Movie Review: The Jack in the Box Rises (2024)
Synopsis: Raven agrees to travel to England, pose as a student at a British boarding school and locate a hidden room containing the Jack-in-the-box that houses a deadly demon so she can hand it over to a collector who has agreed to pay off her father's debts before he is killed. Despite the prison-like atmosphere of the all-girl school, Raven manages to complete the first part of the task. However, before she can leave with the box, someone turns the handle and releases the demon, which immediately begins collecting six souls.
Who's in it? The movie stars Isabella Colby Browne, Nicholas Anscombe, Leona Clarke, Anna Blackburn and Jade Groves.
Review: After watching binge watching the first four Leprechaun movies earlier this week, I was in the mood for something different and when I saw Amazon Prime had The Jack in the Box Rises, decided to pick that movie for last night.
I wasn't really sure what to expect from this film because, while I liked the first two The Jack in the Box movies overall, my opinion of them did end up being a bit mixed because I thought the pacing was too slow for a horror film. I was expecting to have a similar opinion of this one but instead was pleasantly surprised.
First, unlike the first two movies, this film is paced perfectly. There's an introduction to the main characters, including enough of Raven's (Browne) backstory to know she's a legitimate protagonist and isn't looking to release the demon (Anscombe) for her own personal gain. Then, once the Jack is released, the time between killings is kept to reasonable intervals.
The deaths themselves were also entertaining. The movie does a good job building up some of the suspense and keeps the Jack's murders gory enough for a horror film without going over the top to the point it was more nauseating than scary.
Another thing I liked about this movie was the mystery surrounding who opened the box and what wish they were hoping to get granted. At first, I thought it would be easy and even had a solid theory because the Jack couldn't harm the person who released it, and I figured it would be whichever student it didn't attack. However, as the movie progressed, that became a lot harder than I thought because it didn't seem to have any favorites and the girl I thought made the most sense was killed. The movie also does a great job of misdirection toward the end, keeping the real culprit a secret until almost the final moments, opening the door to an unexpected betrayal.
My only real complaint about the movie is the way it comes to an end abruptly when there seemed like there was still a bit more story to tell. I don't know if the film was attempting to set up another sequel or if there was another reason but it did seem a bit awkward. I don't think it was anything that necessarily ruined the movie but I would have liked to have seen it be a little cleaner.
Final Opinion: I didn't hate the first two movies but this third one is easily my favorite and was good enough to make me recommend watching all three so you have the context you need to properly enjoy this most recent one.
My Grade: A-
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Here are the reviews of the other two Jack in the Box movies:
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