Freaky First Trailer for ‘The Rule of Jenny Pen’ with Lithgow & Rush
by Alex Billington
December 4, 2024
Source: YouTube
“He’s the menace! He’s been at me since the jump.” Rialto Distribution in New Zealand is the first to reveal the official trailer for The Rule of Jenny Pen, a horror thriller from the Kiwi filmmaker James Ashcroft. This is his second feature after making Coming Home in the Dark and it’s already getting rave reviews. The Rule of Jenny Pen premiered at both Fantastic Fest and at the Sitges Film Festival (where I caught it) earlier this fall. Confined to a secluded rest home and trapped within his stroke-ridden body, a former Judge must stop an elderly psychopath who employs a child’s puppet to abuse and terrorize the home’s residents with deadly consequences. The indie horror film stars John Lithgow, Geoffrey Rush, and George Henare. Yes this is about an old timer who torments others with a plastic doll he puts on his hand, and it’s creepy as hell! One of the most unsettling horror stories I’ve seen this year – I wrote in my review that “a new horror icon is born.” You’d think this would be impossible to pull off, but the performances make it properly scary.
Here’s the first official NZ trailer for James Ashcroft’s horror The Rule of Jenny Pen, from YouTube:
An unsettling thriller revolving around an acting duel between two stars of the caliber of Geoffrey Rush and John Lithgow. A judge is hospitalized in an asylum after suffering a stroke. There, he falls into the clutches of a twisted patient, who uses his doll, Jenny Pen, as an instrument to impose his will on the poor inmates. The clash between them will cause a wave of violence and terror to totally shake up the place. The Rule of Jenny Pen is directed by New Zealand filmmaker James Ashcroft, making his second feature film after Coming Home in the Dark previously, and many other short films. The screenplay is written by James Ashcroft and Eli Kent; based on the short story by Owen Marshall. Produced by Catherine Fitzgerald and Orlando Stewart. This initially premiered at Fantastic Fest 2024 and Sitges Film Festival (read our review). The film opens first in New Zealand starting March 20th, 2025. No US release date is set yet – stay tuned.
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