THE GALLOWS

Directed by: Travis Cluff, Chris Lofing

Starring by: Reese Mishler, Pfeiffer Brown, Ryan Shoos, Cassidy Gifford

Blumhouse Production

The word “Gallows” is funny word, here in Indonesia, people used it to represent a condition which confusing or fill with uncertainty so it frustrated to someone, while on the other hand, in English, it means the tools to hung criminals which also brought some frustrating situation on both, after all who want to be hung, right? And when I saw this movie, it was very frustrating one as well, let me tell you why...

The story begun when bunch of guys take a shot of the school drama performance at Beatrice High School in 1993 which ends with disaster because of the malfunction of the set, the door beneath Charlie Grimille’s feet opens and make him hung with noose around his neck, which killed him instantly in front of the casts and audience. Its good opening, I admit it, but it missed me a little when the situation moves forward where bunch of guys from the same school represent that drama at present day.   

This movie had narrow and close range shot which using an angle of Ryan’s camera but I had to admit that this film using clever angle that used not only the camera but also other device such phone camera from the characters in it. Ryan tapes his friend, Reese who’s about to perform the same role as Charlie did before, but he found out that Reese was horrible actor so his friend would embarrassed himself if Reese continues to perform. 

So Ryan suggested to ruins the stage at night so Reese can avoid performing on stage elegantly, I think the other motive from Ryan that he want to get even with Price who humiliated Ryan in front of the crew. Cassidy, Ryan’s girlfriend, excited to hear that idea and wanted to join them.

And that was the start of their mistake, funny how all chaos started from fad, but that’s teenager, isn’t it?

Three of them entered the school hall from the back door that Ryan found stays unlock because it’s broken, and meshed up the stage, they think everything goes smoothly as their plan until they caught up by Pfeifer, who actually staying at the school that night. It really awkward coincidence, I think, and seemed impossible in real life as I knew the main actor or actress usually would be stay in their house to rest and get relax a day before the show time. 

Reese, who got crush with the girl confessed that he, and his friend, came to the place to destroy the stage but it turned up fine when they got back at the hall, the rope which taken down by Ryan still hanging on the pool while the stairs that destroyed back in normal. The fourth got panic when they realized the door locked and they were trapped in the school building and you should watch it for yourself as the ghost killed them one by one.

I like the part when Ryan meshing up Price’s locker while the locker door above his head opened by itself at the same time, I thought the ghost want to make Ryan’s head hit but when he lifted his head and closed the door of Price’s locker, it also shut. Cool! 

And it was not surprising if this character became the first victim because he’s so swank, it was him who challenging and taunting Charlie by calling that name many times, his friend tried to warned him not to call that name in vain, something that reminds us of Charlie Challenge as the spiritual game which is trendy on the internet this days and also gave warned to be careful saying that name. 

Ryan ends up with broken leg after being pushed from the ladder by unseen force when he tried to open air-conditioning duct in an attempt to get out from the building. His friends seek for medicine and left him alone on the stage and that’s when Charlie’s appearance was shown for the first time.    

The murder of Cassidy probably the best scene in this film, sitting on the floor with legs folded, it’s some pose which I want to become a cover for my book, Deathline, at first but I’m happy if this film took that pose eventually because I still think it was a cool one. And the audience on the cinema were screaming, especially the girl who sat with his boyfriend next to me, when the rope get around Cassidy’s neck and drug her out.    

I knew it was not a coincidence when the fourth trapped in that school, the ghost was targeting Reese to be killed when he heard the voice on his cell phone saying the line that he has to said on the show, “He wants me, He coming for me.” 

It simply because Reese’s father who actually played the role as the main character that to be hung in 1993, and not Charlie Grimelle who replaced him because Reese’s father got sick before the show. So it’s funny to found out that the locker where Reese’s phone got locked was in locker number 93, right?

Blumhouse did well by releasing this low budget film,which approximately cost them US$ 100,000 but get in returned US$ 13,5 Million, so that’s why horror still loved by movie marker as the genre that could bring lots of fortune with only minimum cost and not-so-famous casts which used their own name for the characters on the movie. 

I don’t gave many critics of this film because this sure is giving us another example of what called the economic value business film, but here what I want to tell you about my frustration... the script writer confuse me up about Charlie’s appearance, is he a ghost or monster?

