Wuchak Released in 1989, "Jacknife" tells the story of Megs (Robert De Niro), a Vietnam vet who looks up an old war buddy in Connecticut. The buddy is Dave (Ed Harris), a bachelor and drunkard who lives with his sister, Martha (Kathy Baker), in their inherited parent's house in the old neighborhood. Dave & Martha's situation has degenerated into lifeless habit and stagnation. Megs doesn't look up Dave because he necessarily wants to but because he has to -- they have a longstanding date to go fishing, a date with much significance.Kathy is a biology teacher and the classic enabler, a one-woman support system enabling her brother to continue in his miserable cycle of booze/hangover/booze. She's trapped and her guilt will not let her escape, and she knows shes trapped.There's a scene of Kathy leaving the school at the end of her work day where she goes out of her way to stop at the trophy case and looks at old pictures of her brother when he was a high school hero with much potential. You can feel what she feels as she looks at those pictures.Dave warns Kathy about Megs -- he's half crazy and has spent a lot of time in the slammer on assault charges, but Kathy instinctively senses that Megs is their catalyst to change, their "delivererer," carbuncles and all. Yet Megs needs change as well, and Kathy is HIS deliverer. Megs is an eccentric outcast and Kathy is his golden connection to a sense of family and community, things he's been running from since he got out of the war 20 years earlier.Kathy is a bit of a plain Jane. Her stagnated lifestyle is reflected on her face. No one invited her to her Prom back in high school and who knows the last time she had a date. Yet on her initial meeting with Megs he just happens to mention she's pretty. This immediately changes her demeanor. When was the last time she felt the warmth of a genuine compliment concerning her looks? She naturally starts to develop love for this man -- a deeply flawed man -- something she hasn't felt for a long, long time, perhaps never. And she slowly starts to blossom."Jacknife" is the perfect antidote to modern cgi-laden drivel like "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" and "Iron Man." Don't get me wrong, those types of films have their place, like when you're in the mood for mindless entertainment -- goofy one-liners and all. By contrast, "Jacknife" is meaningful and character-driven; suspense is created via raw, unpredictable emotion and outstanding acting (by all three members of the triangle). Take, for instance, the truck-driving scene where Dave and Megs have a confrontation. Megs starts to put the meddle to the peddle as they drive down an incline. Dave had implied that Megs was crazy and now Megs is making a statement. Or is he? Who knows what he's doing?! The truck goes faster and faster and the viewer is uncertain if this lunatic is going to kill 'em both or what.This scene is potent because it strikes the viewer as REAL. For me it brought to memory a similar situation when my wife and I were traveling through the heart of West Virginia. We drove in silence for a long time, perhaps two hours, and then I completely exploded, screaming at the top of my lungs -- spit and tears flying. Yet I wasn't yelling at her -- not at all -- it went much deeper than that. We were flying down the highway faster and faster while I continued to vent in raw emotion. Then my wife, the epitome of calm and stable, screams out, "IF YOU'RE GOING TO WRECK MAKE SURE YOU KILL US BOTH!!!" That was almost four years ago and, thankfully, nothing like it has happened since. Why do I bring this experience up? Because "Jacknife," albeit a tad stagy (which is natural since it was based on a play), rings so true.The film was shot on location in the heart of Connecticut in Meriden, Cromwell and Wethersfield (the diner scene). The story obviously takes place in November and the authentic locations are great.BOTTOM LINE: If you're in the mood for a meaningful, character-driven drama you can't go wrong with "Jacknife." GRADE: A-

mccann500 Has anyone notice in Jacknife the reference to the Wizard of Oz? Meg's tell's Martha while at the prom, "Click your heels twice, this ain't Kansas, Martha." Also note the resemblance of the characters in the two films. Meg's is the Tinman in search of a heart, Dave is the cowardly lion in search of courage, and Bobby is the Scarecrow in search of a brain. Martha is Dorthy trying desperately to get/find home/of her own. And just like the Wizard of Oz what they were looking for they all already had within themselves. Change is always an inward journey. This is a great film. I've seen it probably greater than fifty times since it came out in 1989. I use it in my work with veteran's regarding various therapeutic issues, including PTSD, Addiction, Personality Disorders and Co-dependency and Dysfunctional Family Systems. It has been very helpful at getting across these themes.

gradyharp JACKNIFE is a fine adaptation of Stephen Metcalfe's play 'Strange Snow' (the screenplay was also written by Metcalfe), sensitively directed by David Hugh Jones, that explores the too frequently forgotten effect of battle on veterans damaged permanently by the heinous cruelties of war. It is especially poignant to return to this 1989 film now as we watch the soldiers returning from the war in Iraq and the raw treatment they are receiving in our Veterans' Hospitals.Three friends went off to the Vietnam War together and only two returned alive: the problem is that while both men suffered in battle the one David 'Highschool' Flannigan (Ed Harris) is so severely damaged by posttraumatic stress syndrome that he 'exists' in a drunken vacuum with his very plain schoolteacher sister Martha (Kathy Baker). As David deteriorates his buddy Joseph 'Jacknife' Megessey (Robert De Niro) returns to the town in an attempt to help his friend. In the course of events Jacknife at first offers succor to Martha and eventually the two date - at a Prom Martha must attend - and at that prom drunken David completely falls apart, destroying relics in the school and terrifying the townspeople and students. Jacknife makes Dave relive the moment in Vietnam when they lost their buddy and in doing so brings David to the point where he can begin his climb toward recovery. And the long-suffering Martha finds her needs tended by Jacknife, too.All three actors give astonishingly fine performances: Ed Harris offers one of his most fully realized roles while De Niro and Baker maintain the high standards set by their careers. More people should help resurrect this all but forgotten film as it is a brittle reminder of the damages our wars bring to the men who fight them and to the families who receive them after battle's end. Highly recommended. Grady Harp

KMuniz Like a few others I have noticed within the comments section of this movie I also performed this in college as the play entitled Strange Snow by Stephen Metcalfe. I performed it first as a Dramatic Interp and then as a Duo Interp, both times doing very well with it. That is neither here nor there...I think the film lacks the feeling and mood of the original play. I understand things had to be cut for timing reasons, but it seemed at times that important portions of the play were erased in the movie. And the monologue near the end is blunted in movie-land. But all in all, a splendid effort with strong performances by DeNiro, Harris (in his best pre-Pollack role) and Baker. Watch this movie, then read the play. I think you will see what I mean.