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| not the best title screen |
It's not a horror-centric recreation of the 1998 hit song... though there are numerous crows in it. (Between today and yesterday, I'm in a contest with myself for lamest blog-introductions...) What it is: an okay found-footage/mockumentary style flick about a couple that move into an isolated house in the woods and stumble across the work of an "artist" named Mr. Jones. He's an enigmatic recluse whose (really kind of awesome) scarecrow-style pieces not only have immense value in the art world, but also a kind of cult following. Some people think he's just an artist, and some people say he's an otherworldly figure whose art is keeping order between the real world and the dream world. (Kind of like what I think about Tommy Wiseau.) It's a unique story, but there are some issues that drag it down from pretty good to just okay.
The story centers around Scott and Penny, a couple who abandon the modern world and move to the woods for a year to not only shoot a nature documentary, but also to work on their strained relationship. It starts with "Day 1" and Scott's voiceover questioning "Do you ever feel like selling all of your worldly possessions and moving out to the middle of nowhere? Getting back to nature and learning what really matters in life?" All in this nice, soft light - it's like a really well done REI commercial. It then flashes forward to Day 51.. "Do you ever feel like you've made a huge mistake?" Yeah, at times ditching modern society seems great (I certainly have a romanticized view of it, at least), but how would you really feel with no internet or no Pizza Luce for a year? I just thought this was a neat way to get the audience into Scott and Penny's lives and personal problems; it doesn't beat around the bush and gets us into the conflict right out of the gate. It's not ghost/demon/witch conflict (yet), but it's better than the meandering first acts that you sometimes get with these FF/mockumentary films.
One day, Scott is out moping around and a mysterious hooded figure snatches his backpack. He follows the man home, and later recruits Penny to return to the house to get it back. They wait for the man to leave and go into the (unlocked) house. While they're exploring the decrepit house, they head downstairs and see these crazy scarecrow statues everywhere. Penny recognizes it instantly as the work of the one and only Mr. Jones.
After they leave the house, Penny and Scott switch gears and decide make a documentary about Mr. Jones instead. He's a shadowy, creepy figure (and once they get close enough, they see he always wears a skin-looking mask - like a cross between Texas Chainsaw and Slipknot) - so they can't just interview him or anything. Plus he stole their shit! They decide Scott should go to New York City to interview experts on Mr. Jones, including museum curators, anthropologists, and one crazy guy who has been affected by one of Mr. Jones' pieces. Penny will stay behind and try to document Mr. Jones' art, which is popping up more and more around their house. (Why Scott would abandon his girlfriend in the middle of nowhere with a super creepy guy lurking about is anybody's guess. But without this and a couple of other poor decisions - no movie!) So just what is going on with this Mr. Jones guy? Are Penny and Scott mad to try and mess with him? Tune in to find out!
If you can stomach it, that is. Normally, I'm not the type to get motion sickness with the first-person camera thing, but something in Mr. Jones just kind of hurts. Scott has this camera rig that not only shoots normally but also shoots right back into his face (in closeup). They use this second angle WAY too often, a lot of times while running. It was enough to make me nauseous more than once.
In fact, the general presentation is the biggest issue with Mr. Jones. There are way too many editing tricks, including a headache-inducing trip to NYC that is entirely in fast forward and goes on about three times longer than it should. And there seems to be a thought process of "fade to black = terrifying." Honestly, this movie has to set some kind of record for going dark, even at the end of the shortest scenes. It just makes the whole thing seem disjointed.
And for folks making a documentary, Scott and Penny are kind of dicks. I would think the documentarians code of ethics would forbid breaking into your subject's home and stealing their shit, but what do I know?
The story for the most part is okay (if you can stomach some dream-world tomfoolery), and the uniqueness of it earns some solid brownie points from me. It's one of those movies where you just kind of roll with it while it's happening, but the logic of it sort of falls apart if you think about it too much afterwards.
But there's some stuff to like too. When the camera holds still for long enough, it's a good looking film. The outdoor/nature scenes are really pretty, Mr. Jones' house and underground lair are perfectly creepy, and his scarecrows are just excellent. The design team on Mr. Jones did a great job, across the board.
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| pretty sweet, eh? |
The strained relationship between Scott and Penny was well done. I appreciated that it seemed like a pretty honest portrayal of a couple of twenty-somethings trying to work through their issues. And you get a pretty good portrayal of depression in the character of Scott - at least until Mr. Jones comes along. This whole set up allowed for a little more character-based flavor than you sometimes get in these things.
There are a couple of clues scattered through out the film that reward the attentive viewer. I would assume that there would be more once you know what you're looking for; but while I mostly enjoyed Mr. Jones, I won't be in a rush to re-watch it. It's not that good. But I like it when a film at least gives you some of the pieces to solve the central mystery on your own.
Ultimately, Mr. Jones is unique enough to get a pass from me. The resolution will probably piss some people off, and the editing/presentation make it a chore at times. But it's a good looking and well intentioned film - even if it doesn't always stick the landing on some of the ideas it presents, it's still cool try something different.
I would more or less recommend this film.
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