If you want to perform Charlie as a paranormal creature, I think you making him too harsh by showing him attacked the police and performing the shadow when he’s been chasing Reese and Cassidy at the alley, man...paranormal appearance should be delicate...they don’t emerged shadow...while on the other hand if he’s a monster you shouldn’t make some appearance which allowed him to appear and vanished such way...so now you know why I got frustrated to guess what Charlie really are, right?    

POLTERGEIST

Directed by: Gil Kennan

Starring by: Sam Rockwell, Rosemarie DeWitt, Kyle Catlett, Kennedi Clements

MGM-Ghost House Picture

Poltergeist was one of classic horror movies that I love so much, that’s why when Hollywood makes the remake of this Spielberg’s movie, it became my  top list movie I should watch this year.

The plot hasn’t change much; it was obvious for remake movies to be compared with the original, that’s why it brought some spark for me to remember the previous movie. The Bowen, a nice family with their three kids, Kendra, Griffin, and Madison had move to their new house in some nice neighborhood but they experienced strange thing inside the house. It was Griffin who realized that first; he heard a noise in the night, finding a closet full of freaky doll, and saw his sister, Amy who speaks to unseen things in front of the closet and television. Well, I just love to see when the hairs of those two were raise when they put their hand at the closet knob.

The presence of unseen force broke Kendra’s phone and she asked Eric for a new one. Eric went to the mall then, but it was funny because on few scenes before Kendra gave comment that there was no mall near the neighborhood. And it doesn’t make me any sense when Eric, the father, bought so many expensive stuffed like cell phone and robot drone, just after he said that his family suffering financial problem because he’s being laid off on the earliest scenes of the film.

Eric and Amy Bowen found out that their house was built on the cemetery...former cemetery...from the dinner talking with some folks that...well, to be honest I don’t know what the meaning of the dinner event was, because there’s no explanation about it, whether it was dinner event to gather neighbors or business colleague? Logically, neither was right, if its business colleague neither Eric nor Amy were on work so they couldn’t be had one, but if its neighbor’s meeting I don’t think they could tell the story about cemetery with such ease. So, I think that scene was only something to inform the couples about their house history. I giggles because the writer put some dialog which mention the house of Bowen wasn't built on old cemetery, which is something to tease the writer of the original because he describes that the house was built on some ancient cemetery that belong to Indian.

The parent started to believe about noisy ghost that haunt their house when they saw Griffin grabbed by an old tree that pulled him outside and Kendra got hysterical about ghost in the basement. Further they found out that the youngest child, Madison, was trapped inside the television after she’s being dragged into the closet. It was cool to see the effect when the lights from the lamp’s bulb were flying out to the closet before the ghosts took Madison away.      

Desperate to get help, Amy visited the Paranormal Research Division from her campus. The staff set the house with electronic equipment to track the appearance and Amy helps them with calling at Madison. But it was Eric who found the hole to the other side when he tearing down the closet wall with chair and table after he got attack by the ghost that looked like Madison. The leader of the staff, Dr. Brooke Powell realized that the Bowen was attack by evil spirits call Poltergeist and they couldn’t handle that without the help from occult specialist and television personality Carrigan Burke.      

Eric begun to experienced the appearance as well when he took the drink in a sink which ends with the shoot, throwing up dirt liquid from his mouth and eyes, but funny how the bottle that he put next to the sink was moved few inches away from it after Amy woke him up from the hallucination.

Carrigan arrived and he became solution for the family’s problem. He set the rope from the Madison’s room upstairs to be a lead to the way out from the downstairs ceiling. The remake adding the technology which wasn’t invent yet on Spielberg’s era, the drone, to seek Madison who trapped in the fire hole upstairs but you had to do all thing by yourself if you want to get it done, so when the drone destroyed by the things inside the hole just when they’re about to found Madison’s location, Griffin decided to help his sister by entering the other side hole before Carrigan does and the big brother succeed to get her out.

This film is good thing to remember and I didn’t have any disappointment watching it. It amplifies to the new generation why Poltergeist became the legend of classic horror movie. I think they also choose the right girl as Madison Bowen because Kennedi Clements, who’s starring this film as her debut, has angelic face as Heather O’Rourke had. I hope the curse from the original movie doesn’t stay on this movie and the actor and actress who played the role in this new movie will be fine for the rest of their life.

