Jumper (2008)

Picture being able to teleport anywhere on the planet, then spending it on bank vaults, lunch on top of the Sphinx and avoiding a personality. That’s David Rice in Jumper. Hayden Christensen plays him like a guy waiting on a takeout order. Rachel Bilson’s Millie mostly exists to be impressed. Samuel L. Jackson arrives with bright white hair and a grudge against teleporters that gets one thin speech of explanation. It runs only 88 minutes and still feels like the first half of a story. What’s left is a cool power and some great postcards, including a chase through the Colosseum. Jamie Bell is the best thing in it as Griffin, a scruffy, twitchy jumper who fights like a kid mashing buttons and at one point flings a double-decker bus. Critics gave it 15% and it still made $225.1 million worldwide. A 3.4 because the idea is a blast and the movie wastes almost every bit of it. $671 says you’re running late this week and close your eyes for a second, just in case it works now.

What works: The teleporting effects are slick, the locations are gorgeous, and Jamie Bell brings real energy as Griffin.

What doesn’t: Hayden Christensen’s lead is a blank, the villain’s motive is one thin speech, and the story just stops instead of ending.

Who it’s for: Teens who want a quick superpower fantasy and don’t care if the plot holds together.