Jackson's Run (2013) User Reviews

Even Jesus can't save this train wreck.

[homerschwambe · 3/10 · 2 July 2013]

Another in a long line of heavy-handed Christian movies that feels like it has to cram Jesus down your throat, at the expense of good storytelling. Positives: cinematography is pretty good. Negatives: just about everything else. It's overacted. The writing is terrible (cliché, after cliché, after cliché). Too many distracting trick camera angles. The final product is worse than the worst Lifetime movie you can think of.

Maybe next time the investors will take that $500k they spent on the movie and use it to feed some hungry kids or something. Because this movie is doing far more harm than good.

Outstanding film

[jakeaurelian · 10/10 · 22 March 2014]

I am, by nature, a tough critic; it takes a lot to impress me, it takes a lot to suck me into a film (to care about the characters, to be emotionally connected with the plot), and I went to a screening of Jackson's Run not really knowing what to expect.

Jackson's Run is a powerful and intense film with an equally powerful and intense message; the various elements of this movie has remained with me, and not a day has passed where I haven't thought of the complex characters, their relationships, the thought-provoking plot and the universal, multi-faceted message ... and the intense emotions that the film evoked. And emotions were high amongst the audience during the screening I attended; you could hear the audience's emotional reaction to certain scenes, and alas, when an entire audience can be heard reacting to the main characters and their collective plight—when the audience loves the characters to this degree—the filmmakers have done their job and done so superlatively.

While Christianity is an important theme of Jackson's Run, the religious aspect of the film was well crafted and presented; again, the underlying message of this film is universal and it's also multi-dimensional and through subtlety, the audience takes away the importance of the film and does so without being barraged like most films with a message (religious, political, etc) tend to do. I admire the craftsmanship at which this was achieved. Regardless of a person's faith, I believe they will leave this film feeling touched and inspired.

In closing, as an author, I also admire the meticulous weaving of the intense plot … and furthermore, I admire the filmmaker's ability to successfully convey such a complex storyline into a cohesive film.

It's like watching a really, really dull train wreck

[Ninty64 · 2/10 · 3 May 2014]

When I went to see Jackson's Run in the theater I went in with a clear mind. I said to myself to just try to maybe get something out of it repeatedly as the lights went off and the movie started to roll. That little chat in my head quickly went out the windows around ten minutes into the movie. This is basically the movie equivalent of one of those Sunday morning evangelist shows no one really watches, filled with lots of stereotypes and saccharine fluff that's so over the top it's almost hard to watch. Heck, listing everything wrong about the movie probably would be almost as long as it. To start, the script is atrocious. The film breaks the "show don't tell" rule constantly and has dialogue that is more akin to a lifetime movie than one shown at cinemas. For example, take the time Jackson's mom goes to her young son's baseball game drunk. There you will see an imitation of a drunk more akin to a joke book than a movie trying to take itself seriously. The bad acting doesn't help this cause either, there were far too many times I wanted to laugh during a serious moment, and some where I just sat back in my seat wondering what the heck was going on. To make matters worse, there are plot points that'll make you want to bang your head against a wall. Jackson going to his brother's baseball game while he is told to stay in bed due to AIDS, which of course ends in disaster, the little brother's biological dad leaving when we haven't even seen him for more than a few minutes, and a plot twist about a homeless man Jackson befriends that I refuse to mention it just so I can see other's befuddlement at it's insanity. The movie's treatment of AIDS is also pretty bad, I doubt the people doing this movie had done much research about it, and in the end I'm pretty sure the Captain Planet episode handled the subject better. To top off this list of complaints, the camera work is unbelievably bad. Do you like looking at a flesh colored blob during a scene? If you said no, then I have bad news for you. That bizarre error and more are prevalent here, including its friend It's so dark I can't see what's going on. Overall Jackson's Run is a brutal experience, and if you want to see a good Christian themed movie go watch The Ten Commandments, Ben- Hur, or Prince of Egypt. Speaking of Christian themed movies, why do all of them now have to turn into a concert film somewhere along the line? Is Christian rock really that desperate nowadays?

Not What I Expected...

[joemason353 · 9/10 · 17 February 2014]

I recently saw this film at a showing in Illinois and we pleasantly surprised. What a ride… Unlike so many other Christian films, Jackson's Run is edgy and contains a powerful message without being thumped over the head with a Bible for 90 minutes.

This is a gritty story about a troubled teen as he navigates his way through the turbulent waters of personal and family crisis. The characters were believable, well developed, and I found myself able to identify with them in some manner.

The cinematography and production value was good. Kudos to the director who did a fantastic job of putting such a complex story up on the screen.

My family and I spent the evening talking about Jackson's Run, and I appreciate the doors that that this film opened in terms of discussing such important issues with my children.

If you're expecting Jackson's Run to be a typical Hollywood blockbuster with A-List actors, and spectacular special effects that typically accompany the usual shallow storyline, you will be disappointed so I recommend you don't waste your time. But if you're looking for a solid Christian, Faith-Based film that you and your family can enjoy without being preached to, then Jackson's Run is for you.

Overall, Jackson's Run is one of the best Independent Christian films that I've seen in a very long time. I will recommend this to everyone I know, and I look forward to see what these filmmakers come up with next.

Parameters

[bkoganbing · 3/10 · 14 June 2020]

Jackson's Run having to follow the parameters of a Christian film is boxed into a corner dealing with HIV AIDs.

Rusty Martin is in the title role, a juvenile delinquent kid who has AIDS. know that young Martin went into a party at th age of abut 13 and it was there he go the infection. Just how he got it is left purposely vague. Had it been explicitly from gay sex there would have been other 'sins' to deal with given he beliefs of the film makers.

in any event it skirts the issue and the film fails because of it.

Jackson's Run is limited to church basement showings.

Much better than I expected!

[wlkerr-23-364061 · 9/10 · 9 June 2014]

I watched "Jackson's Run" to preview it as a possible movie to show our youth group. Knowing that it was made on a very low budget and by newbies to the film industry, I expected fairly lame acting and possibly a cheesy story line. That's not what I got. The story line was well thought out and the acting was top notch. I was drawn into the story almost immediately as was my husband. We were both surprised to find ourselves in tears in several parts of the movie. Quite a feat! A movie has to have some amount of realism to touch you that much. The editing was perfect in my opinion, moving along at a good pace, with everything in the right sequence. The only thing technically that would give away the fact that there wasn't a big budget was the audio which had a little too much resonance at times and not totally consistent in volume. Fortunately, that didn't take away from the movie. It is inspiring! It doesn't have a "they all lived happily ever after" ending, but it leaves you wanting to be the best you can be with God's help. I highly recommend this movie for people of all ages!

This Film Releases The Emotions Out Of... Everywhere!

[tbest-34360 · 10/10 · 26 November 2017]

This film inspired me since I first saw it, and I think that they should do more to make this better than it already is!!! Everything about this movie makes it feel amazing, and I honestly think that the movie should have it's own sequel. It's amazing! All of it has made the movie be what it is today, and I think it was beautiful. Make another one, please!

Incredible movie!

[carolrogers-13727 · 10/10 · 16 February 2019]

Creative plot with moving content. I was left with though-provoking questions about each character. Great movie!!