As a reminder, Poltergeist was issued as a curse movie because there were several accident and tragedy happened several years after this film launched and became prequel, two actresses that played as the daughter, the youngest, Heather O’Rourke, died by cardiac arrest and septic shot caused by misdiagnosed intestinal issue while the older daughter, Dominique Dunne, was killed in brutal murdered by her boyfriend that strangled her to death. Some said it’s cause by the used of real human skeletons by the crew, with the pathetic reason that it were cheaper than if they make the fake skeletons for properties.  

INSIDIOUS CHAPTER 3

Directed by: Leigh Whannell

Starring by: Dermot Mulroney, Stefanie Scott, Angus Sampson, Lin Shaye

Blumhouse Production

I’ve been waiting to see the third sequel of Insidious because I’m curious of what was seen by Elise, the psychic heroin, when she’s been healing a possession young girl from the second movie. I thought chapter 3 would satisfied my curiosity but I found out that the story in this film took different part which didn’t continue the previous, instead moving backward to the time before Elise had to deal the black gown lady that killed her on the haunting of Lambert family.

A girl named Quinn Brenner comes to visit Elise in this house. She said that she missed her mom that already passed away and asked for Elise help to contact with the dead. Before that she did the call by herself but ends up nothing. Elise, who actually finished with supernatural calling, took pity on her so finally Elise decides to help her. But something was attached on Quinn since she’s doing the calling alone, and that demon want to own her. Elise warned her but it all too late.

Quinn experienced weird things, like what happened when she take the audition, she saw someone waving at her from the window and across the street before she got hit by car. The accident makes her paralyze from the waist down and she have to stay alone on her apartment, luckily she have good father, Sean, who want to take care of her safely. 

When he gave her the bell in order to call him if she needs everything, I remember of my grandmother who also got paralyzed because of her old-sickness and she also had the same bell to call peoples if she’s hungry or need to go to the bathroom.

I like the part when Quinn knocked on the wall and got the answered but when she text Hector by phone, turn out that he was not at home and who the hell’s knock her back? It’s cool...

These paranormal occurrences become more and more frequent every time Sean help her daughter, started from just the bell ring and Quinn that move to the upstairs room which finally facing Quinn with different part of her which doesn’t have arms, legs, and face that try to grab her to jump from the window. 

Sean believe that something demonic was haunting Quinn, so he visit Elise and asked for her help but she turned him down. She’s too afraid to handle the demon because of her nightmares and the threat from the spirit of black dress woman who want to kill her if she’s doing spiritual visit to the other side.

Sean finds help to somewhere else and his son suggested that they called bunch of bloggers who acclaims that they can deal with ghost and terminate them. Specs and Tucker put camera on Quinn’s head to monitor her overnight from the electronic equipment which they usually used on their ghost project. 

I smiled when those silly couple found out that there’s no ghost haunt Quinn, instead it was Quinn herself that walk down from her bed...remember, she still paralyzed and her legs wrapped in a cast. I thought to myself that, it must be part when the writer wants to tell us that none of those “ghost hunters” from TV or internet are real.

Then again, the hero came and the audience applause when Elise finally came to Sean’s apartment and decide to help Quinn after she talk to her colleague, Carl, who supported her to be strong because she’s alive and everybody needs her. 

Actually, I don’t agree with Carl’s saying that she’s stronger than the spirit in the dead world because she still live, how come we could deal something that not from our world? For instance, I don’t believe we could defeat shark in the ocean but it’s obvious that I’m stronger than the shark on the land. But so be it, if it makes Elise get motivated to help Quinn, and that’s for the best...

Elise took a journey one more time to the darkness world and met some ghosts that lead her to “The man who can’t breathe” who make Quinn’s half soul as his pet. She fought the evil spirit and takes her soul away. 

It makes me wonder, how the hell she could do that? Isn’t Quinn’s half soul appears to be limbless, so she couldn’t walk? But Elise grabbed her shoulder and take her to run which I think too much for an old lady...hey, I just realized that this movie also put old lady as the main character, similar to The Taking of Deborah Logan at my last review...

This movie had cool ends which make us realized that we don’t missed someone we love even if their death already and it was okay for the rookie director, Leigh Whannell to replace Jamse Wan who couldn’t take part to direct this prequel because of his tight schedule on Fast & Furious. I think I’m going to wait for the next chapter of Insidious...    

