“Jacob’s Ladder” (** out of four) was an unnecessary remake of the 1990 melodrama about an Afghanistan combat vet (Michael Ealy) who starts to become plagued by nightmarish hallucinations and flashbacks and tries to reconnect with his former war buddies to find out if he is losing his mind or if this other reality is really real. Much like the original- this features good performances (Ealy is strong in the lead) and some striking imagery but is depressing, unpleasant, and ugly after a while. Some interesting plot elements involving PTSD and war are carried over from the original but these have been more effectively covered in other films (“American Sniper”, “Good Kill”).