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Watching Possession is like experiencing a fever dream. It's almost surreal, catastrophic action-reaction from the characters that brought myself into their own tragedy. It's upsetting, terrorizing, and ultimately shocking me due to intense amount of hysteria given. Acting is dramatic, but I don't really follow why certain scenes need so much intensity. At some point, I wish I hadn't watch this movie, because of how nihilistic the plot is. But I guess that's the way this movie wants to portray a deteroriating, dysfunctional relationship.

I think this movie was marketed as a horror, which is something that can undersell the presented theme. Psychological drama is more fit, along with a sense of macabre that leave so many questions. But it's not about to answer every question, but to accompany a journey to madness.

As a prequel to The Omen that doesn't have notable sequels, The First Omen came as surprise, knowing how underdeveloped Hollywood horror prequels are. This movie knows what it wants, hugely inspired by 70's horror aesthetics (the moving zoom-in, relying on unsettling ambiences, etc.) create an amazing experience from the beginning to the end.

Much like its original work, The First Omen doesn't shy from graphic violence and jumpscares, but Stevenson as the director, knows how to use them effectively in order to thicken the mystery as the main plot. But, that's not what makes this movie amazing. The climax is a top-tier climax I've ever watch in a horror film. It's graphic, sadist, surreal, and horrifying, which I won't forget quickly. The climax also gives enough answer, but also enough unanswered questions that open for future sequel.

What keeps me from giving this film a perfect score is due to its slow pacing in the first act, which somehow disjoint the movie's pacing throughout the movie. But still, it's my personal favorite horror, even movie, of the year.

Joko Anwar has been known to make films with notable standards like great characters, interesting premise to follow, provoking dialogues, and doses of gore here and there. Grave Torture checks all of the items, but unfortunately, it also checks Anwar's notorious trademark: a weak third act.

Anwar has always been a good storyteller. This movie is no exception. It has a bubbling mystery in every corner, asking me to guess in every scene, unrolled with witty, almost absurd, characters, to keep me on my seat along with amazing technical aspects, especially the sound design. Then, the third act comes.

It reminds me of all of his previous horror works where the plot becomes chaotic and blurred. I don't know how, but it felt really exploitative. There's not much of a story, just series of audience-engaging scenes masquerading as a climax. How is that justify all of the buildups? How is that going to answer all of the questions? Those questions keep me on my seat until suddenly, it ends.

I realized that Anwar is not responsible to make a film that I can fully understand. Maybe I am not smart enough for that. Maybe it's a trick to anticipates for possible sequel (if any). Or maybe, it's time for me to accept that Anwar's style will never going to a direction that I like. But, I think most of his climax is an easy way out for such lucrative plot development that he makes.

Then again, the climax stays in my head for two days. It does impactful.

The Unholy has a familiar religious horror trope that I like, about people and miracles with sinister twist This movie has a really good premise and story to give and the atmospheric horror vibe is quite nice as well. But, the execution of this movie, the writing, and the directing are just really off.

The movie leaves no mystery to solve from the beginning. There is a little left to explore in the whole movie, so there isn't much to do for me to engage with the story. Secondly, the movie has too many jumpscares. It's too distracting and out of context for a movie that's story-driven like this one imo. The movie focuses so much on crafting the character VFX while forgetting to tell a story. This not only make me confused to the whole plot, but also make the ghost/demon not scary at all.

If only someone would edit the whole movie into more mystery/thriller plot, I would love to watch it.

"Exhuma" is a horror gem that demands your attention, despite its seemingly long runtime. Trust me; the payoff is worth every minute.

The movie cleverly unfolds in distinct chapters, each packing its own mini-climax. This approach, rather than overwhelming us with a convoluted plot, allows for a detailed and engaging exploration of "smaller" stories. I found myself invested in every chapter, thanks to the intriguing mysteries woven into each one. The storytelling is top-notch, blending visual and narrative clues seamlessly, ensuring that even the casual viewer can follow along.

What sets "Exhuma" apart for me is its refreshing take on horror. Instead of relying on cheap jumpscares, the film opts for atmospheric horror that keeps you on edge while pulling you deeper into the story. It's a balance of terror and curiosity that's executed brilliantly.

Now, to be fair, there are moments where the narrative feels a tad disjointed, making it a bit challenging to follow. Yet, the film's redeeming quality lies in its refusal to bombard you with ghosts every second. It takes its time, allowing the story to breathe and unfold naturally.