THE TAKING OF DEBORAH LOGAN

Directed by : Adam Robitel

Starring by: Jill Larson, Anne Ramsay, Michelle Ang, Ryan Cutrona

Millenium Entertainment

This movie should be play at Cinema last year but I don’t know what cause the delay so it just screened recently this year. The premise about "groups that examining old lady which had Alzheimer whose behavior was change very fast but it seemed something else is going on with her, something evil" made me thought to myself, woow that's cool stuff and I think the same thing as I felt that on Quiet Ones...some science thing that end up in horror ways...

This kind of movies usually put young girl to posses but I gave credit for this movie because they put old lady to be main character, which something risky for my opinion compared to what Texas Chainsaw did by putting good looking young girl to replace a-mature-woman-should-be to make the movie more interesting, but it did make the difference. Like any other movies that choose possession theme, The Taking used close shoot range style like what was on Paranormal Activity or Rec.

The plot was too pushy as well, as the group insisted Deborah Logan, the nice old lady that suffering early stage of Alzheimer disease, to be exam. First she refused but when Sarah, Deborah’s daughter, urged her mother to accept the money that offered to prevent their house, the story finally begun. 

Deborah was showing some bizarre action that state as normal thing by Dr. Nazir, personal physician, for someone with aggressive form of Alzheimer, but the cameramen Luis was the only one who noticed that Deborah’s act was beyond normal explanation and concern that something natural takes part.

As a movie that showing logic, it’s funny to see how Mia and the other were busy to find Deborah that missing from her room in the dark. And they're doing it couple times, they done it again when they seek for Deborah who disappeared from her room at hospital. 

Normally when people freak out about missing something or somebody they should be put the lights on before started to seek but in order to make the movie more terrified I thought they deliberately let the lights off. The close range shoot was also became the element of surprised because we don’t know what could be appeared close to the characters.  

Things became tense when Luis and Gavin record Deborah speaking in French while sitting on her old switchboard about sacrifice and snake, and the line of 337 that continually rings belongs to local physician named Henry Desjardin, who disappeared after series of cannibal ritualistic murder of four young girls. Deborah’s action that became extreme and violent forced them to put her in hospital.

While Deborah taking care at hospital, Mia and the other discovered Desjardin was doing ancient demonic ritual that took five girls to accomplished to make him immortal. Unfortunately, he just got four before he disappeared mysteriously after that. They suspected Deborah was involved in something that make Desjardin disappeared. 

Sarah could be his fifth victim but before he accomplished his mission Deborah killed Desjardin first and his ghost is been haunting her now. They also found out that Deborah case actually similar to what happened on the possession case at Africa and the witch doctor there ends it by burning the kid’s corpse with fire. So Sarah started to look where her mother burry Desjardin.

In the hospital, Deborah succeed to abduct Cara, a cancer patient young girl, and take her to the location where Desjardin murder all his victims in previous time. It’s cool to see when Mia sees Deborah trying to eat Cara’s head in snake-like manner, showing that the demons inside Deborah is actually what they thought about that African’s ancient demonic ritual that includes snakes. Before they succeed to burn Desjardin corpse to ends the demonic act, Deborah was able to killed Chief Police first. 

In the end it shows a footage of Deborah that couldn't send to trail because she’s not in perfect health and how the cancer patient young girl became heals perfectly, there’s no surprise when Cara ends the scene with weird smile that told us that Desjardin finally able to control her, but how can he do that because he didn’t finished the ritual, wasn’t it? 

And that was when I thought about the Chief Police that got killed because she’s young and she’s must be virgin as required by the ritual...she’s the fifth victims and the mission accomplished...  

7500

Directed by : Takashi Shimizu

Starring by: Leslie Bibb, Ryan Kwanten, Amy Smart, Jamie Chung

CBS Film

Airplane crashed…

The director choose a very hot topic for this year movie according what had happened in a past few months with the missing of Malaysian Airline MH370, the shot down of MH17, the tragic accident of Air Asia QZ 8501, and the newest from German Wings. And we surely want to know really what happened during the accident in some heavy equipment that they always call a safer transportation tools compare to others.

The scene start with a heavy turbulence in the air which shaking everyone inside, then the calling from the tower for the flight 7500, which remains me of what happened with QZ 8501, that had no respond but noisy sound and hissed of a weird noise like ghost. After that it moved backwards from the event that occurred four hours before the shaky turbulence did happened…the gathering of the passengers before the plane take-off.

