Review of The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016) by Spangle — 24 Jan 2017

Norwegian director Andre Ovredal of Trollhunter fame is back and ready with another chilling horror flick. Unfortunately, The Autopsy of Jane Doe gets half way to the end and then decides to just put it on autopilot with an asinine twist that ruins the film. Up to that point though, I was terrified. Ovredal set the perfect atmosphere, shot everything gorgeously with creepy lighting, and turned an autopsy into one of the most riveting cinematic horror experiences I have had. But then, like something out of late-2000s M. Night Shyamalan, he decides to add in a twist that makes you want to lay on the floor and cry out, "WHY?" Honestly, Shyamalan may have turned down the twist and said, "No thanks, that sounds stupid." This is a shame because the first half is tremendous.

Adorned with gorgeous production design and creepy lighting, what better place for a horror chiller than a morgue? Andre Ovredal knows this and makes his old morgue setting feel fresh and new. It is a setting that is begging to be explored. How do you make it even better? Mystery. Not only is this place creepy, but Tommy Tilden (Brian Cox) and his son Austin (Emile Hirsch) are tasked with performing an autopsy on a Jane Doe. Found buried under a family's basement, the entire family was found dead and this woman was not related to any of them. Since she was buried under the basement, the sheriff feels the clock ticking to figure out who she is and how she died to satisfy the press. So, he dumps her body off with the most trusted coroners in the county to get an answer before morning. But, what they find baffles them and leaves them running for the exits.

Touching on elements possibly regarding the occult, these two coroners put their minds together to try and figure out how this girl died, but it keeps leading them to one to one conclusion: she very well may be alive? But how? She has been gutted and cut open. Her wrists and ankles are broken. Well, you will have to watch to figure out, but do not get your hopes up. It is a film that has all of the atmosphere in the world when it starts up, strong writing, good acting, and a killer location. The odd part with the ending is that is not even derivative. The final act is like something I have not seen before in a horror film. Despite its faults, it is most certainly original. Unfortunately, everything original is not necessarily good. The Autopsy of Jane Doe is very much an example of this. Its final act does contain derivative elements, but its reasoning is incredibly original and dumb. The cliches and derivative portions of the final act are bad, but not nearly as bad as the reason they are all happening. This reason truly breaks the atmosphere and leaves the audience wondering how it could have all gone wrong so quickly. It is an original idea left on the cutting room floor of dozens of prior movies.

That said, the aesthetic of this morgue is unparalled. The opening is tense, creepy, and truly sets the tone for a great horror film. I was all set to highly recommend this one, but not it is just a mild recommend to see something go off the rails. Had the ending not been so tremendous, this one would have a majorly disappointing follow up to Trollhunter from a talented and very promising director. As it stands, it was a good effort that shows why he is so highly thought of, but he needs better material.