Needless to say…
As I have said before in my post (The Return), during the time span of write less era (what the?) there are sooo many movies that I watched, some are great, some are good, while some are well just a movie…
Why?
The latest movie that I watched was, Pocong 2! Yup Pocong 2, you read it right, another Indonesian Movie, yet a horror movie, again…
First of all I will say that the decision to finally watch this movie has come a long long way, thanks to the effort of several friends who forced their way to take me to see this movie, I finally watch this movie, I don’t want to see this movie simply because of my disappointment from the last Indonesian horror movie (Hantu Jeruk Purut), you can see it in my previous post.
Second, me and my friend
Dewa, have a list of the most frightening ghost, and Pocong is still at the top of our list, so I expect for something frightening, as for if it’s not it will ruin my perception of frightening ghost, especially Pocong as the top list.
Pocong 2
Now for the movie itself, I was quite surprised that the movie succeeded to surprise me, it lived up the expectation (well actually I don’t have any expectation at all, hehhe).
First come first, the story, this movie’s story was way better than Hantu Jeruk Purut, this movie actually had a story. In the beginning, audiences will be shown an act of killing between two persons, and then go to Maya (Revalina S Temat), an assistant lecturer who lives with her sister Andin (Risty Tagor) since their parents died (no further explanation on this). Maya was searching for new place to live in, while searching for it with her soon to be married fiancé, Adam (Ringgo Agus Rahman), she found an apartment that is so cheap on the rent so that they couldn’t resist to not see it. They get to see the apartment, agree on terms and then rent it. Frightening scenes started to appear at this moment as Adam uses the toilet, on his right side there was a Pocong looking at him without him seeing it (quite surprising).
Story moves on, as they move to the apartment, Andin started to see things that are should not be, such as well, Pocong in several places and time, this had made her depression. Maya, as a good sister then searching for help, to her lecturer, and then to a paranormal, at this paranormal, Maya’s “inner eye” was opened, to make her see the other realm, her vision was quite surprising, since by this strange happenings started to occur. Back to the story, Maya later found out in the internet etc that Pocong always appear/seen before some major incidents such as Bintaro Train Disaster, May Riot in Jakarta etc. so that Pocong was like a way to tell her that something more sinister lurks within the shadows.
After discussion with her lecturer, she started to find some fact about what’s making her sister’s depression, starting from her school, it turns out that four years before, there were a major accident to a girl who goes to school there, the girl and her family was dead of fire. Maya then finds out that there’s one survivor, the girl’s brother who cared so much to his little sister. Maya also finds out that the apartment’s supervisor, Pak Sugeng had a major resemblance with Pak Slamet, head of the family which house was burnt, well as a Javanese, I know that the word Sugeng and Slamet had the same meaning. Another fact is that the house was burnt at three pm, and every three pm the electricity in the apartment were always dead.
Maya then run home and couldn’t find her sister in their apartment, she then got lost in the apartment, as she went downstairs and upstairs, she keeps finding herself in the same floor, 8th floor, when she desperately stops her effort, the scenes were suddenly black! And then she found herself in an empty place, later she found a human skeleton, a wallet, then the horror begins, a struggle then happens, as the good then outcome the evil, Andin then discovered, but then they figure out that there were no apartment of whatsoever actually is in that area, it’s all the sinister doing that making them see the apartment. All in all it’s a happy ending.
So What?
There are some scenes that I recall was like the scene from The Eye, an Asian Horror Movie, well after Maya’s inner eye was opened she can see things that are well, horror. This was like a disappointment to me, since I expected something original but there are some scenes that is, well, not original.
Another thing is the concept of the sinister vengeance was like the concept of The Ring and Ju On (or The Grudge, it’s quite the same) where as they already dead but the spirit lives on and take vengeance to people.
Verdict
I’d give this movie a 4 stars (****), since it succeeded to surprise me, kudos to Rudy Sujarwo for making a good Indonesian movie as he always does.
Intermezzo
When me and my friends watched this movie, Revalina S Temat and Agus Ringgo is going to see the movie also, sadly enough, they were going to see the 7 pm schedule while me and my friends were to see the 5 pm movie. But I get the chance to take picture with one of the Pocong that lurks within the cinema…
Not an accomplishment, but it's well taken picture, I bet you don't have this kinda picture... :p