spencer-w-hensley
This movie is to Francis Ford Coppola's directing resume what Always was to Steven Spielberg's in the sense you can't believe this movie was directed by a cinematic genius, as it has the feel of a made-for- TV movie. To some extent Coppola should be blamed. Aside from directing some of the all-time greats "Godfather 1&2" and "Apocalypse Now", he himself is a talented writer with "Patton" and "The Godfather" screenplays. So he should have known this script wasn't worthy of his enormous talent, and should have made suggestions on how to improve it. The man is a genius, surely that's the least he could have done. You also can't fault him to some extent, however as he has said he only made this film to work with Robin Williams. I can see his desire for that. Williams was a genius in front of the camera just the same as Coppola is behind it. But why didn't he direct "The Birdcage" which came out around the same time and had a much better use of Robin Williams' talent? Coppola can direct comedy successfully "Peggy Sue Got Married" is a wonderful film. He knows what is funny and what works and what doesn't. It's rumored Coppola told Williams he wanted to work with him and when Williams got the screenplay for Jack he would only do it if Coppola agreed to direct it. But was Coppola really that desperate to work with Williams as to direct him in a so-so movie? Surely he could have suggested he and Williams team up for something far more worthy of their amazing talents. Jack has some sweetness that is appealing and not to be ignored, and the acting is decent overall. Coppola at least directs most of his actors well except for the obnoxious Fran Drescher in a supporting role. What in the world is Fran Drescher doing in a Francis Ford Coppola movie? Many Oscar winning actresses would have been proud to work with the genius behind The Godfather and Apocalypse Now even for a small supporting role and he gets one of (if not) the most obnoxious comedienne's of her era for the part. Why not go for Marisa Tomei, or Julia Roberts, or even the director's sister Talia Shire for the same part? He might as well have directed Roseanne Barr in the same role. Coppola is too talented to direct someone as bad at acting as Drescher. The rest of the cast including Coppola favorite Diane Lane, Brian Kerwin, Jennifer Lopez and Bill Cosby all do fine in their roles and give good performances, but they are not given anything special or memorable or even funny from a wasted script. Coppola doesn't even know how to direct Williams to do anything special. Williams plays a ten year old, but he doesn't act like one, he essentially just plays himself. If this movie is about him as a ten year old he should at least act like one and Coppola should have been able to direct him as such. Tom Hanks did the same thing wonderfully almost a decade earlier in Big where he was directed by Penny Marshall also a talented director but not even on the same level of talent as Coppola. Also Coppola makes the mistake at times of letting his movie turn into bad outtakes from a Farrely Brothers movie. I mean farting, eating gross-out stuff, and ten year old boys looking at porn magazines. The Farrely's can get away with that because that is their signature trademark, the same just can't be said about one of the cinema's all time great director's. Jack is not without it's charm, though it really is sad that the great Francis Ford Coppola wouldn't wait to direct Robin Williams in a much better movie. The result is a movie that tries and occasionally succeeds, but should have been a masterpiece with the star and director attached. Hopefully all involved enjoyed working with Coppola enough to ignore the fact that this is a mediocre, mostly forgettable film, and unless I see a worse early Coppola directing effort, the worse film of the great director's work. Godfather III is on par with it's far superior predecessors as far as Coppola's work goes compared to Jack.