The flight 7500 was departing from LA to Tokyo and took passengers which had their own secret, never crossed in my mind that something like that could happened but it absolutely right, I never thought of anyone else when I took a flight but I believe they had their own problem or secret life that similar to flight attendant Laura who got secret relationship with the Pilot Captain, Pete who’s married, or couples like Brad and Pia who had secretly broken up their marriage, or like newlyweds Rick and Liz who supposed to have their sweet times of honeymoon but Rick had a little problem with the perfectionism Liz that sometimes snob him, or like Jake who live his nice life as a surfer but had a profession as a thief in order to support his hobby, or a young woman Raquel who looks single but when she entered the plane toilet she had pregnancy test on her, or the gothic girl Jacinta who looks stupid with her looks but on the other hand like books and had super quotes for life and death, or like Lance, the businessman who obviously got he’s own secret with strange wooden box that didn’t let anyone, including the flight attendant, helped him carrying it.      

Well, the four leading actresses had act in a horror film before this, Amy Smart (as Pia) in Mirror (2008), Jamie Chung (flight attendance Suzy) in Sorority Rows (2009), Scout Taylor-Compton (Jacinta) in Halloween (2007), and Leslie Bibb (flight attendance Laura) in Trick or Treat and I said the board scene floats perfectly well because it’s not too fast, as only for the bridge before the plane start to fly but explained the detail character of the passengers with easy-going style.

 The quiet planned disturb by the riot when Lance suddenly had panic attacks and blood come from his nose. The businessman shaking very hard and weirdly so Laura asked for a doctor from passenger on board to help. Brad who had paramedic helped her but Lance can’t manage it and died. The situation on board became gloomy but Captain Pete decided not to land the planned but continued the flight plan to Tokyo. Therefore the flight attendance move Lance body to First Class upstairs, and move all the First Class down to second class downstairs.

In this movie passengers and flight attendance were shown going downstairs and entering flight deck but as you know, actually, flight deck on 747 is on the upper floor, not down floor. I don’t know what the reason of level change here but my best guess is a lot easier for the crews to build first floor as the center of the activity and the upper floor as lower activity, instead of the other way around. Logically, it’s easier to build up rather than down.

The turbulence that make Lance panic came once again, Laura who realized that the cabin pressure had dropped from plastic water bottle that collapsing try to warn passenger to buckle up and seat tight but it happened so fast and not entirely passenger back to their seat at that time. By sudden the turbulence shakes very hard and make oxygen mask dropped. The shake seems almost crashed the plane but finally the pilots could take control of it.

After the heavy shake, the terrors start to occur. Passenger begun to disappeared strangely, Liz saw the Lance appearance on her laptop screen, Jake who saw the dead man alive when he takes Lance’s Rolex watch – when the dead body turned around when Jake took a picture on a selfie cam, I think that’s cool – Raquel who being dragged down into the toilet, Jacinta who had experienced pulled blanket when she got sleep make some of them realize that something going wrong in the plane after Lance death. They decide to investigate who Lance was and take a look what inside the man’s box.  

They found out a shinigami doll inside the luggage. Jacinta inform the group that the doll is a being that collected people’s souls after they die, but only if they let go of whatever is holding them to this world. From the woman’s hair that also found with the doll, they suspect Lance bring his victim on the plane so Laura decide to find the dead body from the luggage compartment in the below section.

The coolest thing about this movie is we never know when the death comes, but when it came on us we suddenly realized that anything we do in earth today is no longer important because the beauty is about to come and if we're not ready to accept the death itself, we could end up like poor Liz at the end of the scene who’s being left behind in empty plane room for she’s not ready to face death and let go whatever holding her in this world, as she said before to Jacinta that she's not expecting death could happened in her life at that time… 

HORROR HOUSE

Directed by : Nayato Fio Nuala

Starring by: Betrand Antolin, Masayu Anastasia, Stuart Collin, Tatiana Sivek, Kimberly Rider

My Dream Picture

 The first thing I’d seen when I watched this movie was who write it, and turned out that Erry Sofid was the one. And I said to myself, Horror House would be a good one because I knew him and had seen several of his work on TransTV programs. Perhaps I didn’t know him closely but we had something in comment because we like horror so dearly and he once writes at the same book title Sell Your Soul, the anthology book that brought my name as writer. I often heard his fans gave a nickname for him….Prince of Darkness…if I’m not mistaken. When I heard that name I thought he was some kind of super hero or something like that that fight criminals in the middle of the night…hahaha…

It started with Samara, a girl who lived in small apartment in the center-town, who often experienced strange things. I thought the changes face of hers becoming skull or screaming ghost on the mirror was cool. But sorry, Mr. Sofid, I already knew Samara is a ghost just in five initial scenes. I don’t know if it because I’m too often seeing horror movie or what…but the way Samara neglected by her waitress-friend or customer on the café was the same moves as Malcolm Crowe had experienced at Sixth Sense. Perhaps, if you’re not describe it to obvious on the elevator scene, when Samara get down with two girls who by suddenly smell something rot near them, I didn’t had something to convinces my guesses even more.