In the end, "Exhuma" isn't just another horror flick; it's a journey that respects your time and delivers a story worth experiencing. So, ignore the runtime concerns, and let this movie grip you with its unique blend of chills and storytelling finesse.

I think by seeing a trained ER psychiatrist character becomes hysterics whenever she faces the entity is like an indication how this movie goes down. The movie serves is goal to explore the nature of the strange phenomenon, but gives little to context why the main character has to react that way. Each time, her character goes unexplored and I have confusion whether to empathize or not. I try to accept it but every single choice the character's made being not educated and resourceful, makes it harder to root for her.

Aside of that, I think the movie is good to watch. It has jumpscares, it has mystery, it has everything you would expect in a supernatural horror movie (try The Ring). If you overlook my aforementioned complaint, this is a decent fun film to watch.

Firstly, the poster and the title is not convincing at all but seeing Kevin Williamson back as co-writer for a new slasher, I am super excited. I am not disappointed, the movie goes fast in the first act, and then it goes insane. The characters (both the main and villain) are resourceful when they have problems, so we know it's not going to be your ordinary slasher. The director knows how to build suspense with limited setting and knows slashers well to not too get comfortable with the cliches.

My main disappointment is the movie, unfortunately, still gives an after taste of seeing an iterated Scream movie. Its self-aware characters, unbelievable twist, long third act (with a bonus act) makes the movie somewhat feel fresh but not original. At least, the COVID backdrop gives creepy nostalgia that the pandemic was there and it's real.

I really recommend it!

I think Indonesian comedy movies are saturated with stand-up talents with one-liner jokes that spread throughout a simple, nice backdrop for the main story. This caused a string of box office hits but no substance that could differentiate one movie from the others. Agak Laen proved that the formula could be fresh if brought by a really amazing story backdrop and sense of realism.

The movie has a perfect sitcom setup. A haunted house attraction becomes viral after a real person died there. It's full of great scenes with cool comedic timings, they know how to turn between drama and funny scenes well. I feel like the four characters are too many since their traits seem to be similar, hence it's blurry to remember who's who. The plot tries to give nuance with more chemistry and personal issues, and it works!

The climax is one of the best I've ever seen. It goes realistic and does not ignore basic logic even though it's comedy. I am still hugely disappointed by how they keep making blunt advertisements throughout the movie, which I think could be better. Still, watching Agak Laen gives me hope that Indonesia comedy movies do have great future.

Slasher movies came from a long line of exploitation subgenres of horror, which makes it understandable if they portray themselves in very satirical, campy, and over-the-top. Nowadays, I find it difficult to watch that kind of slasher movie. Something that is funny, but at the same time horrifying and tasteful with hints of camp. Luckily, Thanksgiving arrives.

Thanksgiving had its story from Roth's fake trailer in Grindhouse (2007), which the movie borrows most elements in this full-feature picture. It's not as sleazy, camp, B-movie aesthetics as the fake trailer, but the idea is still there. All of the killings make me reminded of Scream used to be. It's witty, thrilling, and combined with Friday the 13th gore that is so exaggerated, it is very fun.

Aside from the faithfulness to campy slasher structures, I like how the storyline is focused enough to follow how the town reacts, how the characters cope, and investigate the murders. It makes this movie able to do beyond the slasher narratives that are confined to a narrow setting.

I'm glad I found this movie because sometimes, the best horror movie is the one that didn't take itself seriously.

I admire this franchise for being something relatable and fun for horror fans. It's cheeky, funny, and scary, but what's the smartest thing is they always be able to find a "meta" narrative that works with what happened in the horror movie industry.

What I find this movie enjoyable is the Ghostface scenes, which are more aggressive and violent, which shows the movie's commitment to be the flagship slasher movie. It has multiple gore, terror, and stabbings (you wouldn't be prepared by how many stabbing sound effects you're going to hear). This movie knows what it wants to be.

I think the biggest letdown of this movie is it became too formulaic and serious on its own. This movie used many references from previous movies, so it's difficult for me to maintain focus on names, dates, who's the killers, and so on. It used the formula that has been replicated in this series five times, it became stale and boring.

Self-awareness is cool, but if you play the same trick too much, doesn't it become narcissistic? Maybe with what's going on with Scream VII production, it's a sign to prepare for better materials.

I like The Nun for its amazing supernatural/gothic horror vibes that rarely seen among its peers at that time. I feel the jumpscares are over the top and the story is at best ridiculous, but somehow it works for me.

