Grave Torture - 2024 - Indonesia

Grave Torture - 2024 - 6/10
AKA - Siksa Kubar

 
After their parents are killed in a suicide bombing, Adil and Sita are sent to an ultra-religious school.
Where they are threatened, bullied, coerced, abused.
Years later, Sita slowly builds her vengeance.
On those responsible, and the religion underpinning society.
“… someone has to prove that religions intimidate people.”
Slow boil thriller from Joko Anwar waits until the final act to veer into full bore Horror.
Sita is a remorseless fury, damaging perceived enemies and innocents in her path.
Ending might have been meant for cultural authorities.
English subs = https://sub-scene.com/subtitle/3369229

Sugar Mill - 2025 - Indonesia

Sugar Mill - 2025 - 6/10
AKA - Pabrik Gula

 
Many of the village youth ride the truck to the sugar mill in the countryside.
The factory bears a tainted history.  Years before, there was a fire and workers perished.
At night, restless spirits haunt the area.
Yellow hour, seasonal workers must be near their residence.  Red hour, they must be inside.
Try enforcing that with young, surging hormones.
Despite annoying, intermittent comic relief, this is rife with superstition and presences.
As Horror, this grows progressively more Indonesian throughout.
Disjointed narrative is both problematic and a big boost.

Joko Anwar’s Nightmares And Daydreams - 2024 - Indonesia

Joko Anwar’s Nightmares And Daydreams - 2024 - 7/10  

Seven chapter anthology from Indonesia’s maestro of horror.
Installments are stand-alones.  Some conclude, others end weirdly.
While Indonesia is largely Muslim, these are steeped in folklore and superstition.

 
Stories reflect values, castes, horrors.
Wealth, and lack of same, hold hands with death and betrayals.
One soul gets lost in the theater of his youth, another searches for a sister she never knew she had.

 
Even the righteous, trying to behave ethically, err.  Consequences are swift.
These may be alien, but let Anwar’s mood envelope you.
The finale manages to go wildly over the top, and link preceding episodes.
Fans of this director, crash the gate.

Satan’s Slaves 2: Communion - 2022 - Indonesia

Satan’s Slaves 2: Communion - 2022 - 5/10
AKA - Pengabdi Setan 2

 
Extremely dark film, loaded with jump scares.  Check.
Children (teenagers) in danger throughout.  Check.
A plot that has little to no bearing on the first film.  Check.
In 1955, in an isolated area, graves yawn open and corpses shuffle into a shrine to bow before the icon.
That entire line is abandoned as the scene shifts to 1984, an impoverished apartment tower in oblivion.
A ferocious storm approaches, adults have vanished, and children roam dark passageways.
By and large, I enjoy Joko Anwar’s Indonesian horrors, but this is a let down.
Hardly a sequel, lacking the framework of a plot, clearly aimed at children and the timid.

May The Devil Take You - 2018 - Indonesia

May The Devil Take You - 2018 - 5/10
AKA - Sebelum Iblis Menjemput

 
Lesmana invites a priestess (sorceress, witch) into his home and makes a deal.
The price for fortune, however, will be souls.  Plural.
Soon, prosperity.  After his wife dies, he scores a trophy wife, an actress.
All things pass, though, and even fun times have their endings.
As this went on, viewing became a huge chore.
Nonstop screaming and bug-eyed terror
Knockoff horror may be OK for drive-in mavens.
Otherwise, this suggests Indonesian fright films are hitting a dry patch.

The Queen Of Black Magic - 2019 - Indonesia

The Queen Of Black Magic - 2019 - 6/10
AKA - Ratu Ilmu Hitam

 
Not a remake, but inspired by the 1981 film.
At once busier, more modern (cellphones and followers), and less fun.
Three adult men return to the orphanage where they grew up, bringing their families.
Current orphans are on an outing, so the building is deserted save for caretakers and the dying founder.
One room is locked, has been for decades.
There is the story of Mirah, the woman who lost her bearings after earlier girls disappeared.
Terrors involve bugs, kids and the grudge.
Bugs, because onlookers scream at them, and lo, those open, inviting mouths.
Kids, I detest in Western films as they are only in feigned danger.  In Asian films, however …
Grudge, holding onto past wrongs instead of moving on, sheesh.
Cheap scares, a cobbled plot, yet this should be OK for late night insomniacs.