The terrors were not terrorizing Samara but Nadine as well, the girl who planned to be married with Terry. She believes Terry was perfect man to be her husband. That’s why she set the wedding preparation very properly in order to make that day as a moment to remember for the rest of their live.  Again, when Terry brought Nadine to dine at the café…I got hunched that café was the place where Samara works. In the middle of the movie my hunched was right…the café was just not the place where Samara had work but also where she meet Terry because he’s some kind of regular customer there.

A new resident by name Yuda came to that apartment. The photographer had just lost his girlfriend who committing suicide so he’s on a deep grief at that time, and he’s the one who could see Samara. They become friends because she keeps asking help to him, such medicine to cure her bruises…something that definitely funny because girl usually a good medical storage…but that’s probably a key to make them close. And it’s very typical expression looks by the apartment owner when he saw Yuda and Samara talked to each other…it probably something I will made as well if I wrote this story…

It bothers me a bit to find that Samara gets disturb by rot smell that came from her apartment. Maybe it’s trick from the writer to skipped viewer’s attention that Samara was ghost, because it doesn’t make any sense ghost would sense something like that…besides she’s the one who told Yuda that she smell something rot from the shed inside her apartment.

Yuda that being visited by Nadine, who wanted to hire him as photograph on her wedding day, helped to check it out, together with Nadine. Nadine finally found out a photo frames which shown Samara and Terry together, on the other hand Yuda was shocked to see the real Samara lying dead in the fridge. The ghost of Samara who didn’t realize what had happened in her world can’t believe her eyes and get hysterical but she vanished right away.

The apparition was shown very often in this movie, I can’t remember anymore where there lies, but it’s quite like what Erry Sofid did…sit a little and you will haunted till you scream…I can’t catch impression to make me remember what scene is the most powerful beside the rapid shocking, which bores me the later. The story’s simple and cool…the picture also cool…but I don’t know…to be honest I expected more than any of these…nevertheless yeah, it’s a fine movie if you want to watch Indonesian horror movie…it’s a good one compare to Bidadari Pulau Hantu or Taman Mayestik

WOMAN IN BLACK 2

Hammer Film

Directed by: Tom Harper

Starring by: Phoeboe Fox, Jeremy Irvin, Helen McCrory, Adrian Rawlins

This is the first movie I saw in 2015. So I expected to be something tremendous as I had with Paranormal Activity, The Marked One, which became my first at 2014. Something funny realizing that the main roles in this film were also the cast on Harry Potter sequel, as Daniel Radcliffe starred at Woman In Black (2012). Helen McCrory (Jean Hogg), as Narcissa Malfoy, and Adrian Rawlins (Dr. Rhodes), as James Potter.

The rain of bomb in London forcing Eve Parkins gathering her schoolchildren, especially Edward who had lost his parent, with the headmaster evacuate to the countryside town and taken by Dr. Rhodes to Eel Mars House. Turn out that she found many odd things in the house, besides the nightmare she had, Eve also heard some weird noise from the cellar which apparently came from rocking chair, a message that scolding her mistake of letting her baby’s go few years ago, and seeing a woman dressed in black, who vanished in no time.

The strange things keep happening when Edward experienced apparition from the ghost after his friends lock him up in the nursery room. And on the next morning, the boy who bullied Edward was found dead on the swamp. The odd continued when Flora try to kill herself by strangled her own neck and finally died by gas mask. The situation get chaos and the two teachers realized they had to leave the house to the air force bunker with Harry Burnstow, the young pilot who runs air-base decoy.

