TRAILERS

Charlie Shotwell Puts His Family in a Hole in 'John and the Hole' Trailer

by Alex Billington
July 15, 2021
Source: YouTube

"This is your life, John. This is what you want to do. This could be who you are." IFC Films has unveiled the first official trailer for the chilling low-key drama John and the Hole, which originally premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. This received some rave reviews out of Sundance, and was initially select as part of the 2020 Cannes Film Festival line-up before it was cancelled. The pitch: a coming-of-age psychological thriller that plays out the unsettling reality of a kid who holds his family captive in a hole in the ground. Pascual Sisto's John and the Hole is a very slick, nuanced film about much more than just teenage angst, as there's layers upon layers of subtext regarding what he's doing and how it relates to the world we live in these days. Charlie Shotwell stars as John, who puts the rest of his family down into a hole in their backyard: Michael C. Hall, Jennifer Ehle, and Taissa Farmiga. This was one of the best films from Sundance and I'm very happy to be quoted in this trailer from my festival review earlier this year.

Here's the official trailer (+ poster) for Pascual Sisto's John and the Hole, direct from YouTube:

In this enigmatic and unsettling meditation on adolescent angst, 13-year-old John (Shotwell) discovers an unfinished bunker while exploring the neighboring woods—a deep hole in the ground. Seemingly without provocation, he drugs his affluent parents (Hall & Ehle) and older sister (Farmiga), holding them captive within the bunker. As they anxiously wait for John to free them from the hole, the boy returns home, where he can finally enjoy and explore a newfound independence. John and the Hole is directed by Spanish artist / filmmaker Pascual Sisto, making his feature directorial debut with this project. The screenplay is written by Nicolás Giacobone. This initially premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year (read our review) and was originally selected for the 2020 Cannes Film Festival last year before it was cancelled. IFC will release Sisto's John and the Hole in select US theaters + on VOD starting August 6th, 2021 this year.

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