Jack the Bear

Most people are surprised when they find out about this film. The only one to blame for this is the studio, because the trailer, synopsis and the poster don't do it justice.

When it was released, most people probably thought it was a kids movie, so they skipped it. In fact this is a "kid's movie for adults" genre that had it's glory days from the second half of the 80ies (with the "all boys" Stand by Me) to the second half of the 90ies (with the "all girls" Now and Then). These movies (usually a grownup character's reminiscence of childhood days) are about kids, but their tribulations (although not always probable) are with the real world. This ain't no Goonies, but it isn't Dolores Claiborne either. These films were meant for us (the kids that grew up and now can laugh, with a certain nostalgic feel, about the adventurous moments of childhood).

Here, Danny has a very interesting main supporting role as a caring and sacrificing (if flawed) father of two boys during the day, and a host of a macabre kids show during the night. As it's predecessors, this movie also does some things right and some things wrong. It has many good and serious elements, and yet it is really sweet all the way through. This sweetness is created by great direction that menages to capture a nostalgic vibe, especially through 60ies classic rock soundtrack, special camera lance shading (like we're watching something from the past) and a sense of actual neighborhood and family community (a street where Danny and the kids live). Just in the "look" department, this film mostly resembles the look of 1993's film "Matinee" with John Goodman. The past we see here may be real or yet, just a way we want to remember it, but it does feel real enough and that helps in our occasional suspension of disbelief for the plot. On the other hand, this film is occasionally very melodramatic, often predictable (way way too much obvious foreshadowing) and sometimes not sure what it is (a serious drama or adventurous film). They could say they were going with recreating the real "life" (which is often a comedy and a tragedy) feeling with that one. Kids do a great job (especially the kid brother) and actors do make a wonderful (again if melodramatic) sense of family unity against all odds.

Long story short, this is a movie of "Stand By Me" kind and if you like the latter (or Danny) do watch this one.

They are not kids movies, but they are not real dramas either. They are the past that we can identify with because we feel it could (or should) have been our own.

The Leary family, John (Danny DeVito), Jack (Robert J. Steinmiller, Jr.) and Dylan (Miko Hughes), have moved from Syracuse, New York to Oakland, California in the early 1970s. John was a children's show host in Syracuse, but also has a love for horror films, and becomes a television horror film host in Oakland. On one level, the film is just a drama about the Leary's trying to settle into their new life. On another level, Jack The Bear is about confronting various kinds of monsters, from make-believe to human, as well as more abstract "monsters", including behaviors that are difficult to control and accidental tragedies such as deaths.

I've seen Jack The Bear a few times now, and every time I see it I like it even better. The performances are fantastic, taking you on a roller coaster of emotions. But it almost requires multiple viewings to really "get" the film. At its heart is the growing presence and threat of the various "monsters" mentioned above. The various monsters are all woven together in very complex ways, and most of the developments later on in the film are about how those monsters can be conquered, but always at some price. Just as the threads are densely combined, so is the vanquishing of the monsters, and both the development of the monsters and the "solutions" to them are like various pieces of a large jigsaw puzzle, each piece necessary for the whole, and often affecting the whole in unexpected ways.

The direction, script, editing, cinematography, and all of the technical aspects are impeccable. The score is also wonderful and not only enhances the setting, but underscores the dramatic developments if you listen to the lyrics closely.

A 10 out of 10 from me. Don't miss this film.

I lost my parents before I was ten...Jack and those flashbacks?...The movie nailed it...big time...The one where he yells at his mom and treats her badly, only to snap out of it to realize he was wrong, but it doesn't matter cause she's gone...man, I'm tearing up right now over that one...

I even grew up in Oakland in the early 70's and I was about that age too...Jack hitting the bottle was way too close to home too...a great movie...when I saw it for the first time, I was just blown away...very close to home for me...

The last half hour got a little weird but before that...that was me in '72...spooky, great movie...

I found "Jack The Bear" to be a touching, honest portrayal of how life's trying times effect us, bring us closer together, and teach us to carry on. I found the acting very good and the dialogue believable. Devito does a good job in delivering his character earnestly, and his comic genius is well employed through his character's job as a movie host. Gary Senise does his usual fine job and the young actors are all excellent. The flashbacks of the mother are done tastefully, and though a dark film, it is entertaining and enjoyable. The scenes of the neighborhood kids interacting are accurate and the dialogue very natural and real. The attitudes of that era are captured quite accurately as well. I recommend this film highly.

Warning: Contains some spoilers

Although essentially a "coming of age" drama, few coming of age films show the degree of anger experienced by the title character of this movie. Jack is an adolescent who, as the movie opens, has just moved to a new neighborhood after the death of his mother. During the next few months he faces some harsh realities such as a new school, his deteriorating opinion of his father, the abduction of his little brother and his fear of a dangerous neighbor. He deals with his problems the only way he can - by crying. None of these themes are new in a coming of age movie but the emotions Jack goes through seem multiplied by 100 when compared to similar films. When he feels guilt, I was shocked by its intensity. And when he feels angry, I felt uneasy at the degree of rage shown by a basically mild mannered preteen.

The film is also not afraid to show its characters acting unpredictably. I came to care about them and was sometimes shocked by their behavior.

This movie is too intense for small children, but unfortunately adults may be put off by the storyline and the age of the main character. However, I'd recommend it to teens and adults who might have forgotten how rough adolescence can be.