Jack is a 1996 comedy-drama film starring Robin Williams, Diane Lane, Brian Kerwin, Jennifer Lopez, Fran Drescher, and Bill Cosby, and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Williams plays the role of Jack Powell, a boy who ages four times faster than normal as a result of a disease similar to progeria.
Plot
The movie begins during a Halloween party with Karen Powell (Diane Lane) going into labor, and being rushed to the hospital. Although the delivery is successful, the baby premature, born after only ten weeks of pregnancy, is diagnosed with an exaggerated form of Werner syndrome, an aging disease.
According to his doctor, as this fictional disease progresses, Jack Powell (Robin Williams) will age at a rate four times normal. Jack is next seen as a 10 year-old boy in the body of a 40 year-old man, with a group of four boys telling possible stories of a 'monstrosity' of a boy their age that cannot go to school. Jack scares them away by dipping a fake eye into slime and throwing it at them from his window.
Jack is extremely childish as a consequence of his secluded life - he has only had contact with his parents and his tutor, Lawrence Woodruff (Bill Cosby), who introduces the idea that Jack should go to public school. His parents initially balk at the idea of their son going to a public school where he could be emotionally hurt.
When he first attends school, Jack is exploited by the other kids to win at basketball against bullies, and eventually to get adult magazines and other such items. As time goes by, Jack is accepted by the other kids, beginning with Louis, as they discover that they like him. We see Jack's attempts to be normal in school, when he deals with his first crush and heartbreak, and the relationship with his teacher (Jennifer Lopez). As a result of his deteriorating condition, Jack's parents decide to take him out of public school, which upsets him. By the end of the film, Jack is both liked and respected by everyone in recognition of the adversity he has overcome.
The movie ends with a very elderly-looking Jack and his four best friends graduating high school. Jack delivers the valedictory speech, in which he reminds his classmates that life is short, and urges them to "make your life spectacular".
Cast
Reception
Gene Siskel hailed Jack as one of the worst films of 1996, calling it "disastrous" and saying that Robin Williams was "very annoying" and "not well served by Francis Coppola."[1]
However, despite negative reviews, it was a financial success, able to beat its budget and reach #1 at the U.S. box office.
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Patton (Writer, 1970) · THX 1138 (Executive Producer, 1971) · American Graffiti (Producer, 1973) · The Great Gatsby (Writer, 1974) · The Black Stallion (Executive Producer, 1979) · Kagemusha (Executive Producer: International Version, 1980) · Hammett (Producer, 1982) · Koyaanisqatsi (Producer, 1982) · The Black Stallion Returns (Executive Producer, 1983) · Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (Producer, 1985) · Tough Guys Don't Dance (Executive Producer, 1987) · Lionheart (1987, Executive Producer) · Powaqqatsi (Executive Producer, 1989) · Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse (appearance, 1991) · The Junky's Christmas (Producer, 1993) · Frankenstein (Producer, 1994) · Don Juan DeMarco (Producer, 1995) · Lani Loa - The Passage (Producer, 1998) · The Florentine (Producer, 1999) · The Virgin Suicides (Producer, 1999) · Sleepy Hollow (Producer, 1999) · Jeepers Creepers (Executive Producer, 2001) · Lost in Translation (2003, Executive Producer) · Jeepers Creepers II (Executive Producer, 2003) · Kinsey (Executive Producer, 2004) · The Good Shepherd (Executive Producer, 2006) · Marie Antoinette (Executive Producer, 2006)
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