6.4 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A demonic power worshiped by an isolated rural community offers health and protection in exchange for human sacrifices. The ones to be offered up are identified when their faces materialize on ceramic jugs. Bloody chaos ensues when the newest victim is hidden from the demon.
Starring: Sean Bridgers, Lauren Ashley Carter, Kaitlin Cullum, Carol Jean Wells, Sean YoungHorror | 100% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region B (A, C untested)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Note: This version of this film is available as a bonus disc included in Arrow's release of Dementer, Chad Crawford Kinkle's follow up to this film.
I've mentioned the fascinating novel Harvest Home by erstwhile actor Thomas Tryon in a number of reviews, and in some of those reviews,
I've also mentioned other at least somewhat similar literary endeavors like Shirley Jackson's The Lottery, and in that regard, Jug Face
is perfectly in tune
with depictions (cinematic or otherwise) of rural folks involved in what may be perceived as atavistic and/or pagan proclivities. Jug Face's
"mythology" (if that's the proper term) might be a little odd, but it's handled viscerally in this very impressive feature debut from Chad Crawford
Kinkle. The story involves a community which has a supposedly miraculous and yet threatening aspect to its location, and in the "threatening"
department, the inhabitants of the region have decided that gods and/or demons are best left appeased, which, Shirley Jackson and The Lottery
style, may result in the occasional human sacrifice or two.
Jug Face is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. The closing credits include the Arri logo, and the IMDb lists the Alexa Mini, and I'm assuming the DI was finished at 2K. This is a really appealing looking presentation which offers secure detail levels just about every step of the way. The outdoor material in particular pops extremely well, with just a slight hint of greenish yellow helping to emphasize forested locations. Fine detail on things like some of the dowdy fabrics worn by the women or even "mundane" elements like dirt and debris are rendered with precision. There are some very minor moments of murkiness in a couple of dimly let scenes, including some nighttime material. I noticed no compression issues.
Jug Face features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 tracks. The glut of outdoor material gives the surround track more opportunities to provide discrete channelization of ambient environmental effects, but the surround track also nicely opens up other aspects like Sean Spillane's score. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout, and there are no issues with regard to any kind of damage. Optional English subtitles are available.
Kind of interestingly, and for reasons I can only attribute to the ominpresent "synchronicity" that seems to occur with pretty regular frequency in my life, but a still from the famous The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street episode from The Twilight Zone: Season 1 crossed one of my social media feeds yesterday, and it came immediately to mind as I watched Jug Face, since the "social" aspects of this tale might be perceived as a Southern Gothic take on the same kind of cannibalistic tendencies on the part of a community under duress. This is an unusually disturbing "little" thriller, and this release offers secure technical merits and some enjoyable supplements. Recommended.
(Still not reliable for this title)
2018
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1941
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Limited Edition
2011
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1961
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Schock / Beyond the Door II
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