The movie has giant plausibility problems. I don’t have a problem with the script loading up on Jumpers and Paladins and Centuries-Long Secret Wars and what have you, but it doesn’t sufficiently sell its mythology. The Paladins have vague motivations at best, the rules of Jumping are ill-defined (you may or may not only be able to Jump to places you’ve been, or at least have pictures of), and there’s a twist involving Diane Lane’s character that doesn’t even bother providing motivations or explanations.

Then there are oddities like David’s return to his hometown. Here’s a kid who, after magically appearing in the middle of a library in front of plenty of witnesses, completely disappeared, which probably sparked a weeks-long police search and town-wide panic. He returns home to the local bar ten years later out of nowhere, and his old friends and acquaintances treat him like he just got back from college.

Christensen is fine in this. The screenwriters (unlike George Lucas) at least know how to write dialogue, which means he’s actually given something to work with, in spite of his character’s unlikability. But get this: the movie’s one attempt to salvage our sympathies for David is that – slight spoiler alert – at the end, he doesn’t kill Samuel L. Jackson. Gee, what a merciful guy – now the bad guy can go back to hunting down your friends and killing them.

That’s for the sequel, of course. Don’t even get me started on that – the final scene of this movie features a repeat appearance by Diane Lane, as well as a new character, played by a recognizable actress, who is given nothing to do except say, “Hey guys, make sure to watch for me in the sequel!” It’s the most blatant non-ending I may have ever seen.

But you know what? I may want to see that sequel. My problem with Jumper isn’t the concept itself but the way the script consistently shoots itself in the foot with problems that could be fixed with rewrites. The special effects are pretty darn neat, and the action scenes are certainly strong enough to get that ten-year-old in me excited. I could reasonably imagine a sequel that’s actually, you know, a good movie. Unfortunately, if Jumper is a success, chances are they’ll just fast-track something into production with even less time spent smoothing out the story.

Movie Grade: C+

Synopsis:

A genetic anomaly allows a young man to teleport himself anywhere. He discovers this gift has existed for centuries and finds himself in a war that has been raging for thousands of years between "Jumpers" and those who have sworn to kill them.