Wikipedia

The Rule of Jenny Pen

The Rule of Jenny Pen is a 2024 New Zealand psychological horror film[4][5] based on Owen Marshall's short story of the same name. Directed by James Ashcroft and written by Ashcroft and Eli Kent, it stars John Lithgow, Geoffrey Rush, and George Henare. The film was released in the United States on 7 March 2025.

The Rule of Jenny Pen
US release poster
Directed byJames Ashcroft
Written by
Based on"The Rule of Jenny Pen"
by Owen Marshall
Produced by
  • Catherine Fitzgerald
  • Orlando Stewart
Starring
CinematographyMatt Henley
Edited byGretchen Peterson
Music byJohn Gibson
Production
companies
  • Light in the Dark Productions
  • Blueskin Films
Distributed byGalaxy Pictures
Release dates
  • 19 September 2024 (2024-09-19) (Fantastic Fest)
  • 20 March 2025 (2025-3-20) (New Zealand)
Running time
104 minutes[1]
CountryNew Zealand
LanguageEnglish
Box office$441,769[2][3]

Plot

edit

An elderly judge, Stefan Mortensen, passes sentence in court and then collapses. A stroke leaves him partially immobile, and he goes to live in a care home. There he meets another resident, Howie, drinking and smoking outside. The care home cat, considered to be an omen of death, watches nearby. Howie drops his cigarette, which ignites his clothing, and Stefan watches him burn to death.

Stefan shares a bedroom with former rugby player Tony Garfield. Another resident, Dave Crealy, bullies and terrorises the residents. Dave visits Stefan and Tony in the night to menace them, one time throwing a bottle of urine over Stefan. Dave carries a hand puppet called Jenny Pen, which he uses for his bullying and forces the other men to grovel to it.

At first Stefan believes he will recover from his stroke and go home, but he comes to realise this will not happen and his condition will worsen. He tries to drown himself in the bath, but panics and grasps at the rails, and is saved when a care assistant helps him to sit up. Stefan discovers, by looking at old staff photos, that Dave has been at the care home for decades, first as a young man working there.

One night Dave leads Joyce, an elderly woman with dementia, out of a secure gate. She wanders into the night, looking for her family, and is found dead in a puddle. Stefan tries to stand up against the constant bullying, and unsuccessfully tries to disable Dave by emptying his asthma inhalers.

Tony initially cowers before Dave, not wanting to cause problems or have his family think he is "pathetic" by making a complaint. But seeing Stefan's example, Tony decides to stand up to Dave, challenging him with a haka in the dining room. Stefan and Tony work together to lure Dave to a isolated laundry room. There they attack him and manage to smother him. Peace comes to the care home residents, and the cat begins to take an interest in Stefan.

Cast

edit

Production

edit

In 2023, it was announced that Geoffrey Rush would star opposite John Lithgow in the psychological thriller.[6][7] It is an adaptation of Owen Marshall's short story, who appeared as an extra in the film.[8]

The Rule of Jenny Pen was filmed in Taupō, Wellington and Lower Hutt, New Zealand, in 2023. Wairakei Resort near Taupō was used for the rest home setting.[9]

Release

edit

The film was shown at Fantastic Fest on 19 September 2024, and at Sitges Film Festival in October 2024.[10] In September 2024, the film was acquired by IFC Films / Shudder for distribution in North America.[11] It was released on 7 March 2025 in New Zealand and Australia by Galaxy Pictures, a distribution label created by Australia's Rialto and the UK's Vertigo Releasing.[12] The film was released on 7 March in the United States,[13] and a week later in the UK on 14 March.[1] The film was released on Shudder and AMC+ on March 28, 2025.

Reception

edit

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 71% of 91 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.6/10. The website's consensus reads: "John Lithgow's frighteningly unhinged performance reigns over The Rule of Jenny Pen, a nasty chiller that's by turns monotonous and haunting."[14] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 66 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[15]

Reviewer Alex Billington from FirstShowing described the film as "an instant horror classic".[16] Horror novelist Stephen King described it as "one of the best movies I’ve seen this year."[17] The Guardian called it a "bracingly malicious tale of elder abuse".[18]

Awards

edit

Ashcroft won best director at the Fantastic Fest in Austin in September 2024.[10] Lithgow and Rush shared the best actor award at Spain’s Sitges Film Festival in October 2024.[19]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "The Rule of Jenny Pen (15)". British Board of Film Classification. 28 February 2025. Retrieved 2 March 2025.
  2. ^ "The Rule of Jenny Pen – Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  3. ^ "The Rule of Jenny Pen". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 21 March 2025.
  4. ^ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/john-lithgow-and-geoffrey-rush-talk-horror-in-the-rule-of-jenny-pen/
  5. ^ https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-rule-of-jenny-pen-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0xmdi4mjqz
  6. ^ Leffler, Rebecca (16 May 2023). "Charades, CAA break out thriller 'The Rule Of Jenny Pen' with Geoffrey Rush, John Lithgow (exclusive)". ScreenDaily. Archived from the original on 5 October 2024. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
  7. ^ Vlessing, Etan (24 February 2025). "John Lithgow Terrorizes Geoffrey Rush in The Rule of Jenny Pen Trailer". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2 March 2025.
  8. ^ White, Mike (16 December 2023). "Filming wraps for Kiwi movie with Hollywood stars". The Post. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
  9. ^ Casey, Alex (19 March 2025). "'I enjoy playing in the dark': Inside director James Ashcroft's latest nightmare". The Spinoff. Retrieved 22 March 2025.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ a b White, Mike (21 October 2024). "Another international award for new Kiwi film The Rule of Jenny Pen". The Post. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
  11. ^ Lang, Brent (12 September 2024). "Shudder Buys The Rule of Jenny Pen, Thriller With John Lithgow and Geoffrey Rush (Exclusive)". Variety. Archived from the original on 7 October 2024. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  12. ^ Frater, Patrick (27 October 2023). "New Film Distributor Galaxy Pictures to Launch in Australia, New Zealand (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved 13 February 2025.
  13. ^ DiVincenzo, Alex (12 February 2025). "John Lithgow Torments Geoffrey Rush on The Rule of Jenny Pen Poster". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved 13 February 2025.
  14. ^ "The Rule of Jenny Pen". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  15. ^ "The Rule of Jenny Pen". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  16. ^ Billington, Alex. "Sitges 2024: 'The Rule of Jenny Pen' is an Instantly Iconic Horror Film". Firstshowing.net. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
  17. ^ "Geoffrey Rush: The Rule of Jenny Pen". Radio NZ. 16 February 2025. Retrieved 30 March 2025.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  18. ^ Ide, Wendy (16 March 2025). "The Rule of Jenny Pen review – John Lithgow and Geoffrey Rush excel in malicious nursing home chiller". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 March 2025.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  19. ^ De La Fuente, Anna Marie (13 October 2024). "John Lithgow, Geoffrey Rush and Kristine Froseth Win Acting Awards at Spain's 57th Sitges Film Festival". Variety. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
edit
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Rule_of_Jenny_Pen&oldid=1283344286"