Jug Face

I have just finished watching JUG FACE for the first time and I must admit that this is not at all how I expected to feel. The title alone does nothing to promote high expectations. Neither does the few clips that have been showing on the previews from other dvds. This is by all accounts a low budget affair but it still has ...something. There's not a lot of astounding visual effects to distract you or sugarcoat the story but the one thing this film has which is easy to spot is authenticity. It is not the shadowy beings that roam the woods that scare you. It's not the unknown entity that dwells in the pit. Those things are really just there to provide a focus for the real horrors in this movie which are the people that live there. The unshakable faith that the followers have in their myths and the fervor that is palpable in their rhetoric seems to dance just behind their eyes. The conviction that empowers them to commit unspeakable acts. These are the things that stand out about JUG Face. It's an absolutely enthralling depiction of single mindedness and ignorant worship. The characters here are convincing if not always polished. You really feel that they don't believe they have any other choices than the ones which they are compelled to make. They don't question their lives they simply live them out until the pit chooses them. However, once she is chosen, Ada must make a choice of her own...With a larger budget this could have been a masterpiece of modern horror. As is, this is recommended for fans of true dread and moodily atmospheric thrillers. 7 out of 10.

Described as a horror film, Jug Face isn't the traditional horror film but more so the kind with creepy and disturbing scenes spread out, with a supernatural theme, and several spiritual ghost like flashbacks and spooks.

This is an independent film which may be a little slower paced and slightly confusing for the casual audience. At times it was difficult in understanding the characters due to their accents and slurred speech. The dialogue is very important here and if you aren't fully hearing what they are saying, you miss a lot.

It is most definitely a bizarre film, though in a way somewhat original. Reminded somewhat of the Witch (2015)- slower paced supernatural horror/thriller.

Most definitely a film which requires close paying attention because there are slight details which may be confusing if you are half paying attention. Not everything is spoon fed.

The entire "jug face" and "sacrifice into the pit" was something did not fully understand at first, yet after rewatching parts of the beginning, it was made more clear.

The performance by lead actress is definitely the highlight (baring a resemblance to Maisie Williams and in some scenes at times Kristen Stewart). The sculpture "jug face" maker Dawai who comes along greatly steals his scenes in the second half was another highlight. As well as Sean Young playing the aggressive, abusive and firm mother. The scenery looks nice in the woods/out doors.

What wasn't exactly clear or mentioned is what time period the film takes place. The characters are from a weird cult like community with firm weird beliefs, and they have very non-present day names (Ada, Dawai, Loriss, Jessaby). Though there is a scene where our protagonist Ada goes into a pharmacy and the store looks quite present dated.

Also there is a slight theme of incest. This was brief and only really shown in the opening but does end up being a storyline. We last see the brother being "sacrificed" by the father in the pit for claiming to being sick. Apparently the pit swallows people and kills them (off screen shown- nothing graphic shown).

The film could have been expanded a little more as the ending is entirely depressing and felt quite rushed. It wasn't exactly predictable but there could have been a twist thrown in.

Jug Face certainly isn't a film for everyone as people may be creeped out and disturbed by some of its themes, though from an independent film standpoint. It is quite a nice hidden gem, and a film in which have enjoyed the more having thought about after its viewing. It is more layered than initially thought of.

Yep, that's about it. After I finished watching the film and I came here to check out the rating, I was not surprised at all that it was a mere 5.2. And deservedly so...

The great writer Charlie Kaufman in his brilliant film 'ADAPTATION' had the experienced filmmaker tell his character that 'Rule #1' in writing was to make sure to give the audience a 'Slam-Bang' ending. Well, this is precisely, in my lowly and wretched opinion, where the filmmakers here fell far short.

The reason why this movie currently only has a '5.2' rating isn't because it wasn't made well. It isn't because it wasn't acted well, because the acting was superb. It wasn't because technically it wasn't down well, because the writing, direction, pacing, and above all 'Mood' was excellent. It it certainly wasn't because the story was poor; the idea was frigg'n BRILLIANT!

The reason, as clearly stated in my title above is because of the ending. And, without giving too much away, I do not mind 'Dark' endings. I do not mind endings that might give you a shock. BUT... in my lowly and wretched opinion, one thing I feel that a director should never, NEVER do, is put the audience through such a grueling and fascinating and creative journey and then just end it with a completely pointless, and I mean POINTLESS letdown.

Inexcusable...

And, thus, the deserved 5.2 rating. IF, and I really mean this, IF the filmmakers had just given the bloody ending a BIT more thought so that the audience either felt rewarded for going through all that they had, or given it some kind of nice twist, or at least given us some irony, just bloody SOMETHING, ANYTHING instead of the paltry nothing, meaningless ending that in my opinion did absolutely NOTHING for the audience, I feel quite honestly that it would have been a truly great film. But, sadly, It simply didn't leave us with a feeling of satisfaction. It didn't leave us with a sense of Mystery. It didn't even leave us with a true sense of Horror. The audience is left sitting there going, 'Is that it...?'

It just left us with a mindlessly STUPID non-ending that did nothing for us in any way at all...

While it clearly suffers from a low budget, this movie works harder and is more interesting than most of the product that comes out of Hollywood these days.

You will enjoy the twist and turns in the plot. The writers obviously put more effort into the storyline than their big-budget counterparts in the film industry.

The lead actress is impressive as a victim of circumstance who yearns to break free of her world.

It's an intimate look into a slimy dirty mini-society... decent acting, believable dialog and passable set design. Give these folks some real funding and I bet they hit a home run.

Ada is a young girl who lives with her backwoods hillbilly moonshinin' clan. A close knit community, they all share a rather arcane religion. Every so often, The Potter makes a ceramic jug adorned by a face. Every face that appears on the jug is a member of the clan and any face that appears must be sacrificed for the good of the community. Sacrificed to The Pit, which lies in the woods. Because The Pit wants what it wants and The Pit must be sated as this is how it's always been. If The Pit doesn't get what it wants then whatever dwells within it gets angry. And when The Pit gets angry, the community will be punished.

One day, while exploring The Potter's shed, Ada finds the latest jug face. It's her own...

Will she allow herself to be sacrificed, for the good of the clan? or will she set in motion a plan to spare her own life?

Jug Face is a straightforward but pleasantly offbeat horror that puts an interesting and unusual spin on the hillbilly horror/hicksploitation sub genre, with a nice turn by Larry Fessenden as the clan leader and a surprisingly great turn from Sean Young as the overbearing matriarch.

Executively produced by Lucky Mckee and with FX by Robert Kurtzman, it's a satisfying and solid horror that's well worth checking out overall, for fans looking for something just a little bit different.

7/10, decent little film and recommended.