Dateline Movies Present: 7 Jack Movies

Dateline Movies Present: 7 Jack Movies

Source 1, Source 2, Source 3, Source 4, Source 5, Source 6, Source 7

Hollywood really likes to use the name Jack a lot. Welcome to Dateline Movies, and we'll be having our first countdown. Today, we'll be talking about the 7 Nearly Forgotten Movies with the name Jack in it. Please note that the list is arranged according to critical reception and obscurity. Now, sit back, and relax as we countdown from number 7. (Arranged from worst to best)


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7. Lightning Jack (1994)
 - Parental Advisory for Children Under 13 Years (For Explicit Content)
Running Time: 98 minutes (1 hour and 33 minutes)
Genre/s: Action
                Adventure
                Comedy
                Western
Released on March 11, 1994 (US Release Date, Available for Worldwide Viewing)
Presented by Village Roadshow Pictures
Director: Simon Wincer
Writer: Paul Hogan
Starring: Paul Hogan, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Beverly D' Angelo
It's alright if you don't know this movie. For one reason, this movie is entirely forgotten thanks to the critical panning it got. Lightning Jack is a story about a wannabe outlaw. Apparently, not much is remembered here. Cuba Gooding Jr. and Paul Hogan, who is Lightning Jack, at least did make a worthwhile chemistry. That makes this movie a little neat, and that's why this gets the number 7 spot.
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6. Jack (1996)
 - Parental Advisory for Children Under 13 Years (For Mild Explicit References)
Running Time: 113 minutes (1 hour and 54 minutes)
Genre/s: Comedy
                 Children
                 Drama
                 Family
Released on August 9, 1996 (US Release Date, Available for Worldwide Viewing) 
Presented by Buena Vista Pictures
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Writers: Gary Nadeau and James DeMonaco
Starring: Robin Williams, Diane Lane, Bill Cosby, Jennifer Lopez and Brian Kerwin

This one deserved a little more recognition and a whole lot more praise. Jack, in my opinion was a remarkable piece of film making. Jack follows the titular character, who has a bizarre aging problem. He is a 9-year old in a 40-year old body. Although it does have a lot of similarities with the much more popular Big, which has Tom Hanks growing up after a wish gone wrong, it's still worth the watch. With a cast composing of Robin Williams, Jennifer Lopez, Diane Lane and Bill Cosby, plus an outstanding director in the person of Francis Ford Coppola, it's entirely impossible for this to become a flop. Unfortunately, it was a flop. It fared poorly in the box office and was critically panned as well.


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5. Jack Frost (1998)
 - Parental Guidance is Advised (For Language)
Genre/s: Comedy
                Children
                Drama
                Family
Released on December 1, 1998 (US Release Date, Available for Worldwide Viewing)
Presented by Warner Bros. Pictures
Director: Troy Miller
Writers: Jeff Cesario, Steve Bloom, Mark Steven Johnson and Jonathan Roberts
Starring: Michael Keaton, Mark Addy, Kelly Preston and Joseph Cross 

Okay, it's not entirely memorable after the critical reception on it's initial release, but it was still worthwhile watching it. Jack Frost stars Michael Keaton as a deceased father who comes back to life as a snow man. In the movie, he tries to reconnect with his son before his soul passes to the other side. What makes this memorable is its touching message about father and son. The likable performance of Michael Keaton made this our 5th Jack movie.



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4. Casino Jack (2010)
 - Restricted (For Violence, Mild Nudity and Strong Language)
Running Time: 108 minutes (1 hour and 48 minutes)
Genre/s: Comedy
                 Drama
                 Thriller
                 True Story
                 Mystery
                 Politics
                 Satire
Released on December 17, 2010 (US Release Date, Available to US Only)
Presented by Art Takes Over Films
Director: George Hickenlooper
Writer: Norman Snider
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Kelly Preston, Rachelle Lefevre, Jon Lovitz and Barry Pepper 
I highly doubt that you remember this one, because honestly, I have never heard of this one before I decided to make this list. This one at least fared better than the previous movies above. Casino Jack stars Kevin Spacey as a con-man trying to get it all. Although the movie benefits from Kevin Spacey's performance, it still falls flat because of its uneven storytelling. This is in spite of the fact that the story is meant to be a reenactment of real life. All these account for the movie getting the number 4 spot.



