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[DVD Review] ‘Jug Face’ Is A Dark Tale Of Backwoods Superstition
From producer Lucky McKee comes Jug Face. Hot damn is this one fantastic little horror film. Rooted in folk horror and southern gothic, Jug Face tells the tale of a tightly knit backwoods community that worships “the pit” – a not particularly deep hole in the ground where an annual sacrifice is made to appease whatever spirit resides within.
The sacrifice is chosen by Dawai (Sean Bridgers), a mentally challenged potter who receives visions from the pit and sculpts the sacrifice’s face into a jug. When a pregnant teen is chosen as the next offering, she challenges the local superstitions to save her own ass and the unborn ass inside her. Jug Face is a finely crafted dark tale of incest, backwater mentality, and survival. I’ve watched a lot of DTV and indie horror films over the past year. There are so many crappy ones, but Jug Face is definitely one of the better low-budget offerings to come along in a while.
Lauren Ashley Carter (The Woman) stars as Ada. The movie starts with her screwing around with her brother in the woods. At first we don’t know it’s her brother, which makes her pregnancy even more of a gut punch later on. She’s keeping her condition a secret for obvious reasons. Besides the whole incest thing, she’s recently been promised to another member of the community, so her sexual activity would disgrace her family. Carter’s portrayal is a solid one. She capture’s Ada’s desperation and innocence really well.
The community Ada was brought up in is a highly superstitious one, especially when it comes to things like sex and their standards of purity. It’s never explained why they worship the pit or the origins of their sacrifice rituals. This enigma only adds weight to the mysteriousness of the film though. The pit isn’t very impressive looking and at first it appears like folks are being sacrificed for absurd reasons. Then Ada’s interference in the annual ritual angers the pit and the audience is shown what the hole in the ground can really do.
There’s some decent gore and lots of bloodshed, but the most effective bits of terror are when the pit is killing people, and we have no idea how. It’s just a hole with some rain water and mud in it, yet it can fucking devour a person. It’s really unsettling stuff. I’m all for the unexplainable in horror films, so the pit is an antagonist I can really dig. A ghost makes an appearance as well. He’s a boy ghost who follows Ada around, scaring the shit out of her and being an overall creep. I understand what purpose the ghosts serves, but he doesn’t really add much to the overall narrative.
Jug Face offers a lot to enjoy. The performances are great and the forest setting makes for a creepy environment for the drama to play out in. The pit is as simple as a malevolent being can get, but sometimes simplicity makes for some horrifying stuff. It’s definitely a unique and original experience.
Jug Face is now available on DVD and I sincerely recommend the shit outta it.
A/V
Looks like typical DVD quality. The 5.1 audio track highlights the brooding guitar score.
Special Features
The half hour behind the scenes documentary is an insightful look at what made this little horror film a reality. Director Chad Crawford Kinkle talks about his inspirations for the film, which goes back to when he saw some actual jug faces in a museum.
Also included is a trailer and Kinkle’s short film Organ Grinder. It’s more in-your-face with the gore than the feature, but its a fun little short.
Home Video
Watch the Opening ‘Mortal Kombat II’ Battle Scene Now Ahead of Physical Media Release in July
Sequel Mortal Kombat II is now available to watch at home on Digital before heading to physical media in July, but you can test your might now and watch the opening scene.
Mortal Kombat director Simon McQuoid returns to the helm for the new sequel from a script by Jeremy Slater (“Moon Knight,” Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire).
In Mortal Kombat II, the fan-favorite champions — now joined by Johnny Cage (Karl Urban) — are pitted against one another in the ultimate, no-holds barred, gory battle to defeat the dark rule of Shao Kahn that threatens the very existence of the Earthrealm and its defenders.
Adeline Rudolph, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Ludi Lin, Mehcad Brooks, Tati Gabrielle, Lewis Tan, Damon Herriman, Chin Han, Tadanobu Asano, Joe Taslim, and Hiroyuki Sanada are also part of the ensemble cast of Mortal Kombat II fighters.
Watch the opening below, which introduces a young Kitana (Sophia Xu) as Emperor Shao Kahn (Martyn Ford) prepares to conquer her father, King Jerrod (Desmond Chiam), and her kingdom of Edenia. It sets the sequel’s entire plot in motion.
From New Line Cinema, James Wan’s Atomic Monster, Broken Road Productions, and Fireside Films, Mortal Kombat II is rated R for “strong bloody violence and gore, and language.”
Look for Mortal Kombat II to arrive on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD on July 28, 2026.
The physical media release contains the following special features, as unveiled by IGN:
- Mortal Kombat II: Evolving the Saga (Featurette)
- Returning characters, new alliances and even bigger fatalities! Go behind the scenes to learn all that went into creating the latest chapter in the Mortal Kombat film saga and how the sequel expands the universe to bolder, bloodier heights.
- Building the Realms of Mortal Kombat (Featurette)
- From the decaying streets of Edenia to the terrifying Pit featured in the iconic video game series, discover how the Mortal Kombat II design teams blended practical sets with groundbreaking VFX to create the legendary realms in the film.
- Mortal Kombat II: Choose Your Fighter (Featurette)
- Awaken your Arcana as you meet the cast and explore the brutal weapons, epic costumes and fierce training that went into bringing their characters to life.
- Klose Quarters Kombat (Featurette)
- Cast members and key creatives share insights into how the stunt preparation, intense fight scenes and weapons training shaped both classic moves and new, merciless combat styles.
- A “Boon” to Gamers Everywhere (Featurette)
- Sit down with chief Mortal Kombat mythmaker and creator Ed Boon for a deep dive into the franchise’s storied history and ongoing evolution that spans three decades of near-infinite games, films and comics, culminating with the live-action sequel.
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