Anything for Jackson

This is a nifty original horror flick that will keep your interest. It's really good.

Not complicated. Just really good performances and direction. SCript too.

Don't miss it.

With all the derivitive garbage out there, this was one refreshing movie.

A fresh spin on a classic concept, Anything for Jackson follows an elderly couple who kidnap a pregnant woman with the sole intention of putting their deceased grandson's spirit into her unborn child. A wicked yet amusing premise, the film manages to get some mileage out of its reverse exorcism idea only to drop the ball in the final act to finish on an underwhelming note.

Directed by Justin G. Dyck, the film is a major step-up & a massive departure for its director when compared to his family-friendly filmography. Crafted with care & handled with finesse, the story is gripping from the get-go, brims with a disquieting chill, and packs some effective scares, thanks to the foreboding ambience & ghostly interventions that occur throughout its runtime.

What inherits the picture its uncanny strength however is the excellent performances from its leading duo. Sheila McCarthy & Julian Richings are fantastic in their Satan-worshipping roles and even add a parental touch to their otherwise despicable characters. The supporting cast fail to match the brilliance of the leads and are serviceable at best. As for the finale, it fails to deliver the desired goods.

Overall, Anything for Jackson is a fun & fiendish delight that manages to be both hilarious & thrilling and makes for a polished piece of work for a film shot on a low-budget. Certainly an impressive entry in a directorial career that's jam-packed with feel-good Christmas specials, this supernatural horror about loss, grief, remorse & satanism has its merits and will surprise many with its refreshing take on the subgenre.

A pretty fun and wild experience, slightly spoiled by a underwhelming conclusion/ending.

'Anything For Jackson (2020)' follows a bereaved couple who kidnap a heavily pregnant woman in order to perform a 'reverse exorcism' and put the spirit of their dead grandson into the body of her unborn child. It's a killer premise and the set-up is handled impeccably. That's primarily because the two perpetrators of this heinous act are actually the picture's protagonists. They're Satanists who are willing to make a selfish deal with the devil no matter the cost, but they aren't portrayed as callous and cackling villains. They're presented as quite the opposite, actually; they seem like your average, neighbourly old couple. Their understandable motivations help to keep you engaged with the plot, especially since their actions are always what drive it, and their relatively agreeable nature makes the movie much more distinct than it otherwise may have been. The kidnapped woman isn't given quite as much attention as her captors, but she is developed just enough that you come to truly care for her by the flick's end. No matter how sympathetically the central couple are presented, you're always on the pregnant lady's side because of the inherently unjust nature of her treatment; just because someone's nice doesn't mean they aren't doing a bad thing. The picture is well made throughout, with crisp cinematography, believable performances and some really effective scare sequences. Though the middle act is slightly more generic than the first, it's here that the movie's frights really come into the fray. There's some horrific stuff here and it's all really well done. It isn't terrifying, but it's unsettling enough. One of the more major complaints I have is that the ending feels, ever so slightly, like a let-down. It isn't bad, of course, but it kind of feels like the filmmakers weren't sure how to bring their creation to a close and so decided to throw everything at the wall in a 'haunted house' sort of way. Still, like I said, it isn't bad. It features unique visuals and is, for the most part, genuinely unpredictable. Overall, the film is a really good entry into its genre. It does some often seen things in a rarely seen way, which makes it all the easier to recommend. If you're a fan of horror, you should give this a go. 7/10.

This slow-burning horror, following a kind but determined satanist couple and their self-defeating desire to bring back their deceased grandson, is the kind of film that begs a second viewing. I didn't appreciate it the first time I saw it, but the second time around, the strong acting skills, special effects and underlying tragedy of the story won me over. Anything For Jackson somehow evokes an outpour of empathy for this couple of kidnappers, as it becomes more apparent the gravity of the losses they faced, and the lengths they went to in order to overcome them. Fans of Supernatural, Roxy Hunter and Hard Core Logo will instantly recognize Julian Richings as Henry, and Sheila McCarthy works very well with him in the role of satanist grandmother Audrey. Up-and-coming actor Josh Cruddas is memorable as the narcissistic satanist bum, Ian, a childish but obsessively devoted helper to the protagonists, and Yannick Bisson and Lanette Ware compliment every scene they're in. As a dark comedy and occult horror, Anything For Jackson works strangely well. While not perfect, and at times campy, it's a well-made and quite unforgettable story worth checking out.