The Autopsy of Jane Doe

Happy New Year!

We are starting the new year with a newer horror movie:

The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016).

This movie title has been lurking at the corners of my awareness for quite a while, but when I saw a video about less popular horror movies that are well worth watching, and that video compared The Autopsy of Jane Doe with Oculus (2013) I had to watch it.

Oculus and The Autopsy of Jane Doe do not follow the same story but they both play with perception. This is not an easy thing to do in a movie, as it can easily devolve into massive plot holes and deus-ex-machina moments. I can happily say that both movies pass with flying colors.

This is the plot: Police respond to a multiple homicide in a private residence and in the basement they find the half buried body of a naked young woman. The sheriff rushes her to a morgue/crematorium run by the father and son team of Tommy (Brian Cox) and Austin (Emile Hirsch), because "I can explain the other death's, I can't explain her". As soon as they start work on the young woman, the titular Jane Doe, weird stuff start happening and soon devolve into a nightmare for all involved. The more they literally dig into her, the weirder things get.

The Autopsy of Jane Doe is a small movie. Almost the entire film takes place in the underground morgue, but director André Øvredal (Trollhunter) uses the limited space very effectively. The effects are stellar and very gory. In fact, if you are even slightly sensitive, do not eat while watching this movie!

The actors are excellent and despite having mostly only two characters to work with, it never becomes an issue. The star in many ways though, is Olwen Catherine Kelly who plays the titular Jane Doe. She spends the entire movie lying absolutely motionless on the cold table, a role that might seem easy but is horrible to actually do. Only when it became unavoidable did they use prosthetics, so for every other scene, she lies there completely still.

It is also worth pointing out that despite all the gruesome horror, the most unsettling thing in the movie is the corpses sightless eyes staring at you.

The movie does offer up an explanation for why and how all the horror happens, but considering the central theme of twisted reality, I'm not sold that this explanation is true. It could be, but nothing says that it is.

So, do I recommend this movie? Yes, to all horror fans, absolutely! Non horror fans will not have a good time, but for us that like this stuff, The Autopsy of Jane Doe is an incredible film. A good example of how simple things can be when they are done right!

That's that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have a great start of 2024.