The Queen Of Black Magic - 1981 - Indonesia

The Queen Of Black Magic - 1981 - 6/10
AKA - Ratu Ilmu Hitam

 
Goodness, wishes still come true!
Murni, watching her love marry the village head’s beautiful daughter, goes home to cry.
Thereby missing the wedding collapse into chaos.
Superstitious villagers accuse her of being a witch and do their best to kill her.
Fortunately for all concerned, a wicked shaman rescues Murni and trains her in the deadly arts of vengeance.
Yes, there will be retribution, oh yes.  Menfolk, piss off women at your peril.
The deaths in this are imaginative and wildly over the top.
Moreover, this feels like a picture meant for a national audience, not crafted with one eye toward global profit.
Corny at times, ridiculously gory, hammy, truly wonderful!

Impetigore - 2019 - Indonesia

Impetigore - 2019 - 6/10
AKA - Perempuan Tanah Jahanam

 
Maya is stalked, then while working at the toll booth, she is assaulted.
Wielding a machete, the man apologizes,  “I’m sorry, but you curse our village.  I must kill you.”
“I don’t know you!”  she screams.  “I never heard of your village!”
Fortunately, police arrive and the would-be assassin is shot dead.
So what would you do?  Go to a remote, isolated village where everyone wants your life?
That’s what Maya does, seeking answers.

Another fine Joko Anwar film.  This is shot during late afternoon and night.
The mood stays grim and foreboding throughout.  The cinematography in this, as in other Anwar films I have viewed, is well thought out and imaginative.
The plot is somewhat rehashed, but the style is mesmerizing.
For those who adored Hong Kong cinema (before Chinese censors and mainstream audiences diluted it), check out this director.

Dead Time: Kala - 2007 - Indonesia

Dead Time:  Kala - 2007 - 7/10

 
“Narcolepsy?’’ asks the judge.
“Yes,”  says Sari.  “Every time Janus tries to make love, he gets overexcited and falls unconscious.  I cannot stay married.”
That’s one of the tiniest sideplots in this wild film mixing Horror, Crime, Noir, legend and prophecy.
Janus not only suffers narcolepsy, but he sees visions, and conceals a hushed phrase that cannot be shared.
While police investigate a series of brutal murders, supernatural forces gather.
Highly entertaining Joko Anwar film has great sound and always arresting visuals.
This obscure gem is a tour de force, though the fusion of styles may be off-putting to pure Horror fans.

Satan’s Slaves - 2017 - Indonesia

Satan’s Slaves - 2017 - 6/10
AKA - Pengabdi Setan

Mawarni has been ill for three years, exhausting the family’s financial resources.
Finally she dies. Or … does she?
While the father goes to find work, the children realize there was an incredibly dark side to their mother.
And a bargain, a pact if you will, that demands payment.
Decent Indonesian horror outing benefits from several unique perspectives on a genre film.
Conflict of Islamic faith and surviving paganists is another nice wrinkle.
One sequence is laughably over the top, though others are fairly creepy. 

The Forbidden Door - 2009 - Indonesia

The Forbidden Door - 2009 - 6/10
AKA - Pintu Terlarang

Sculptor Gambir had an exhibition where all his works sold out.
He is a red hot property, married to a beautiful wife, envied by many, including close friends.
Is life great, or what?
Gambir would like to expand beyond his black cast sculptures (of heavily pregnant females), but is threatened with exposure if he does so.
His mother, wanting grandchildren, complains about his erectile dysfunction to everyone.
Graffiti messages distract him. Visions of a boy, brutally beaten. A secret establishment. The clinic.
Random voices. Pig masks. Stray, meaningless, characters. A narrative that grows incoherent.
Surreal mystery / thriller from Indonesia also doses arthouse, horror and gore.
While elements seem lifted from other films, writer-director Joko Anwar manages to stitch the threads by the end.
Hang with those credits, too!