What's weird about The Nun II is even though they still played the same tricks, this movie just doesn't work. In my book, this caused by the lack of focus to told the investigation (which is really cool if handled properly) and going straight up to try at least 20 new ways to show the titular character on the screen. This sacrifices the plot greatly and at the end, the long explanation and convenient twist only bore me with details. I'm sad knowing that the story (or the concept) is wasted for the sake of presentation.

Sure, that's one thing that I like about the movie. It still maintains the spirit to be as over the top as possible. I mean, if you want to see some Indiana Jones or Marvel superheroes action in an horror context, this movie is perfect for you. You just can't expect a good story, like I do.

Layangan Putus has a new concept to offer: What happens if the man chose his mistress? The movie knows its audiences and spare all the boring stuff to get us to whole awkwardness, fight, screams, and tears for the entire time. This gotta be the most dramatic drama movie I've ever seen.

There is nothing new that sets this film apart from the series (aside of Kinan's character), which surprisingly gives new flavor. Raihaanun able to be a more expressive Kinan than Marino, which gives depth for Kinan's character in this movie, but I always imagine how Marino would play it. Geraldine and Rahadian just as the same as the series.

If you love the series, you would like this movie a lot. This movie knows not to take itself too seriously, since the characters aren't realistic (styling, mostly... You'll be surprised at what is their choice of dress to attend kids performance at school).

One main problem is the plot, the plot tries to punish Aris character too much, while in reality that doesn't seem logical and happens at the same time for the sake of giving the audiences the satisfaction. This makes the movie seems "exploitative" and with the similar technical treatment with the series, it felt like a special episode that should've been stayed there.

This movie is not exceptional by doing something new, but because they know how to make each part fun and enjoyable. As a heist movie, it manages to capture adventure, drama, romance, and mystery in one pack with great storyline that came up from a single premise.

The writer/director clearly knows how to give an equal spotlight for all aspects involved from character development, technicalities, visual effects, and so on. I still got bored at times due to very long runtime (2.5 hours) and the pacing is a bit odd with few plot holes, but I have to say it's a very great experience to watch a movie as fulfilling and complete as this. Very recommended.

I'm glad the third Conjuring moved on from haunted house premise to more X-Files mystery setup. The new direction is very great for the horror aspect, it's not revolutionary but still very fresh considering it's a Conjuring movie which tends to be formulaic.

This direction allows other aspects like (a alot of) romantic scenes and overused jumpscares which distract me from watching this movie. The lack of courtroom scenes also surprised me (since I thought it will be the centerpiece). So the movie wasn't that great in my book since it doesn't feel to coherent, but I hope the next installment would correct that and gives new color for this series.

I don't watch the movie's previous films but I don't think it's necessary to follow the narrative here. The sci-fi part is nonsensical, the scaling sometimes is a bit off for me, the acting is mid at best (including Kong's). The biggest weakness for this movie is probably when they tries too hard to explain the whole Godzilla vs. Kong thing.

With the title as colossal as "Godzilla vs. Kong", I know people won't expect too much logic. We got what;s promised. Great battle sequence, great visual effect, great casualties. What's not to love? The showdown feels lackluster compared the given expectation, but it's okay. I have fun watching this.

Imperfect perfectly stays within the comfort zone of what's Ernest Prakasa good at. A fully-functioned support system for the main character to endure highs and lows of their character development. It's not that it's not good, but after watching few of his works, it feels very formulaic. You could check all the elements like lovable main characters with his/her love interests, witty dialogues, sitcom-ish setups all over the story, and don't forget the big rom-com ending. It has beautiful meanings too. The formula works, but I wish there is some twist to make the movie fresher.

I like Old's characters chemistry that could make me enjoy trapped with them on the beach. But, the storyline makes it hard to adore this movie more.

The biggest issue is the answer seem pretty obvious in the first 30 minutes, and the rest of the movie is just filled with how the beach affects the characters, shown in almost sequential way so that there's no time left to know more about the nature of the beach. I suppose that's the initial goal, but with that, the ending almost have nothing left to shock me.

I think the movie is simple enough. It has moments of thriller and suspense, but not really that extreme like most horror mockumentaries' third act. The film isn't filled with theories of Area 51 and more about the experience that can only be done with characters with simple reasoning. It's like watching B-slasher movie. It's bad but it's ok enough to watch.

