher film, unintentionally captures audio evidence of an assassination involving a presidential hopeful. Nancy Allen stars as Sally Bedina, a young woman involved in the crime. The supporting cast includes John Lithgow and Dennis Franz. The film's tagline in advertisements was, "Murder has a sound all of its own".

<i>Two of a Kind</i> (1983 film) 1983 film by John Herzfeld

Two of a Kind is a 1983 American romantic fantasy crime comedy-drama film directed by John Herzfeld and starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. The film reunited Travolta and Newton-John who had appeared together in 1978's Grease. The original musical score was composed by Patrick Williams. Travolta plays a cash-strapped inventor while Newton-John plays the bank teller whom he attempts to rob. They must come to show compassion for one another in order to delay God's judgment upon the Earth. Despite being a critical failure, the film's soundtrack was a commercial success, yielding three hit singles for Newton-John and being certified Platinum.

<i>The Godfather</i> 1972 American crime film by Francis Ford Coppola

The Godfather is a 1972 American epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling 1969 novel of the same title. The ensemble cast includes Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Richard Castellano, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley, Richard Conte, and Diane Keaton. It is the first installment in The Godfather trilogy, chronicling the Corleone family under patriarch Vito Corleone (Brando) from 1945 to 1955. It focuses on the transformation of his youngest son, Michael Corleone (Pacino), from reluctant family outsider to ruthless mafia boss.

<i>The Outsiders</i> (film) 1983 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola

The Outsiders is a 1983 American coming-of-age crime drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The film is an adaptation of the 1967 novel of the same name by S. E. Hinton and was released on March 25, 1983, in the United States. Jo Ellen Misakian, a librarian at Lone Star Elementary School in Fresno, California, and her students were responsible for inspiring Coppola to make the film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luana Anders</span> American actress (1938–1996)

Luana Anders was an American film and television actress and screenwriter.

<i>Wild Hogs</i> 2007 film by Walt Becker

Wild Hogs is a 2007 American biker road comedy film directed by Walt Becker and starring Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy. It was released nationwide in the United States and Canada on March 2, 2007. It was the last film by Tollin/Robbins Productions.

<i>The Great Gatsby</i> (1974 film) 1974 film directed by Jack Clayton

The Great Gatsby is a 1974 American historical romantic drama film based on the 1925 novel of the same name by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The film was directed by Jack Clayton, produced by David Merrick, and written by Francis Ford Coppola. It stars Robert Redford, Mia Farrow, Sam Waterston, Bruce Dern, and Karen Black. The plot concerns the interactions of writer Nick Carraway with enigmatic millionaire Jay Gatsby (Redford) and Gatsby's obsession to reunite with his former lover, Daisy Buchanan (Farrow), amid the riotous parties of the Jazz Age on Long Island near New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Lip</span> American actor (1930–2013)

Frank Anthony Vallelonga Sr., better known by his stage name Tony Lip, was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of crime boss Carmine Lupertazzi in the HBO series, The Sopranos. Lip portrayed real-life Bonanno crime family mobster Philip Giaccone in Donnie Brasco, and real-life Lucchese crime family mobster Francesco Manzo in Goodfellas. It was at the Copacabana nightclub that he first met Francis Ford Coppola and Louis DiGiaimo, leading to a small role in The Godfather, his film debut. He also co-wrote the book Shut Up and Eat! (2005).

James DeMonaco is an American filmmaker. He is best known for creating the Purge franchise, writing all five films in the series and directing the first three, The Purge (2013), Anarchy (2014), and Election Year (2016).

<i>Priscilla</i> (film) 2023 film by Sofia Coppola

Priscilla is a 2023 American biographical drama film written, directed, and produced by Sofia Coppola, based on the 1985 memoir Elvis and Me by Priscilla Presley and Sandra Harmon. It follows the life of Priscilla and her complicated romantic relationship with Elvis Presley.

<i>Megalopolis</i> (film) Upcoming American film by Francis Ford Coppola

Megalopolis is an upcoming American epic science fiction drama film written, directed, and produced by Francis Ford Coppola. The film features an ensemble cast, including Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel, Giancarlo Esposito, Jon Voight, Laurence Fishburne, Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, Jason Schwartzman, Grace VanderWaal, Kathryn Hunter, Talia Shire, Dustin Hoffman and D. B. Sweeney. Filming began in November 2022 and concluded in March 2023.

References

  1. 1 2 "Jack". Box Office Mojo . Archived from the original on 2019-01-20. Retrieved 2016-05-30.
  2. 1 2 "Top 100 worldwide b.o. champs". Variety . January 20, 1997. p. 14.
  3. ↑ "Williams Inks For Disney's 'Jack'". Variety. Archived from the original on July 20, 2021. Retrieved October 17, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Travolta Time". Variety. Archived from the original on July 20, 2021. Retrieved July 19, 2021.
  5. ↑ "Jack (1996)". Rotten Tomatoes . Archived from the original on 2021-09-09. Retrieved 2021-04-27.
  6. ↑ "Jack". Metacritic . Fandom, Inc. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  7. ↑ "Cinemascore". Archived from the original on 2018-12-20. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
  8. ↑ McCarthy, Todd (1996-07-29). "Review: 'Jack'". Variety . Archived from the original on 2018-02-23. Retrieved 2016-05-30.
  9. ↑ "The Stinkers 1996 Ballot". The Stinkers. Archived from the original on 2000-08-18. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  10. ↑ "Francis Ford Coppola". IMDb . Archived from the original on 2018-04-10. Retrieved 2019-03-29.
  11. ↑ Childs, Paul (February 12, 2018). "Examining the Many Movie Songs of Bryan Adams". Den of Geek . Archived from the original on 2021-01-17. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.