User Reviews

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.

Spielberg directing Hook seemed a very odd choice, and this is a very odd choice for director Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, Apocalypse Now). Imagine if you will a twist on the Big format, a boy in the body of a man, well, this film has him born like it and unable to escape it. Anyway, basically Jack Charles Powell is born with a most unusual ageing disorder which makes him four times faster than a regular boy, so by the time he is ten years old, he looks forty odd. Jack (Robin Williams) is longing to be like a normal ten year old boy, even when his parents Karen (Diane Lane) and Brian (Brian Kerwin) worry about what everyone will think. Obviously when he first arrives, Jack is picked on by the kids for looking like an older man, with only teacher Miss Marquez (Jennifer Lopez) as his friend, but he eventually wins them over with his basketball skills and true child within nature. There comes a point when Jack has some sort of heart attack and his parents decide he would be much safer at home, and Jack can't face seeing his friends getting older. But he does eventually come out of his room and back to school, and a few years later, in his teens, he is looking like an old man, graduating college. Also starring Bill Cosby as Lawrence Woodruff, Fran Drescher as Dolores 'D.D.' Durante, Adam Zolotin as Louis 'Louie' Durante, Todd Bosley as Eddie and Michael McKean as Paulie. I can see what the critics mean by Williams overacting the child in a man's body thing, but you can't imagine the film without him, and Lopez is nice as his teacher. Even if it's a very, very lame film you probably wouldn't bother with again, it does have some heart, and it is worth watching, at least once in a while. Okay!

There was aomething a bit off about this film, but I, for some reason still liked it.I think it has many possible meanins depending on how you look at the story, I remebered seeing it when I was quite young... I thought that Jacks parents would have to see their child die and that was sad. I saw it when I was older and thought maybe it was about not taking life for granted and living life to its fullest, but that still didn't really seem quite right...And then I thought maybe it is about always being a kid even when your an adult, but that makes absolutely no sense with the story.......... and maybe I was right when I was a younger and I thought that it was about loosing a child... not only to death but to friends.... perhaps the aging thing was added to show a different form of somebody being picked on, as Jack was in the movie, even if they may look tougher.

I thought the relationship between jack and His mother was brillant, I really felt that, however I thought parts of the story digressed whoch gave the story multiple meanings....which is interesting to ponder, but in some cases makes the story jump around to much, adn I am the kind of person who likes movies to jump around a bit if you can not tell y my writting style.... I loved the chracters though...

please forgive me for my randomness and at the moment tired-ness....overall, it was thought provoking, sweet,and just a little bit off....

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola and written by James DeMonaco and Gary Nadeau, Jack is actually a fairly simple story about a 10-year-old that suffers from a severe aging disease. Due to the disease, his mind ages properly but his body ages at four times the rate of the average human being. With the encouragement of his tutor, his parents elect to finally put him in public school, which shows the positives of social interaction, but the negatives of his aging body.

There are always those films that moviegoers understand but professional critics don't. This is definitely one of those films to me.

While the disease that is discussed in the film is based on a real life disease, this is very much a fictionalized version of it, which is something that I feel many misunderstood. It was never intended to be a factual version of the disease, it's only loosely based on it.

The biggest positive about the movie is its cast. They are really the ones that help drive this unusual plot. The chemistry between Robin Williams, Diane Lane, and Brian Kerwin is impeccable, which is a huge element to the movie. Had it not been for that chemistry, it would've just been awkward, especially since Robin Williams was older than the both of them.

The role of Jack was tailor made for Williams. When I first viewed the film as an adult, I didn't know what to think, and didn't expect anything new from Williams because he performs most of his roles like a child-like adult. Williams brings an authenticity and such heart to this role that you honestly believe he is the ten year old he's playing. His performance becomes particularly memorable when the character has to come to terms with his own mortality.

The film also consists of two very underrated performances from the then new Jennifer Lopez and Bill Cosby. In fact, this is my favorite film with Cosby, because it was a great showcase for his dramatic acting skills. There's also the child cast, who give great performances of their own.

Don't get me wrong, the film is not perfect. The film gets incredibly slow as it builds towards its ending. It also pushes things a little too far during those moments, especially with the bar scene, which could've been left out of the film.

However, it all leads to a tremendous ending, which features a great speech from the character of Jack. A speech that hits a little too close to home given how we lost Williams.

So overall, this is a film that I feel critics completely misunderstood. Is it perfect? No. However, it is a film that I feel deserves a much better reputation than it has gotten.