Okay! I get it the director is smart. The movie has interesting concept and several scenes are amazing. However, I think I can't grasp the idea well because the pace and dialogues are too fast. They spoke like in those politics roundtable discussion, thus in the midway I can't follow any of the plot. Maybe I'm too dumb for this movie. I still can enjoy the action though, but not entertained at all. I expect people would love to watch this movie again to make sense the whole story, but I feel like one time is enough. It's like working on a test from a subject I don't understand. I only want to take it once.

As usual, Anwar's writing is a top notch to introduce the characters and build the plot with good amount of mystery and horror. Stamboel didn't forget to put big efforts on his gory materials and nice visual effects.

I like all of them. However, when the story begins to take a hike, I feel all the characters and the plot aren't cohesive. I'm prepared for more gory details like the director's previous work Rumah Dara or Sebelum Iblis Menjemput, but the story resorts to one-man explanation and brief blood scenes.

The 7 star is because I know both the writer/director could do more than this. I really recommend it for fellow horror lovers though.

I watched it the second time to give this movie another chance after the director's new movie released last week. Joko Anwar almost never fails to give interesting movies, but Ritual (Modus Anomali) is the exception. Almost all of the slasher formulas were brought up here, but I feel like the movie is aimless to tell what's the story and purpose. It's just pitch black in the forest with panic guy as the centerpiece.

The strongest/weakest point of the film is probably the brilliant yet forced ending. It works at first, but Ritual's simplistic approach almost make the ending too blatant, hence almost impossible for me to return to those tedious first and second act only.

I really recommend it if you don't know the director's other works. They are better than this. If you know, I think it's best to lower your expectation.

Watching this film is an enjoyable experience. Joko Anwar can optimally use the setting to create a fun haunted house throughout the runtime. Not only that, we also get more explanations (and additional questions as well) about Satan's Slaves universe.

This shows the director already has strong concept about where the saga would go, but at the same time I know this sequel won't be the end, hence the ending feels like an abrupt intermission with lots of flashing lights. However, I think this movie is a great sequel from the predecessor, and it shows with the right hand, Indonesian horror sequel can be a good thing to see. I might want to watch this movie again.

I'm indifferent to superhero movies because above all, especially with Marvel, all of them seem similar in tone and themes. That's what makes me goes awe when watching Doctor Strange's sequel, featuring Wanda Maximoff as the (sorta) villain and lots of multiverse issues,into a different experience. As a jumpy man, I got snatched numerous times by some of the scenes here. Not particularly terrifying that gives a horror vibe, but still gives the movie some texture while cruising the two-hour plot.

I like how the suspense and horror brought the story into a slasher-y, darker turn to the movie. Blood, graphic scenes are PG-13 ish but expected and it's still Marvel so bits of cameos, superhero cliches, and corny jokes are still there. So perhaps casual fans can still seeing the Marvel movie trademark.

Lack of Wanda backstory may confuses some who don't watch WandaVision, and lots of the information given verbally (that sometimes seem lazy). But I had fun watching this and this makes me want to (finally) watch Spiderman.

The documentary is a well-crafted and researched for me who only knows Ted Bundy based on several horror stories that attribute him as the source of inspiration.

One great thing about this limited series is, it gives layers of chronology, background, and characters to both Bundy and his surroundings, which allow me to invest and curious about the killings and Bundy himself. It also not giving too much information for us to understand the whole saga, makes me feel a bit "safer" because I felt Netflix true crimes can be too detailed.

A thing that restrain me for giving the documentary full ten marks is because I watched the production's other release about John Wayne Gacy and notice how similar the production value with this Ted Bundy one. Similar video stocks, similar video effects, and so on. But other than that, this documentary is good if you are lazy for new fictional series/movies provided by Netflix like me.

What I like about Yuni, it feels honest with the dialogues, dynamics, and the characters. It doesn't shy away from the fact that they are not knowing technology, the contradiction between religious and cultural values, the merit of education in the coastline society. Rather than preaching, Yuni ask us to just follow and feel what she feels.

The honesty allows Yuni to build itself by putting little piece of sequences (e.g. Marriage proposals, friend's weddings, inclusion of side characters), which resembles life in its organic fashion. This type of narration risks to be dragging and boring, but Yuni with its simplicity manage us not only to engage until the end, but to care for the characters.

The ending is a little letdown since it's turning different than the whole vibe of the movie (hence 9/10), but I feel like it's an honor to the girls who already endure the reality. I recommend Yuni for those who enjoy movies like Siti, Perempuan Punya Cerita, Berbagi Suami, and Dua Garis Biru.