1) Jack The Giant Slayer (2013)
In this merging of the English fairy tales Jack The Giant Killer and Jack And The Beanstalk, we find a young man unwittingly reignite an ancient war between humans and a race of giants, while fighting for a kingdom and a princess. Directed by Bryan Singer (X-Men), with a script by Darren Lemke (Turbo), Christopher McQuarrie (Edge Of Tomorrow) and Dan Studney (Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical), Jack The Giant Slayer stars Nicholas Hoult as the eponymous hero, with Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Eddie Marsan, Ian McShane and Eleanor Tomlinson in supporting roles.
This version of these tales represents something of a boost for the character of Jack. In the original fairy tale, Jack And The Beanstalk – the earliest literary appearance of which was in 1807, from the pen of Benjamin Tabart – Jack simply climbs the oversized plant and repeatedly steals from a bloodthirsty giant, motivated by the financial hardship of him and his widowed mother. Here, he is transformed into a full-on hero for an entire kingdom – rescuing damsels in distress, and fighting the good fight for his fellow citizens.
Quite the promotion in the modern age for a timeless character.
