John Lithgow (Conclave) and Geoffrey Rush (Shine) star in the psychological horror film The Rule of Jenny Pen, which will be getting a theatrical release, courtesy of IFC Films, on March 7th – and with that date swiftly approaching, a batch of stills from the film have arrived online, and along with a teaser poster. You can take a look at the images here in this article.
Directed by James Ashcroft, who made his feature directorial debut with the 2021 horror thriller Coming Home in the Dark, The Rule of Jenny Pen has the following synopsis: Arrogant Judge Stefan Mortensen (Rush) suffers a near-fatal stroke, leaving him partially paralyzed and confined to a retirement home. Resistant to the staff and distant from his friendly roommate, Mortensen soon clashes with seemingly gentle resident Dave Crealy (Lithgow) who secretly terrorizes the home with a sadistic game called “The Rule of Jenny Pen” while wielding his dementia doll as an instrument of cruelty. What begins as childish torment quickly escalates into far more sinister and disturbing incidents. When Mortensen’s pleas to the staff go unanswered, he takes it upon himself to put an end to Crealy’s reign of terror. Ashcroft also wrote the screenplay with Eli Kent and Owen Marshall.
Catherine Fitzgerald and Orlando Stewart produced the film, with James Ashcroft executive producing alongside Eli Kent, John Lithgow, Geoffrey Rush, Emily Gotto, Nicholas Lazo, and Samuel Zimmerman.
The concept of John Lithgow using a doll to torment Geoffrey Rush in their shared retirement home sounds like a recipe for a good time to me, so I look forward to checking out The Rule of Jenny Pen. Legendary author Stephen King said this was one of the best movies he has watched in the last year, and Alex Billington of First Showing said it’s the birth of a new horror icon – but is that icon Lithgow’s character Dave Crealy, the creepy doll itself, or are they a package deal?
The Rule of Jenny Pen will be making its way to the Shudder streaming service after its theatrical run. Does this movie seem interesting to you? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
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