Scattered storylines and so-called relationships were bandaged together with a centimeter’s worth of thread.

“I’m standing on top of the world,” the very first words of the movie so boldly proclaimed. But “Jumper,” the sci-fi action flick adapted from the novel written by Steven Gould was no where near as daring as its opening lines.

Fast-paced action scenes, glowing special effects and the sense of the extraordinary are what one would expect of the usual sci-fi action film. That’s what I expected and I’m sure that’s what Steven Gould expected when his novel, “Jumper,” came to the big screen. We were both sadly mistaken. “Jumper” was nothing but a big mess of a “there one second and gone the next” concept.

The story follows David Rice (Hayden Christensen) as a young boy whose mother abandoned him and whose father was not the usual figure of paternal instincts. At a young age, he discovers his ability to teleport.

After running away and living a life of carefree abandonment for a few years, he is brought to the sharp realization that there are others like him, one in particular named Griffin (Jamie Bell). He also discovers that there’s a war is in progress between the Jumpers and the ones who try to kill them.

As the title suggests, the storyline jumps all over the place with no real cohesion. Key elements of the plot are either extremely vague or completely missing. It’s like you arrive at point D without ever getting to points A, B and C.

Scattered storylines and so-called relationships were bandaged together with a centimeter’s worth of thread. There was no segue from the past to the present, which was clearly evidenced as Rice and the girl of his affection from childhood, Millie (Rachel Bilson), are suddenly reunited in the present.

Besides the awkward transition from then till now, the entire cast severely lacked enthusiasm, lethargically stating clichéd and somewhat dull lines. Even Samuel L. Jackson lacked in his performance in this film.

Maybe it was the chalk white hair, but I was distracted by his gross attempt to take on the hardcore killer, Roland. For these actors, this was simply a three step process: make a movie, get paid and go home.

The dialogue as a whole was corny. There was one point in the movie where I felt like I could predict the next words before they were said. The action scenes and special effects could only hold the viewers attention for a short period of time. I was left periodically checking my watch for when the show would be over. There was no real climax, no building up to something amazing, and that was its biggest flaw in my opinion. The screenwriters seemed to get an idea, and then never follow through or expand upon it, which was somewhat infuriating. Instead of being awed, I was apathetic.

The only good thing about this movie was the great images of the cities the “Jumpers” visited. The lighted streets of Tokyo, the pyramids in Egypt and the city views of Rome were beautiful. Now if only the storyline, action sequences, and cast of characters could follow suit.

“Jumper” was disappointing to the viewers who expected a sci-fi action film and left with a sense of sluggishness. Hopefully director Doug Liman will take the hint and spare us from a leap off of a cliff with the sequel.

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