The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)
Last Watch Date - September 8, 2024
Total Times Watched - 1
Comments
While I've heard of this movie for years, for some reason I never bothered watching it. I think I lumped it in with all of the found footage / "spooky ghost!" movies like the Paranormal Activity stuff. This morning I saw that it was made by the dude who did Trollhunter and that was enough to give me an incentive to check it out.
What's interesting about this movie is that it's set basically in one spot the entire time. It's a little bit claustrophobic because of that, but it's also oddly roomy and eerie feeling at the same time. Almost like there's TOO MUCH space and places for creepy things to hide. The movie does a pretty good job of building tension and leading you where it wants, even if it's a bit predictable in places. If you're a fan of jump scares, it does have a few of them, though they're super obvious in when they're coming and I kind of think you won't jump.
There are elements of the story that I really liked, but I can't go into them without spoiling some things. What's interesting about how the story unfolds is that it's never definitive. You really can't know if what they say is correct or not, you just kind of roll with it. I like that aspect of it personally. It fits the theme of their job where they aren't concerned with the why, only the what (as in, what killed the person).
As far as casting goes, it's quite limited. I think you really only see 4 or 5 total people in the whole movie. There are some corny lines, but overall the acting is good and mostly appropriate for what's happening. The sheriff is a surprisingly memorable character even though he's barely in it. Emile Hirsh got out of the wilderness long enough to jump into this role and he was good enough.
Last thing I want to mention is the pacing. Because it's set in one spot, it could very quickly wear out its welcome, but they kept things tight. It clocks in at 86 minutes with the credits, so it's a pretty good bang-bang type of movie.
Recommended?
Yeah! I thought it was pretty good despite having some meh parts. Just understand that you will NOT know what really happens, you can only make assumptions like they do.
