Mr. Jones (2013) Review – Don’t Open Pandora’s Box

What would you do if you were a struggling documentary filmmaker failing at your attempt to make the best ever nature film and you stumbled upon an urban legend? You’d probably make a shift in your focus and change your subject matter.

But what if your new subject matter was dangerous? Dangerous not in the sense that it could cause you harm like Bigfoot or Nessy could, but dangerous in the sense that it’s evil and it could harm you. Would you still want to film that urban legend? Even if your photographer wife was there with you and could be harmed as well?

Yeah, we said to hell with life or death too. And that’s exactly what Scott (Jon Foster) said and did in first-time director Karl Mueller‘s film, Mr. Jones.

Upon his wife Penny’s (Sarah Jones) insistence that they had, in fact, stumbled upon the urban legend himself, Mr. Jones, Scott returns to civilization and manages to get leading experts on the subject, and a quack, to speak openly and candidly about the mythical man/artist. The fact that Scott managed to contact these people and get them on film within days is astounding — some suspension of reality may be required here.

So, through the mockumentary clips of raw footage, we learn about Mr. Jones and what Scott and Penny are up against. However, once Scott returns to the wilderness to rejoin Penny, who had stayed behind, their peripheral interest takes a very real turn. And this is where I’m going to stop talking about the movie so that Mr. Jones doesn’t send me a scarecrow (actually, I just don’t want to ruin the movie for you).

The Verdict:

Mr. Jones is a classic Pandora's Box tale, and one that shouldn't be missed. Although it took a cue from *Insidious, and maybe some voodoo or Wicker Man, it wasn't reliant upon it. Also, Karl Mueller did an excellent job of presenting the twist, which seemed totally logical once it was revealed. Is Mr. Jones a must-see -- damn near.