The Rule of Jenny Pen

The Rule of Jenny Pen is a 2024 New Zealand psychological horror film based on Owen Marshall's short story of the same name. Directed by James Ashcroft and written by Ashcroft and Eli Kent, it stars John Lithgow, Geoffrey Rush, and George Henare. The film premiered at Fantastic Fest on 19 September 2024, and was released in New Zealand on 20 March 2025.

The Rule of Jenny Pen
US release poster
Directed by	James Ashcroft
Written by	Eli Kent James Ashcroft
Based on	"The Rule of Jenny Pen" by Owen Marshall
Produced by	Catherine Fitzgerald Orlando Stewart
Starring	John Lithgow Geoffrey Rush George Henare
Cinematography	Matt Henley
Edited by	Gretchen Peterson
Music by	John Gibson
Production companies	Light in the Dark Productions Blueskin Films
Distributed by	Galaxy Pictures
Release dates	19 September 2024 (2024-09-19) (Fantastic Fest) 20 March 2025 (2025-03-20) (New Zealand)
Running time	104 minutes[1]
Country	New Zealand
Language	English
Box office	US$647,192[2][3]

Plot

An elderly judge, Stefan Mortensen, suffers a stroke while passing sentence in court. Partially immobile, but determined to fully regain his faculties, he takes up what he hopes will be temporary residence in a care home. To his displeasure, Stefan finds himself sharing a bedroom with former rugby player Tony Garfield. His first day, he witnesses another resident, Howie, accidentally set himself on fire while drinking and smoking.

Cantankerous and somewhat snobby, Stefan largely keeps to himself. He soon catches the attention of long-term resident Dave Crealy, who masquerades as confused by day but bullies and terrorises the residents by night. Crealy begins regularly visiting Stefan and Tony in the night to torment them, throwing a bottle of urine over Stefan and forcing Tony to grovel to a hand puppet he calls Jenny Pen. Tony initially refuses to defy Dave, afraid of being remembered as nothing but a victim when he dies. Stefan dismisses him as a coward, and attempts to complain to the staff, but is rebuffed when they inform him Crealy has accused him of theft. Their suspicion increases when they discover a pair of knickers and a set of teeth Crealy has planted in Stefan's room.

As his condition worsens, Stefan gradually realises he may be unable to return home. He tries to drown himself in the bath, but panics and grasps at the rails, and is saved by a care assistant. Stefan sees in old staff photos hanging in a hallway that Crealy has been at the care home for decades, working as a janitor before becoming a resident. Because of this, he has keys to every room and a key card allowing outside access. One night Crealy leads Joyce, an elderly woman with dementia, out of a secure gate. She wanders into the night, looking for her family, and is found dead the next morning.

Despite his increasingly worsening physical faculties, Stefan tries to stand up against the constant bullying. He attempts to get rid of Crealy by emptying his asthma inhalers. After suffering an asthma attack, Crealy is rescued by the staff, and later retaliates by sexually abusing a female resident in front of her blind husband and a now fully wheelchair-bound Stefan. He later visits Stefan in the night, admitting he finds the judge impressive and explaining that he spent his whole adult life feeling bored and worthless, but now relishes the chance to torment and bully at will.

Seeing Stefan's example, Tony finally stands up to Crealy, challenging him with a haka in the dining room. Knowing Crealy will try and punish any act of defiance, Stefan and Tony lure him to an isolated laundry room, where they attack and smother him. In the days following Crealy's death, Stefan begins improving and forming friendships with the other residents. Some time later, he disposes of Jenny Pen on an outdoor fire pit, watching the puppet slowly burn.

Cast

• John Lithgow as Dave Crealy
• Geoffrey Rush as Stefan Mortensen
• George Henare as Tony Garfield
• Ian Mune as Howie Wicker
• Thomas Sainbury as Carer Mike
• Maaka Pohatu as Dr Neels
• Holly Shanahan as Madeline Shepard
• Paolo Rotondo as a psychologist
• Ginette McDonald as Sally Pile
• Hilary Norris as Eunice Joyce
• Anapela Polataivao as Carer Jasmine
• Nathaniel Lees as Sonny Ausage

Production

In 2023, it was announced that Geoffrey Rush and John Lithgow would star in the psychological thriller.^[4][5] It is an adaptation of Owen Marshall's short story, who appeared as an extra in the film.^[6]

The Rule of Jenny Pen was filmed in Taupō, Wellington and Lower Hutt, New Zealand, in 2023. Wairakei Resort near Taupō was used for the rest home setting.^[7]

Release

The film was shown at Fantastic Fest on 19 September 2024, and at Sitges Film Festival in October 2024.^[8] In September 2024, the film was acquired by IFC Films / Shudder for distribution in North America.^[9] It was released on 20 March 2025 in New Zealand and Australia by Galaxy Pictures, a distribution label created by Australia's Rialto and the UK's Vertigo Releasing.^[10][11] The film was released on 7 March in the United States,^[12] and a week later in the UK on 14 March.^[1] The film was released on Shudder and AMC+ on 28 March 2025.^[13]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 71% of 102 critics' reviews are positive, with the website's consensus saying: "John Lithgow's frighteningly unhinged performance reigns over The Rule of Jenny Pen, a nasty chiller that's by turns monotonous and haunting."^[14] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 66 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.^[15]

Reviewer Alex Billington from FirstShowing described the film as "an instant horror classic".^[16] Horror novelist Stephen King described it as "one of the best movies I’ve seen this year."^[17] The Guardian called it a "bracingly malicious tale of elder abuse".^[18]

Awards

Ashcroft won best director at the Fantastic Fest in Austin in September 2024.^[8] Lithgow and Rush shared the best actor award at Spain’s Sitges Film Festival in October 2024.^[19]