THE RULE OF JENNY PEN Review: Lithgow And Rush Star in Impressive Horror Thriller

Judge Stefan Mortensen is a brutally impartial judge who suffers a stroke while holding court. Now confined to a rest home, he is determined to regain his mobility, functionality and leave. He is not interested in making friends while he is there, why would he? He is only there for a short period of time, not like these other losers. 

 

With an attitude like that it is no wonder that the staff treat him with the same regard as he did parties appearing in his courtroom. Whilst good at ignoring his roommate, ex-rugby player Tony Garfield, and the other residents, there is one in particular that is especially troubling to them all, Dave Crealy. 

 

Crealy seemingly has free reign of the facility and loves to terrorize the other residents. He roams the halls at all hours, creating trouble for anyone who doesn’t bend to his will. Standing a clear foot above everyone, the other residents are terrified of him. But it is not his stature and attitude towards everyone that is the most troubling of all. It is Penny Jen, the hairless doll head attached to the end of his hand. 

 

The other residents cower in fear of Crealy and Jenny Pen. What starts as a battle of wills ends up being a fight for the rest of their lives. 

 

Geoffrey Rush and John Lithgow. What a coup it was to get these two to play a role in director James Ashcroft's small indie horror thriller from New Zealand. Both are at the top of their game in this one. Lithgow fully embraces the terrifying wackiness of Cleary while Rush carries himself like a gentleman scholar, hanging on to his last bit of shrewd thinking as it slips away. One may say that the roles are emblematic of their filmographies and the types of roles they have had in the past. And praise needs to be given to George Henare, the role of retired All Black, Garfield, who stood toe to toe with these giants of the cinema. 

 

Mortensen is going to have to change his attitude towards his fellow residents, especially if he is going to defeat Clearly. Likewise, Garfield is going to have to find courage and strength to stand up to Cleary. Opposite the menace and venom that is spewed from these characters there is also a vulnerability that each has to portray on screen, conveying the fragility of octogenarians in these types of situations.

 

The story structure is familiar, defiance in the face of this looming menace of a man. There is a hangup in that it creates expectations towards its outcome, just who exactly is going to retaliate. Apart from those expectations in light of this familiarity Ashcroft keeps things moving at a steady pace and manages to throw a few surprises in the mix. 

 

We almost immediately fell in love with the way that Ashscroft shot their second feature film. They took the rule of threes to extremes as Ashcroft framed his subjects to the edges, frequently catching the residents at the very bottom of each frame. These are people on the fringes of society, castaways by their families. Placing them along the bottom edges shows them at their lowest point, stuck in a rest home for the remainder of their lives. 

 

Sickly yellows and greens - very Fincher-esque - along with vibrant reds douse the screen when moments of terror pick up. The appearance of the doll on the hand of Crealy is unsettling at best but put it together with the lighting in some scenes, where there are these moments when she is backlit, it is nearly terrifying. Subsurface scattering through the plastic of Jenny Pen’s plastic head makes her eyes appear as they are glowing, making her look more menacing. 

 

There is a relief that is perceptible in the absence of Crealy. It may just be due diligence on Ashcroft’s part, yet he still keeps his framing pattern through to the very end. Very interesting indeed.

 

Dutiful pacing, terrific performances, impressive photography choices, and managing to surprise despite its familiar story structure ensure that The Rule of Jenny Pen is a horror thriller that one should see.