Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘The Autopsy of Jane Doe’

Written by Scott Edwards

There are many things that may go unnoticed by people that would surprise you. With all of the signs pointing in one direction, you might know where to go, but the rest of the crowd will be going the other way. Trying to point out these signs to people may be a benefit for some, but the ones that don’t want to see it will continue on their own path. While you cannot save everyone that needs it, you can at least help to give them the tools to hopefully find what they are looking for.
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Arriving on a call, Sheriff Burke is seeing carnage that he did not expect, but there is something else that is troubling him; the body of an unidentified woman in the basement who does not seem to have any wounds of any sort. Knowing that the coroner will be able to shed some light on this new find, Burke needs to have something to tell the press in the morning, so he brings the body over to his old friend Tommy to be examined. But taking this last-minute drop in may be the worst thing that Tommy could have ever done for himself, along with his son.

Getting a surprise visit from his girlfriend Emma at the morgue, Austin tries to keep her curiosity at bay, but nothing is working. Wanting to see a dead body, Austin pulls out an older woman who died of natural causes, but that is not something that excites Emma at all. Pointing to the next tray that contains a body with a hole where the face used to be, sparks some interest. Telling the back story of what was found on and in the body, Tommy also points out the bells that are attached to the feet of the recently deceased. As Emma tries to get a look at the missing face, Austin has a little fun and gives her a frightful jump. Heading out for their date, Sheriff Burke arrives with the body of a Jane Doe and while Austin wants to be out with his girlfriend, he knows that his father will need a helping hand. 

As father and son start their autopsy of the young dead woman, they first take note that there are not any visible wounds on the corpse. Seeing that her wrists and ankles are broken with no signs of bruising is very strange, as is the removal of her tongue. Thinking that this might be a human trafficking style murder like he has seen in the past, Tommy is ready to move on to his next step and cuts the body open. Finding organs that look like they have been tortured for years, Tommy and Austin have stumbled on to something that is much older than they could have imagined. As the autopsy continues and it can be confirmed that the woman is from the Northeast, the strangeness comes head on, not from the woman, but from everything around them.

I have been waiting to see this movie for a year now and while I have had some disappoint me when I’ve waited that long, this one truly did not. I like where the storyline took you overall with the secrets of Jane Doe’s past coming to light whether or not Tommy and Austin want to admit it. I liked the father and son bond between Tommy and Austin, dealing with work and life at the same time made them very likable characters. Then the strange events that start taking place around the morgue is just something I don’t think I was ready for, especially when the radio turned on and the dead seem to come back to life, those were just pretty cool ideas overall. With an unidentified woman, a backstory that continues to get stranger, tattoos, scalpels, blood, a cranky cat and a secret that may remain a secret forever, this is really a good movie to get caught up in. What I really hope that people take away from this movie, is that if there is a big storm coming, don’t stay at work. Stay Scared.

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