WHAT IT’S ABOUT: You mostly likely know the famous fairytale of course, that of a poor English country boy who trades his only cow for a handful of magic beans that grow a beanstalk to a land where a thieving giant lives. In the adapted film, Jack (Nicholas Hoult) is a handsome eighteen-year-old with a horse that gets swapped for the mysterious legumes, and it’s not just one giant waiting up in the sky, but a whole cacophony of them, and they’ve got a bone to pick with the humans below, having lost a war ages earlier. Now, with the rebellious princess (Eleanor Tomlinson) trapped among the giants, it’s up to Jack and a few brave knights, led by heroic Elmont (Ewan McGregor) and the smarmy Roderick (Stanley Tucci) to get her back. Things don’t go as planned though and soon, it’s a battle of epic proportions to save not just the girl, but the very survival the human race.
REVIEW: Directed by Brian Singer and co-written by Academy Award winner Christopher McQuarrie, this new imagining of the story is surprisingly satisfying. First and foremost, thankfully, we aren’t thrust into modern times with a plot that could involve hotshot jet fighter pilots and city-destroying, rampaging colossi stomping things to bits. Instead, Jack the Giant Slayer is grounded in its roots, if you’ll forgive the wordplay, and keeps things in an untold time of armored knights and stone castles. While Jack himself might not be all that fun as a hero – Hoult is good-looking but somewhat hollow in the lead – he is surrounded by those that fill the gaps, most especially by McGregor and of course, the giants themselves. Loaded with great visuals and a convincing story that doesn’t stray all that far from the expected, Singer’s direction, an excellent script, and some fun with the lore in the end, makes this a far better movie than it seems outfitted to be.
THAT MOMENT IN: I’m a sucker for the entrance. I think most of us are, even if you don’t understand what I’m talking about. What I mean is, if you introduce us to your monster in just the right way, things are definitely going to be better for you in how much I’m going to like your movie. I mean, I wrote a whole thing about it. With Jack the Giant Slayer, we are of course, primed for such a thing, and the filmmakers don’t let us down. Not a bit.
That said, let’s pause for just a tick and flip back a few pages on the old calendar. I remember watching Jurassic Park for the first time, having read the book, and was worried that the film would only pander far too much to younger audiences and avoid some of the more gnarly (gnawing?) moments from the story. You know what I’m talking about. And then, while watching, knowing precisely when it was clear it wasn’t going to at all (It’s this moment right here if you’re curious). The film shook things up and made absolutely certain with a bit toothy bite that the we were in for a fun-scary thrill ride.
WIth the story of Jack and the Beanstalk as source material, Singer and friends had plenty at their disposal in crafting what might also be a toothless kids show, which if that were there intent, fine. However, the studio wisely decided to balance that with some genuine adult action beats that allowed for terrific and well-earned fear, with the best of them coming when we indeed, meet the first giant. And it goes like this:
We find Jack and Elmont, along with the knight’s second man Crawe (Eddie Marsan) having successfully climbed the beanstalk and now timidly exploring a strange land among the clouds, a place only legends tells them might be full of actual giants. They come upon a herd of sheep and then a trap at the bed of a shallow river, which ensnares Jack and Crawe, a large clangy bell at its base sending a foreboding signal to something unseen.
As the men furiously begin to cut the ropes, a flock of startled birds burst from the nearby trees and the sheep suddenly flee. It’s quickly followed by an unearthly rustle in the forest, a kind of eerie trampling that suggests something big is approaching on foot. An animal of sorts, perhaps? A wolf or maybe a bear? They should only be so lucky. Hints of otherwise is glimpsed among the trunks, shadows of what could be … is that legs? Then, as the net gives way and the men are freed, out of the trees breaks a man, but not just your average run-of-the-mill man as one might expect, yet instead, an enormous figure, taller than the forest canopy itself, coming to check his traps. And he ain’t happy.
We still aren’t allowed to see him in full, Singer playfully following the conventions of building tension and ever so slowly easing the reveal to the right moment, having the camera skirt about and be filtered by water as to obscure it until it has the most impact. When it does comes, it’s genuinely scary as it realizes there are men about, sniffing the air as the ancient story famously explains. It finds Crawe hiding behind a tree. It you’re Crawe, this is not a good time.
What follows I won’t spoil further, but will say, ends a very effective sequence that sticks smartly to the playbook laid down by many movies beforehand, giving the “monster” of the moment terrific weight and presence, along with a genuine sense of physical menace that Singer – along with composer John Ottman – wring a ton of suspense out of, laying the foundation for how the giants will be handled going forward, making some of the twists down the road all the more engrossing. It’s a great movie moment.