# Very dark movie: The Rule of Jenny Pen (possible spoilers after the OP) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [February 23, 2026, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912 "2026-02-23T19:02:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2026, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912/1 "2026-02-23T19:02:36Z")
Described thusly: _“Confined to a secluded rest home and trapped within his stroke-ridden body, a former Judge must stop an elderly psychopath who employs a child’s puppet to abuse the home’s residents with deadly consequences.”_ Movies normally don’t bother me but this movie was disturbing and hard to shake. Has anyone else here seen it? Both Lithgow and Geoffrey Rush were excellent. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912/2 "2026-02-24T04:57:48Z")
I just watched this on Disney/Hulu. It’s an emotionally powerful, well made film with brilliant performances that…I wouldn’t recommend to my worst enemy. Unpleasant and disturbing in the extreme and completely plausible. I’m 63 and this film scared the shit out of me. My wife won’t let me pick a movie for weeks thanks to this. The worst part is that these conditions in elder care apparently exist in _New Zealand_! Perfect, happy, socially compassionate _New Zealand_! ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912/3 "2026-02-24T06:08:25Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > It’s an emotionally powerful, well made film with brilliant performances that…I wouldn’t recommend to my worst enemy. Unpleasant and disturbing in the extreme and completely plausible. It sounds intriguing, but only gets a 6.1 rating on IMDb, but 72% on RT. I don’t mind disturbing films that are extremely well done, but this doesn’t seem to be getting great acclaim. I might watch it anyway and will report back if I do. ---
**Author:** ![Ellecram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellecram/32/18948_2.png) [@Ellecram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellecram)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912/4 "2026-02-24T12:19:35Z")
@wolfpup I don’t think I am in the right head space to watch this but would love hearing from people who do. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912/5 "2026-02-24T12:27:11Z")
> [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > Movies normally don’t bother me but this movie was disturbing and hard to shake. I just don’t watch movies like this. Good, clean violence and mayhem? Fine, but not creepy, nightmarish stuff like that. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912/6 "2026-02-24T14:04:56Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > Fine, but not creepy, nightmarish stuff like that. FWIW, there’s nothing supernatural about the film, which is part of why it is so disturbing. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912/7 "2026-02-24T16:19:32Z")
I saw it in theater when it came out. The marketing was a little misleading, as itvdoes seem to imply traditional horror/ supernatural elements. Between that and its main actors, the excellent mssrs. Geoffrey Rush and John Lithgow, I was really keen to see it. I don’t know if " disappointed" is the right word, but I thought it would leave me scared, not sad. Some scenes are disturbing, and it seems like maybe they were sort of going for dark humor, which is very dark and nit funny. But, holy cow, what great performances by Rush and Lithgow. I’d get sucked into the ( not supernatural) horror of the thing and found myself reminding myself " it’s just a movie. They’ re just actors who are probably great pals irl". To say it’s not for everyone is an understatement, but for anyone who enjoys that kind of thing, it’s very well done. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912/8 "2026-02-24T17:36:48Z")
Yeah the trailers definitely gave the impression that this was a scary possibly supernatural-type horror, when it was actually about the horrors that could (do?) happen to some of the most vulnerable people. I think that contributed to some of the negative reviews. It made me so angry and sad, not scared. But yeah incredible performances by the two leads. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2026, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-dark-movie-the-rule-of-jenny-pen-possible-spoilers-after-the-op/1027912/9 "2026-02-24T18:44:19Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > It sounds intriguing, but only gets a 6.1 rating on IMDb, but 72% on RT. Well, I think those numbers are skewed by the ‘disturbing’ factor. As Elmer notes… > [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > It’s an emotionally powerful, well made film with brilliant performances I completely agree. It’s well written, well shot with brilliant performances but a little hard to handle. Also, like him, at 70, this scared the shit out of me. Give me a T-bird and the Grand Canyon instead. ETA: > [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > It made me so angry Yes.