The black-dress lady ghost kept following them and taken Edward back to the house, Eve who finally realized that the ghost look after for her also returned to the house to set the boy free. Did she manage to do that? I think you should watch the movie…

But I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed if you expecting something special in this movie. I watched the first Woman In Black, and though I don’t had chance to write the review but I still remembered that movie leave me no impression to be reminded. This movie solely relies on jump scares to scare the audience. It works sometimes but it gets a bit repetitive and predictable, such as the scene of a nurse who carried a baby, I knew somehow it would turn change to something horrible and it did…

The message was clear, The Woman In Black wanted Eve to suffering the pain of watching Edward died in the swamp, just like what happened to Alice Drablow who watched her son, Nathaniel died in the swamp as well. Turn out that Jennet Humpfrye, the mother of the child she adopted, killed her because of the hatred she carried. It’s no make senses to me, maybe it’s because I just don’t understand, why the Woman In Black had to be Jennet Humpfyre instead of Alice who made suicide.

There almost no mistake in this movie, except for the black out in the cellar which supposed to be light up the torch instead of the matches, and the stared played efficiently at their part. If you want to watched this movie, I think you better be put low expectation and preparing yourself for the mediocre taste.   

BIDADARI PULAU HANTU

Directed by: Gobind Punjabi

Sutradara : George Hutabarat

Starring by: Mongol, Gian Subianto, Khadijah Syalimar, Vitalia Shesya, Nadia Zuhra, Cariesta Maya, Albern

Alasan saya menonton film ini karena Mongol merupakan Comic favorit saya sewaktu dia masih di SUCI (Stand Up Comedy Indonesia) dan film ini merupakan film horror pertama buat dia. Ingin tahu bagaimana perannya dari comedian ke sebuah film horror yang nampaknya merupakan film horror serius, bila dilihat dari penampilan covernya.

Dan memang film ini film horror serius sementara kehadiran Mongol disitu sekedar untuk memperiang suasana, malah sebenarnya menurut saya banyak dipaksakan sehingga kehadiran Mongol sebagai makluk transgender yang berprofesi sebagai perias make-up disitu sayangnya tidak banyak menolong sebagai bagian dari film horror.

Berkisah tentang sepasang kekasih, Evan dan Gesti, yang pergi ke suatu pulau untuk melakukan foto pre-wedding bersama sahabat mereka Roman (fotografer), Remi (penata rias), Vidi (sepupu Gesti), dan Tilda (sahabat mereka semua). Keberangkatan ke pulau itu menjadi momen sendiri untuk menampilkan pose-pose seksi tiga artis bertubuh bagus itu di atas yacht namun bukan itu yang saya tunggu…

Kemunculan hantu perempuan pembawa clurit banyak diumbar di seperempat bagian awal, mulai dari mimpi Evan, mimpi Vidi, lalu ketika Evan dan Gesti mengambil foto di berbagai lokasi yang ternyata diikuti dengan kemunculan hantu wanita itu di setiap pose. Sesuatu yang menurut saya diluar pakem karena hantu di film ini keluar siang hari. Tapi rasanya terlalu banyak sex talk di film ini. Saya bukan orang yang menghindari sex talk dalam cerita tapi rasanya saya mendengar terlalu banyak dan rasanya hampir membuat perut saya melilit karena bertanya-tanya apakah tidak ada topik lain yang bisa dibahas anak-anak muda keren ini selain sex? It sucks and boring…

Beberapa aktivitas juga tidak pas, misalnya seperti adegan memisahkan diri dalam kelompok untuk mencari teman yang hilang. Itu terjadi dua kali, pertama saat terpisah dengan Roman di sebuah taman mereka mengatakan akan membagi dua kelompok untuk mencari Roman, Vidi dan Evan di satu kelompok sementara Remi, Tilda, dan Gesti di kelompok lain. Vidi dan Evan mencari tapi kelompok yang lain malah duduk-duduk di taman dan bergosip soal Evan dan Vidi, sekedar menjelaskan ke penonton bahwa Evan dan Vidi pernah punya hubungan. Yang kedua, di malam hari saat mencari Roman yang kedua kali karena dia belum kembali ke bungalow. Kali ini yang mencari Evan dan Tilda, sementara Vidi, Remi, dan Gesti di kelompok lain…yang lagi-lagi hanya kelompok Evan dan Tilda yang mencari tahu namun kelompok yang lain malah tinggal di bungalow, tidak ikut mencari, dan hanya bergosip soal Evan dan Tilda bahwa keduanya suka berhubungan seks. What a waste…

Aktivitas yang tidak pas lainnya bisa dilihat saat Vidi dan Remi istirahat di speedboat setelah lari-lari ketakutan meninggalkan Tilda, bermaksud pergi dari pulau dan ternyata malah bertemu dengan sosok hantu wanita berclurit. Mereka yang seharusnya ketakutan setelah kabur dari tempat itu kemudian di adegan berikutnya malah memunculkan adegan berenang di pantai dan keduanya nampak tertawa-tawa senang. Sungguh jeda yang sangat panjang menurut saya…atau justru mereka bisa mengubah ketakutan dengan hebatnya dalam hitungan detik?

