''Jamie Marks Is Dead'' is a 2014 American

supernatural horror Horror is a genre of speculative fiction that is intended to disturb, frighten, or scare an audience. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror. Literary historian J. A. Cuddon, in 1984, defi ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Carter Smith Carter Smith (born September 6, 1971) is an American filmmaker and fashion photographer. He is best known for directing the films '' The Ruins'' (2008), '' Jamie Marks Is Dead'' (2014) and ''Swallowed'' (2022). Life and career A native of Bowdoi ...

, and starring

Cameron Monaghan Cameron Riley Monaghan (born August 16, 1993) is an American actor and model. The accolades he has received include nominations for a BAFTA Award and a Critics' Choice Television Award. Monaghan is known for his role as Ian Gallagher on the ...

Liv Tyler Liv Rundgren Tyler (born Liv Rundgren; July 1, 1977) is an American actress. She began her career as a model before making her film debut in '' Silent Fall'' (1994). She went on to receive critical recognition and attention after her starring ...

Judy Greer Judith Therese Evans (born July 20, 1975), known professionally as Judy Greer, is an American actress. She is primarily known as a character actress who has appeared in Judy Greer filmography, a wide variety of films. She rose to prominence for ...

Morgan Saylor Morgan Frances Saylor (born 1994) is an American actress. She is best known for starring as Dana Brody in the Showtime series ''Homeland''. She has also starred in several feature films, including her critically acclaimed portrayal of Leah in t ...

, Noah Silver and Madisen Beaty. Its plot follows a high school athlete who is haunted by the

ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

of a deceased classmate who was found dead under mysterious circumstances. It is based on

Christopher Barzak Christopher Barzak (born July 21, 1975) is an American author. He has published many short stories, beginning with "A Mad Tea Party" in ''Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet'' in 1999. In 2007 he published his debut novel, '' One for Sorrow'', whi ...

's 2007 novel '' One for Sorrow''. The film premiered in-competition in the ''US Dramatic Category'' at

2014 Sundance Film Festival The 2014 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 16, 2014 until January 26, 2014 in Park City, Utah, United States, with screenings in Salt Lake City, Utah, Salt Lake City, Ogden, Utah, Ogden, and Sundance Resort in Utah. The festival opene ...

on January 19, 2014 before it was given a

limited theatrical release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few cinemas across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...

in the United States on August 29, 2014. It was met with largely favorable reviews from film critics.

Plot

Teenager Gracie Highsmith discovers the dead body of classmate Jamie Marks near a river in a small town in

upstate New York Upstate New York is a geographic region of New York (state), New York that lies north and northwest of the New York metropolitan area, New York City metropolitan area of downstate New York. Upstate includes the middle and upper Hudson Valley, ...

. Jamie was an introverted social outcast who was not well-known by his classmates. Police begin investigating his death, suspecting he may have been murdered. High-school track star Adam McCormick is bothered by the discovery, and recounts fleeting memories of witnessing Jamie being severely

bullied Bullying is the use of force, coercion, Suffering, hurtful teasing, comments, or threats, in order to abuse, aggression, aggressively wikt:domination, dominate, or intimidate one or more others. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. On ...

by their peers. Adam goes to visit the site where Jamie's body was found, and finds Gracie there, creating a

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects such as home ...

for Jamie. Adam and Gracie share mixed drinks at her house one night. Gracie tells Adam she feels sorry for Jamie, as he never experienced love during his short life. One evening, Adam's single mother, Linda, is struck by a van driven by a woman named Lucy while backing out of their driveway. The car accident leaves Linda unable to walk. Lucy visits their home to make amends, and Linda is welcoming of her, though Adam expresses anger; the women form a friendship despite Adam's reluctance. Adam visits Gracie's house, and the two witness an apparition of Jamie standing outside in the woods at the edge of her yard. Adam is shaken by the event, and en route home, stops at the river. Jamie again appears to Adam, and asks him to lie down in the spot where his body was found. Adam is suddenly awoken by his friends, who have been partying nearby, and is driven home. Adam is recurrently visited by Jamie, who appears to him in his bedroom. When Adam tells Gracie about this, she tells him she too has felt Jamie's presence, but has chosen to ignore it as it frightens her. Jamie asks Adam to meet him at an abandoned house one night, and the two share stories in the barn. Jamie recounts memories he had in life of Adam; Adam is surprised by this, but also recounts having noticed Jamie in passing. The two are disrupted by Frances, a

vengeful spirit In mythology and folklore, a vengeful ghost or vengeful spirit is said to be the spirit of a dead person who returns from the afterlife to seek revenge for a cruel, unnatural or unjust death. In certain cultures where funeral and burial or crem ...