ironhorse_iv
First off, let me address the 'elephant in the room'. Yes, it's true! One of the most influential directors of all time, indeed directed this movie! Don't believe it!? I don't really care, but it's true! Francis Ford Coppola, the director of 1972 "The Godfather," & 1979's 'Apocalypse Now', indeed directed a movie where Robin Williams plays a ten-year-old kid in a man's body. Do you want to hear the crazy part? I kinda like this movie. Yes, this movie might have a lot of flaws, but for me, it's a guilty pleasure of mine. I'm not kidding! This movie isn't that bad. It's a very well-shot, emotional driven, funny yet somewhat entertaining. I really have to give, some credit, to the director, for making this kid movie's somewhat watchable with its insane crazy exaggerated aging disease plot line. Without spoiling the movie, too much, I have to say, one of the weakest part of the film, has to be Robin Williams's performance as ten year old, Jack Powell. Yes, he can act in some of the more emotional scenes, but there is something off, with most of his performance here. Some moments in the film, he acts like a kid, right out of preschool. Other moments in the film, he acts like a teenager. I know, that his character is mostly home-school and socially awkward, but there is just something not right with Jack. He doesn't come across, as believable in his 10 year old behavior. I would know, I was around 10 years old in 1996 and socially awkward! His look is also a bit off, if we trying to brutality real, here. Shouldn't Jack, at this young age, look more like Benjamin Button at his age in 2008's Curious Case of Benjamin Button? You know, like an old face with a kid body, having more serious health problem!? I'm asking this, because I really doubt, this movie knows, how Werner progeria syndrome, honestly works. Even, in the end, with all that awful, fake-looking old man make up; he still doesn't act like a person that age! Despite, that, I have to say, while this movie might be seen as one of his weaker Robin Williams's performances; his presence here, wasn't too much of a turn-off. Like, I said, before, he really scores in pulling heart-strings. The final scene, alone, with Jack talking about not worrying about how much time you have and enjoying every moment is absolutely heartbreaking. It's harder in hindsight now, when taking into account, what happen to Robin Williams in 2014. If there were any real turn-off performances from this film, it would be, for me, the supporting cast of Fran Drescher & Bill Cosby. Why, because of Fran Drescher's annoying her nasal thick New York accent & Bill Cosby's over the top mumblings, weren't inspiring. It's barely tolerance, here. Plus, both of their characters, Dr. Lawrence Woodruff (Bill Cosby) & Dolores 'D.D.' Durante (Fran Drescher) really don't help push the plot, along. A lot of time-wasting filler scenes is spent with both of them. Scenes like the bar & treehouse sequence could had been cut out; and you wouldn't miss a thing. Trust me! These two, really weren't needed. However, there were two supporting actresses in this film that really got me, liking them. The first one is Jennifer Lopez as Jack's teacher, Miss Marquez. Not only was, this film, one of the first films that got Jennifer Lopez's name out there, but seeing her, in this movie, made me a longtime fan of her work. She's so charming in this film. The other, stand out, performance in this film is Diane Lane as Jack's mother, Karen Powell. Wow! She really able to show, her motherly love, so well, in this. Some of the best scenes in the film is, Jack and Karen playing games, around the house and her being stern to changes. What a great authoritative mother figure! One thing, I really didn't like, about this movie is the music by composer Michael Kamen and Bryan Adams. Most of background music like 'Star', was too whimsical, clichés & cheesy. I also didn't like how the tone of the movie moves from slapstick comedy to tragic melodramatic, so unevenly. It was a bit too jarring to take. I would think the movie would had work better, if it took the same ideas, that work with 1988's film, Big and expanse it, rather than acting so kid friendly. Despite some big flaws, Jack is essentially a family film with a moral message about living life to the fullest. I think, anybody with a soul would appreciate that message. It's worth-checking out, just for that, alone. I do recommended seeing it.
moonspinner55
A curiosity coming from Francis Ford Coppola (who also co-produced for Zoetrope) has pregnant Diane Lane going into labor after only two months, delivering a healthy-seeming baby boy (when she pleads to her husband in the delivery room, "It's too soon!", it's rather an understatement). Doctors have never seen another child like this, yet quickly determine the boy has an internal clock which is ahead of itself by four times the average rate, meaning that when Jack is ten-years old he'll look like a man of forty. This peculiar movie gimmick aside, what we really have here is Robin Williams back in grade school. Although this may sound perfectly inexcusable, not to mention somewhat derivative, it isn't a silly movie (at least, not at its core) and has good acting. Williams manages to hold back a bit from his usual barrage of vocal effects and facial expressions, and a few of his scenes are peddled quite softly (as they were in "Awakenings"). Also quite fine are Bill Cosby as Jack's initial tutor and Jennifer Lopez as his schoolteacher. The little boys are way over-the-top, and some of their gross-out talk is just stupid (they hole up in a tree house, equipped with TV, looking at nudie magazines--probably an attempt to mirror grown-ups but it plays sour). Oddly, Coppola can't stop himself from ultimately tugging at the old heartstrings, and not just once but for an entire sequence and an epilogue! I could have done without the "seven years later" bit, but for the most part this is a warm family comedy with a bigger heart than it knows what to do with. ** from ****
