The Autopsy of Jane Doe Movie: Mystery and Horror in the Midst of an Autopsy

The Autopsy of Jane Doe Movie, Mystery and Horror in the Midst of an Autopsy

The Autopsy of Jane Doe is a 2016 supernatural horror film directed by André Øvredal.

The movie stars Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch as father-and-son forensic surgeons who experience supernatural phenomena while examining the body of an unidentified woman (played by Olwen Kelly).

According to Rotten Tomatoes reviews, the movie earned 86% of the 110 critics surveyed giving positive reviews for the movie; the average rating is 7/10.

Synopsis of The Autopsy of Jane Doe

The body of an unidentified young woman is found at the scene of a senseless mass murder. Sheriff Burke finds no signs of forced entry, and Lt. Wade suggests that the victims were trying to escape.

Emma Roberts visits her boyfriend, Austin Tilden, and his father, Tommy, a forensic surgeon in a small town. Sheriff Burke arrives with Jane Doe's body and tells Tommy that he needs a cause of death before morning. Austin postpones his date with Emma to help his father, promising to see her later that night. Tommy and Austin perform the autopsy and are immediately confused.

There are no visible signs of external trauma, but wrist and ankle bones have been broken. Her tongue had been roughly cut out, one of her teeth was missing, her lungs were black as if she had third-degree burns, and her internal organs showed numerous wounds and scars. Jimsonweed, a paralysis-inducing substance not native to the area, was found in his stomach. The state of most of the body suggested that death had just occurred, while the turbidity of the corpse's eyes suggested that he had been dead for several days.

Another mysterious event occurred. The radio spontaneously changed stations, and Austin believed he saw people standing in the morgue hallway. Upon investigating, he finds their cat badly injured. Tommy mercifully kills the cat and reluctantly burns the body. While continuing the autopsy, Tommy finds the woman's missing tooth wrapped in a piece of cloth in her abdomen.

The cloth had Roman numerals, letters, and strange diagrams. Similar symbols were found on the inside of her skin. All the lights in the room suddenly exploded. During his confusion, they realized that the other bodies in the morgue had disappeared. They decide to leave, but the elevator is not working, and a fallen tree has blocked the exit. Someone invisible left bruises on Tommy's body when he went to the bathroom.

They return to the autopsy room and once again examine the body. When the door locks itself, Austin breaks into it with a makeshift axe. Through the crack, they see one of the missing bodies. Unable to reach the cremation furnace, they burn the body in the examination room. The fire quickly spreads; Tommy puts it out with a fire extinguisher but is disturbed to find the body unburned.

When the elevator comes back on, Tommy and Austin try to escape, but the doors won't close. Panicking, Tommy uses an axe against what he believes to be one of the living bodies. When he and Austin exit the elevator, they discover that he has killed Emma, who returns to meet with Austin.