Beberapa kebocoran di gambar juga terlihat. Terlihat ada orang lewat ketika adegan Roman menguntit Jessica yang akan mandi di laut padahal digambarkan dalam cerita bahwa mereka hanya sendirian di pulau tersebut. Lalu saat adegan dimana Gesti masuk ke kamar, menangis karena cemburu melihat Tilda dan Evan (yang baru pulang setelah melakukan pencarian) ternyata bergandengan tangan. Saat adegan itu kamera melakukan panning pada Gesti, ingin menggambarkan bahwa ada hantu masuk ke dalam kamar itu dan ternyata memang dugaan saya tepat karena detik berikutnya Gesti berteriak-teriak ketakutan, namun anehnya saya melihat bayangan si cameraman muncul di dinding….   

Kalimat yang tidak pas juga muncul, masih berlanjut di adegan saat Gesti yang ketakutan keluar dari kamar dan menghambur ke pelukan Evan. Bukannya histeris pada hantu, Gesti malah memberi kalimat yang menurut saya absurd, “Kamu nggak ngapa-ngapain kan sama Tilda?” Man, dia baru ketakutan melihat hantu dan yang terlintas di pikirannya apakah calon suaminya ngapa-ngapain sama sahabatnya? Kalimat yang parah ini membuat saya maklum saja mendengar beberapa pemainnya salah menyebut nama, dua kali nama Roman salah sebut menjadi Ramon….pertama kali oleh Albern, pemerannya sendiri saat dia menantang si hantu di pantai, yang kedua oleh Evan di adegan akhir saat meninggalkan pulau dengan speed boat.

Saya mengacungkan jempol pada pembuat efek yang bisa membuat jari Evan dan Gesti benar-benar ‘hilang’ setelah di potong Jessica. Evan di jari kelingking dan jari manis tangan kanan, sementara Gesti ibu jari tangan kiri. Tapi sayangnya kontinity yang bagus itu sedikit ternoda oleh telinga Evan yang masih utuh padahal Jessica jelas-jelas memotongnya sebelum melakukan adegan potong jari sementara darah sudah membanjiri kerah leher Evan di bagian sebelah kanan.

Dan pada akhirnya, rasanya saya sudah terlalu banyak mengkritik film ini, saya bingung kenapa tokoh Jessica harus dimunculkan dalam cerita? Memang tujuan karakter ini mungkin membalaskan dendam kakaknya yang tewas dibunuh saat pre-wedding di pulau dan menjadi hantu gentayangan supaya tiap calon pengantin yang mengambil foto pre-wedding di tempat tersebut mengalami nasib naas yang sama, tapi kenapa tidak menyerahkannya kepada si hantu itu sendiri? Kenapa harus ada Jessica yang membunuhi Evan cs satu persatu?

Tadinya saya berpikir hantu itu muncul hanya sebagai penampakan saja sementara tokoh antagonis yang berperan sebagai pembunuh brutal adalah Jessica, tapi ternyata apa yang saya pikirkan tidak sejalan dengan ceritanya karena ternyata hantu itu membunuh juga…dia membunuh Vidi saat berenang di kolam renang bersama Remi…tapi mirisnya hanya satu korban saja…sementara yang lainnya dibereskan oleh Jessica sehingga kesan brutal dari si hantu berkurang…hanya mampu membunuh satu korban saja…

Pada akhirnya, menonton film ini, bukan cerita seru, efek mencengangkan, atau adegan menyeramkan yang saya dapatkan, memang ada pesan moral yang bagus dimana kalau kita menikah sebaiknya harus jujur pada pasangan sebab pernikahan merupakan sesuatu yang sakral, bila dimulai dengan kebohongan maka akan berakhir tidak baik. Namun sebagai film horor, film ini lebih banyak menawarkan pemandangan indah, baik pemandangan pantainya juga gadis-gadis bertubuh sintalnya…jadi bila ingin mencuci mata saat nonton horror silakan memilih Bidadari Pulau Hantu.