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Cast: Jon Foster, Sarah Jones, David Clennon, Diane Neal
Scott (Jon Foster of Stay Alive) and Penny (Sarah Jones of Sons Of Anarchy) just moved to a remote cabin to escape the pressures of the world and breathe new life into their art. They will soon discover they are not alone: an infamously reclusive artist known only as Mr. Jones lives nearby. He doesn't like to be disturbed, and only comes out at night when he drags his strange, sinister sculptures deep into the woods. But when Scott and Penny's curiosity leads them to venture too close for Mr. Jones comfort, he plunges the young couple into a nightmare world of mayhem, madness and mind-bending terror. Diane Neal (Law & Order: SVU) and David Clennon (John Carpenter's The Thing) co-star in this startling tale from debut director Karl Mueller (writer of The Divide) and from the producer of the Sundance hit The Pact.
Like so many films I review "Mr. Jones" is a hard one to talk about without giving too much away. The story of Scott and Penny leaving everything behind and heading to the middle of nowhere to film a documentary is pretty simple, at least from the outside. Once they stumble on to the house of Mr. Jones everything becomes a lot more complex. And then Scott heads back to the city to interview people who have been touched my Mr. Jones which helps a lot as far as filling in the gaps and giving us all a background story on this character.
"Mr. Jones" received good reviews during its Festival run but it is not going to be a found footage film for everyone because it is not really what I would call mainstream, but that was what I liked about it. This is a thinking man's horror/thriller. The film may seem a bit uneven at times with the better moments involving Mr. Jones but even the between scenes are engaging enough to keep your interest.
Another thing that made the film so good was the acting, Jon Foster and Sarah Jones are fantastic as Scott and Penny, they both give very realistic performances especially during the more frightening moments.
I have to admit I am not a big fan of these kind of first person, found footage films but this was shot very well. The totems that Mr. Jones builds are also very scary and they really add to the atmosphere of the film. Like always I stayed away from spoilers and went into this blind, it was not what I expected but I was presently surprised about that. There is a lot of tension and suspense in the film and there are several twists a long the way as well to keep you off guard. "Mr. Jones" is a well acted, creepy and chilling film that is original and very different. Indie fans are going to want to check this out. This was a very impressive directorial debut from Writer/Director, Karl Mueller. I look forward to seeing what he does next.
Available on both DVD and Blu-ray. You can order the DVD HERE and the Blu-ray HERE.
Released by Anchor Bay Entertainment
*** 3/4 Out Of *****