FIND A CANDLESTICK, JACK
Added 5/1/2004
Strange New Zealand film full of psychological suspense and psychic silliness. Alexis Arquette (Sometimes They Come Back Again) stars as the titular Jack, a young man who was cruelly abused by his adopted parents and their four witches from hell daughters. We follow little Jack and his sister Dora, who was adopted by loving parents, as they grow up. Eventually, Jack invents some kind of hypnotizing machine, coercing his adopted parents to kill themselves, and then he's off looking for both his sister Dora and his real parents. Meanwhile, Dora's hooked up psychically and physically with some older man named Teddy (played by Bruno Lawrence in a lifeless performance), who she employs to help find her brother Jack.
The movie has a tragic underpinning, but once grown up, Jack is so obnoxious in his revenge, and Dora becomes nothing more than a whining, sniveling teenage girl, pregnant by her psychic lover. They find their real parents, but the four sisters take care of things to make the ending as tragic as possible.
The movie looks thirty years old, and overall, is a disappointing thud. Arquette is talented, but here he emotes to the level of high school thespianism, and Sarah Kennedy as Dora just gets on your nerves.
Avoid.
3 out of 4 people found this helpful.
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story is good but VHS transfer is unacceptable
Added 3/22/2004
I got a VHS copy of this from Amazon and it is recorded in "EP" (the middle speed on your VCR, and some VCRs won't even play EP tapes). The tracking was all over the place (distorting the picture AND sound), so even if you got it right, a few minutes later it would change....VERY annoying distraction! There is a DVD version out there, but it is way overpriced right now.
1 out of 2 people found this helpful.
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Sheer brilliance
Added 2/5/2002
I tuned in to Jack Be Nimble when it was on TV today, & I was blown away by Alexis Arquette's acting ability. I've read some reviews saying it was a dissapointment because it wasn't a supernatural gothic horror film with ghosts & goblins, but Arquette's character was so real & memorable I truly felt what he felt throughout the film. I'm rarely touched by movies, which is why I wanted to write this review. I'm a tough critic, believe it or not, being someone who has studied dramatic arts for years, & although this psychological thriller had its weak assets, Arquette's performance was nothing short of sheer brillance.
3 out of 4 people found this helpful.
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A complete disaster!
Added 11/15/2001
If you're like me, you probably wanted to check out this movie because it sounded like it really could be an excellent supernatural Gothic horror tale full of goblins and wicked things alike. Well, don't make the same mistake I did and actually watch it. It's horrible. Terrible. An honest to goodness waste of film. The acting is wretched, the film quality is rotten (it actually looks twenty years older than it is), and the plot is thin, weak, and does not give you what it's supposed to. The only reason I bothered to give this film 1 star is because of Alexis Arquette -- he's great looking, but should have left this film out of his career.
2 out of 5 people found this helpful.
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Jack Be Fumbled
Added 2/28/2001
Glum film tries too hard as adopted blood siblings reunite later in life. He has a hypnotizing machine, an attitude, and four angry sisters after him, she is psychic and pregnant. Brooding and dark, dull and silly.
2 out of 6 people found this helpful.
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FIND A CANDLESTICK, JACK
Added 5/1/2004
Strange New Zealand film full of psychological suspense and psychic silliness. Alexis Arquette (Sometimes They Come Back Again) stars as the titular Jack, a young man who was cruelly abused by his adopted parents and their four witches from hell daughters. We follow little Jack and his sister Dora, who was adopted by loving parents, as they grow up. Eventually, Jack invents some kind of hypnotizing machine, coercing his adopted parents to kill themselves, and then he's off looking for both his sister Dora and his real parents. Meanwhile, Dora's hooked up psychically and physically with some older man named Teddy (played by Bruno Lawrence in a lifeless performance), who she employs to help find her brother Jack.
The movie has a tragic underpinning, but once grown up, Jack is so obnoxious in his revenge, and Dora becomes nothing more than a whining, sniveling teenage girl, pregnant by her psychic lover. They find their real parents, but the four sisters take care of things to make the ending as tragic as possible.
The movie looks thirty years old, and overall, is a disappointing thud. Arquette is talented, but here he emotes to the level of high school thespianism, and Sarah Kennedy as Dora just gets on your nerves.
Avoid.
3 out of 4 people found this helpful.
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story is good but VHS transfer is unacceptable
Added 3/22/2004
I got a VHS copy of this from Amazon and it is recorded in "EP" (the middle speed on your VCR, and some VCRs won't even play EP tapes). The tracking was all over the place (distorting the picture AND sound), so even if you got it right, a few minutes later it would change....VERY annoying distraction! There is a DVD version out there, but it is way overpriced right now.
1 out of 2 people found this helpful.
|
Sheer brilliance
Added 2/5/2002
I tuned in to Jack Be Nimble when it was on TV today, & I was blown away by Alexis Arquette's acting ability. I've read some reviews saying it was a dissapointment because it wasn't a supernatural gothic horror film with ghosts & goblins, but Arquette's character was so real & memorable I truly felt what he felt throughout the film. I'm rarely touched by movies, which is why I wanted to write this review. I'm a tough critic, believe it or not, being someone who has studied dramatic arts for years, & although this psychological thriller had its weak assets, Arquette's performance was nothing short of sheer brillance.
3 out of 4 people found this helpful.
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