  
3. Jack the Giant Slayer (2013)
 - Parental Advisory for Children Under 13 Years (For Intense Violence, Mild Language and Some Disturbing Scenes)
Running Time: 114 minutes (1 hour and 54 minutes)
Genre/s: Action
                 Adaptation
                 Adventure
                 Fantasy
                 Drama
                 Science Fiction
Released on March 1, 2013 (US Release Date, Available for Worldwide Viewing)
Presented by Warner Bros. Pictures
Director: Brian Singer
Writers: Christopher McQuarrie, David Dobkin, Darren Lemke and David Dobkin
Starring: Nicholas Hoult, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Ian McShane and Eleanor Tomlinson             
If you're thinking of the classic fable about a boy who receives magic seeds that turn to a giant beanstalk and eventually discovers there's a giant in the sky, well you thought right. If you think this is a kid-friendly movie, which faithfully adapts the source material, well you thought wrong. This nearly forgotten Brian Singer film features a slightly altered view of the story. In the film, there was a war between humans and giants, and unfortunately, Jack restarted the long postponed revolution. The title itself and the uninspired plot is what made this movie forgotten. Not even the talented cast, which included Ewan McGregor, Ian McShane, and Stanley Tucci could save the movie. To make the movie even more disappointing is the fact that it was directed by Brian Singer, the man who made the two X-Men films (excluding the bad 3rd one) and Superman Returns. The box office performance was also a bust, and these are the reasons why this comes 3rd in the list. Although it did fare better in the reception than the movies above.




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2. Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2013)
 - Parental Advisory for Children Under 13 Years (For Strong Language and Intense Violence)
Running Time: 105 minutes (1 hour and 45 minutes)
Genre/s: Action
                 Adventure
                 Drama
                 Espionage
                 Mystery
                 Terrorism
                 Thriller
Released on January 17, 2014 (US Release Date, Available for Worldwide Viewing)
Presented by Paramount Pictures
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Writers: Tom Clancy, David Koepp and Adam Cozad
Starring: Chris Pine, Keira Knightley, Kevin Costner, Kenneth Branagh and Peter Anderson

If you're a huge fan of Tom Clancy's works, than you may have watched this one. It's not the best of his work, but it packed enough action and thrills to keep this one from going entirely forgotten. Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit follows an agent discovering a financial attack plan, courtesy of the Russians. It has a huge ensemble cast, with Chris Pine, Kevin Costner and Keira Knightley leading the charge. Kenneth Branagh tried so hard to make this movie epic, as well as having a role in the film, but his efforts didn't make the cut. Although it did a fair reception, it didn't help to make this movie entirely memorable.



1. Jack Reacher (2012)
 - Parental Advisory for Children Under 13 Years (For Strong Language, Illegal Substance Presence and Mild Violence)
Running Time: 130 minutes (2 hours and 10 minutes)
Genre/s: Action
                Drama
                Mystery
                Narcotics
                Terrorism
                Thriller
Released on December 21, 2012 (US Release Date, Available for Worldwide Viewing)
Presented by Paramount Pictures
Writer and Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, Werner Herzog, Richard Jenkins and Robert Duvall
Technically the best among all the films in this list in terms of critical success, this Punisher-like film follows Tom Cruise as a private investigator, attempting to uncover the mystery behind a shooting linking to five unrelated victims. It's also the second film by Christopher McQuarrie in this list. It's not entirely like Marvel's the Punisher since it lacks ultra violence, gore and the usual huge array of arsenal. The only thing that really matches with Punisher is that the movie focuses on a violent man, who simply helps others and is not trusted by the authorities. This film is actually a great stylized movie, which boasts perfect performances from Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, Richard Jenkins, Werner Herzog and Robert Duvall, while accompanied by thrilling surprises abundant in the film. Unfortunately, this film's critical reception was mainly mixed to positive and the story is almost straight forward, thus it's not entirely remembered. On the bright side, it was a commercial success especially in relation to the performance of the other films mentioned here.



With that, I hope you have enjoyed this list here on Dateline Movies. Be sure to Like, Tweet or Share before you leave. Do you have a movie you wish to be featured or a list topic you want to talk about? Comment below, and I might just use your suggestion. Thank you again!

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