Jamie Ashen

Jamie Ashen was the central character from the 2007 film Dead Silence where he was played by Australian actor Ryan Kwanten. Following the bizarre murder of his wife, Jamie returned to his town of Ravens Fair to investigate her murder, only to become involved in the machinations of the ghost of Mary Shaw, a woman who has spent decades murdering people and tearing out their tongues.

Tragedy
Jamie Ashen grew up in the town of Ravens Fair. As a child, Jamie had a very poor relationship with his father, which eventually grew into a deep loathing. He blamed his father for his mother's apparent suicide, as well as driving away his two following spouses. Jamie met and fell in love with a local girl named Lisa. The two were married and eventually left Ravens Fair, renting an apartment for themselves some distant away.

In 2007, Lisa Ashen became pregnant with Jamie's child, though Jamie did not know it at the time. One evening, the Ashens received a mysterious package left at their doorstep. Opening it, Jamie discovered that it was an old ventriloquist dummy named Billy. Neither Jamie nor Lisa had any idea who would send them such a strange gift. Lisa sent Jamie out to pick up some Chinese take-out for dinner. When he returned, he found a tea kettle boiling over and blood all over the floor. He heard his wife calling him from the bedroom, but when he went in there, he found her propped up on the bed, dead. Her tongue had been savagely removed from her mouth.

Homicide detectives were called to the scene and Detective Jim Lipton immediately suspected Jamie of killing his wife. He brought him back to the police station for interrogation, but Jamie was earnestly shocked when he learned that he was now a suspect. Jamie tried telling Detective Lipton about the doll that showed up only moments before his wife's death, but Lipton didn't agree that there was any connection between the two incidents. With no evidence to explicitly implicate Jamie, Lipton was forced to let him go. He warned him however to not leave town.

Homecoming
Jamie disregarded Lipton's instructions. He stopped back at the apartment to gather the doll, then drove back to his home town of Ravens Fair to make arrangements for his wife's funeral. When he arrived, he stopped at the Ashen residence to see his father and new stepmother Ella Ashen. Having apparently suffered a stroke two months earlier, Edward was now confined to a wheelchair. He offered to pay for Lisa's funeral, but Jamie wouldn't take his charity. The presence of the doll reminded Jamie of an old local legend concerning a woman named Mary Shaw. Ella knew of the story and recalled a children's nursery rhyme relating to Shaw:

Beware the stare of Mary Shaw. She had no children only dolls. And if you see her in your dreams, Be sure to never, ever scream.

After the uncomfortable meeting, Jamie went to the Walker Funeral Home to discuss his wife's funeral arrangements with the director, Henry Walker. At this time, Jamie met Henry's deranged wife, Marion. He met her again at Lisa's funeral, whereupon she warned him to watch out for Mary Shaw, whom she claimed was present in Ravens Fair.

Later that evening, Jamie returned to the cemetery and found a section devoted to Mary Shaw. In addition to her grave, he discovered headstones for all of Mary's dummy's, numbering more than one hundred. He found the one designated for Billy and unearthed the empty coffin. He threw the doll inside of it and reburied it.

Afterward, Jamie checked in to the Ravens Fair Motel. He was shocked to find that Billy was out of his casket and sitting in his room. To his chagrin, Detective Lipton tracked him down and rented the room right next to him. Lipton reminded Jamie that he shouldn't have left town and that he was still a suspect. Grabbing the doll, Lipton went to his room. Jamie waited until Lipton left, sneaked into his room and took the doll. He then drove back to the Walker Funeral Home.

Ghost Story
Henry Walker reluctantly told Jamie the story behind Mary Shaw. He recounted how he had seen one of Mary's final stage acts at the old Guignol Theater out on Lost Lake in 1941. During the show, a young boy named Michael heckled Mary Shaw, citing that he could see her lips move during her show. A few days later, the boy disappeared and the towns people all suspected that Mary was responsible. Soon after, Mary Shaw was murdered. According to Walker, her angry spirit haunted Ravens Fair ever since, determined to silence those who had silenced her.

After hearing the story, Jamie decided to go to the run down Guignol Theater where Mary had lived in the years leading up to her death. He found Mary's old dressing room in ruins, as well as a text book filled with newspaper clippings and instructions on how to make the perfect doll. Jamie learned that the boy who disappeared in 1941 had the same last name as he -- Ashen.

Returning home, Jamie confronted his father and stepmother, demanding to know the truth about Michael Ashen. Edward told him that Michael was his great uncle, and that after he had disappeared, members of the Ashen family, as well as other families, tracked Mary Shaw down and murdered her. When the hauntings and murders began to take place, Edward drove his son away, hoping to protect him from Mary Shaw's vengeance. Frustrated, and determined to put an end to his Mary Shaw business once and for all, Jamie turned around and began to leave.

The Guignol
At that moment, Jamie received a telephone call, apparently from Henry Shaw. The voice was crackling, but he indicated that he was at the Guignol and that he had proof that Jamie was innocent of his wife's murder. After hanging up, Jamie pushed past Detective Lipton and drove down to the theater. Lipton, still convinced that Jamie was a murderer, pursued him.

When they arrived, Lipton decided to give Jamie the benefit of the doubt and aided him in investigating the house. They didn't find Henry Walker, for he had already been killed by Mary Shaw. In fact, it was Mary impersonating his voice who called Jamie to begin with. They found a giant display case which housed one-hundred of Mary Shaw's prized dolls. They also discovered the remains of Michael Ashen, whose body had been converted into a macabre puppet. As they continued to explore the ruins of the theater, they found a large clown doll in a rocking chair. Mary Shaw spoke through the doll and Jamie asked it why she had killed his wife. Shaw (as the clown) beckoned Jamie to lean in close whereupon she revealed that Lisa Ashen was carrying Jamie's unborn child. A large, distorted tongue eschewed from the clown's mouth and licked Jamie upon the face. Detective Lipton fired at the doll with his shotgun.

Immediately afterward, the faces on all of the trophy dolls began to animate themselves, writhing about inside of their cases. Jamie determined that Mary's spirit lived through the dolls and that if he destroyed them, he could put a stop to Mary forever. He set the room on fire and the dolls began to go up in flames. Mary's spirit managed to kill Detective Lipton, but Jamie succeeded in escaping.

Revelation
He knew that only one doll remained -- Billy. He drove back to the Walker Funeral Home (where the doll was last seen) but found only Henry's wife Marion, cradling his dead body. She told Jamie that his father had come and collected the doll. Jamie knew this was impossible as his father had been confined to a wheelchair. He went back to his family's estate and found Billy lying in a cradle. The ghost of Mary Shaw appeared and attacked him, but Jamie threw the doll into the lit fireplace. Mary shrieked in agony and recoiled back into the shadows. Jamie thought that the nightmare was over, but only moments later found his father, dead in his wheelchair. His back was sliced open and his spine had been replaced with a wooden rod. Jamie realized to his horror that his father had been dead for some time, and that someone had turned him into a puppet. His stepmother, Ella, stepped out of the shadows and Jamie knew that she had been manipulating his father the entire time. Ella spoke to Jamie in the voice of Mary Shaw and the vengeful spirit claimed her final victim.

Notes & Trivia

 * Actor Ryan Kwanten is also known for playing the role of Jason Stackhouse on the HBO television series True Blood.