who haunts the abandoned home, where she murdered her parents before killing herself years ago. Angered by Frances's crude outburst, Adam burns the abandoned house down, causing Frances to launch into a violent rage. Jamie manages to wrangle Frances from Adam, and Adam flees. Adam later meets with Jamie near an abandoned train tunnel where other spirits congregate, as it functions as a portal to the

afterlife The afterlife or life after death is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's Stream of consciousness (psychology), stream of consciousness or Personal identity, identity continues to exist after the death of their ...

. He and Jamie's bond continues to grow, and Jamie reveals that he was in love with Adam in life, but his shyness and fear of rejection prevented him from ever getting to know him. When Adam returns home, he is tormented by Frances, who appears to him in his house, seeking revenge over her ruined home. Adam is protected by Jamie, who calms the incorrigible Frances. Adam later meets with Gracie at her home, where she reveals to him a written note she found with Jamie's body, which she hid from police. The note contains a list of people and things that Jamie would "like to kill"—including himself, though explicitly excluding Adam. Adam realizes Jamie committed suicide. Jamie appears to them both, enraged that Gracie exposed the note to Adam. Jamie eventually calms, and with Adam and Gracie's urging, agrees to move on into the afterlife. They drive to the abandoned train tunnel, and Adam walks toward it with Jamie. Still in love with Adam, Jamie asks Adam to stay with him forever. Adam tells Jamie he loves him, albeit platonically. Adam gives Jamie one final word, “love”. The two embrace before Jamie gives Adam his glasses, and walks on into the tunnel.

Cast

Production

Filming

Filming took place in New Hamburg and

Monticello, New York Monticello ( ) is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village located in Thompson, New York, Thompson, Sullivan County, within the Catskills region of New York, United States. It is the seat for the town of Thompson, and the county ...

in the winter and spring of 2013. Monticello High School and the abandoned Apollo Mall were used as filming locations.

Release

Box office

The film was given a limited theatrical release in the United States on August 29, 2014. The film earned $58,943 in domestic

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

sales.

Critical reception

The film received mostly positive reviews upon its premiere at the

. Dennis Harvey, in his review for ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', gave the film a positive review by saying that "The potentially ludicrous story is handled artfully enough here to cast an eerie but not off-putting spell throughout, though the ultimate point is more than a tad murky, and the desired poignancy doesn't fully come across." John DeFore in his review for ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' called the film "A sincere, psychologically savvy take on YA supernatural fare." Kyle Burton of '' Indiewire'' praised the film and said that "Carter Smith's ''Jamie Marks is Dead'' is a spooky rendition of teenage passion and shame. It has requisite angst and melodrama, but they’re guided by the film's immersive atmosphere and sense of place. It's a gothic romance—a sort of coming out, bullying story that projects onto its world the moods and emotions of its characters." Jordan Raup of ''The Film Stage'' praised Carter Smith's direction that "Smith’s expertise in crafting visceral, frightening scenarios—exemplified in his somewhat under-appreciated studio horror feature '' The Ruins''—is fully on display here. Conjuring a gloomy view, in both the afterlife and the real world, the director seems to be in complete control of his vision, particularly in the sound design and downcast cinematography."

References

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jamie Marks Is Dead 2014 films 2014 drama films 2014 horror films 2014 LGBTQ-related films 2010s American films 2010s English-language films 2010s ghost films 2010s horror drama films 2010s supernatural horror films American ghost films American horror drama films American independent films American LGBTQ-related films American supernatural horror films Films based on American novels Films directed by Carter Smith Films set in New York (state) Films shot in New York (state) Gay-related films 2010s LGBTQ-related drama films LGBTQ-related horror films English-language horror drama films