A disturbing vision of a fractured family that will do anything to get their estranged son back from a murderous cult, only to find themselves under siege when the cultists surround their cabin, the terrifying psychological thriller Jackals opens in select theaters and On Demand September 1st, 2017 from Scream Factory Films.
Directed by Kevin Greutert and written by Jared Rivet, Jackals stars Deborah Kara Unger (Crash, Silent Hill), Ben Sullivan (Hell on Wheels, Stonewall), Chelsea Ricketts (Scream Queens, True Blood), and Nick Roux (Jane by Design), with Johnathon Schaech (That Thing You Do!, Arsenal) and Stephen Dorff (Blade, Leatherface).
Our friends at Scream Factory are taking a break (not really) from their slate of classic horror titles and bringing a brand new film for us all to enjoy with the theatrical and VOD release of Jackals this September.
If you are a fan of films like The Strangers and You’re Next, then you should rush to see this film as soon as you are able. Be warned, Jackals is not for the faint of heart. It’s a short, sweet, tension filled thrill ride that hits the ground running and never lets up.
The story follows a family who hire a cult deprogrammer to abduct and de-brainwash their estranged son. It’s not long before his cult friends come calling and they are not friendly. In fact, they’re down right terrifying. They’re silent and they are brutal and honestly, this just makes it all the more tense.
Jackals brings with it a mix of family drama and home invasion horror as the Powell family struggles to first save their son and then themselves once the cult members arrive. I really can’t go into too much more detail without spoiling anything so I can only say that the film is anything but predictable despite its general premise being familiar.
It’s a taught and tight little flick clocking in at just under 90 minutes so believe me when I say there is not a moment wasted. The cast is really great here and this is another film that makes me realize that Stephen Dorff is really underrated and I’m glad to see him becoming a bit of a horror staple. I’m looking forward to seeing him in the upcoming Texas Chainsaw Massacre prequel Leatherface.
If I had to point out some faults, it would be the lighting. The film is really dark at times, especially in the house. Outside though, this darkness is used to supreme effect with some really creepy shots of the cult members. You can see a prime example of that in the shot above. They really captured the menace of these cultists in a really nerve-wracking way. Speaking of these cultists, you learn next to nothing about the actual cult and its members. This is fine for me as I really like the mystery and the dread that this brings. It also makes me want to see more in the future.
Jackals is a great original film addition to the Scream Factory brand and I hope we can expect some more great things from a brand that’s already shown how much they love the genre with their line of home video releases of classic horror films.
If you get the chance to see Jackals on the big screen, do so, otherwise it releases on VOD the same day: September 1, 2017.
8 Stars! A super tense and scary little flick and a great entry into original film for Scream Factory!
Garon Cockrell is the Founder and Editor of Pop Culture Beast and host of The Pop Culture Beast Show. He founded the site over seven years ago to have a place on the internet to write about the things he loved. Since then, Garon has become a best-selling author (Demonic and Other Tales), an award winning screenwriter (Best Screenplay 2013 Motor City Nightmares Film Festival), and a cast member on the top rated podcast, Never Not Funny.