|
Maya and her
younger sister Andin are orphans since a
year back and have just started to move on with their
lives. Maya is getting married to her boyfriend soon
and Andin is afraid that Maya will forget about her.
To patch things up with her sister, Maya decides to
buy Andin her own apartment now that she's starting
college and has to take care of herself. What she
doesn't know is that the building is haunted, and
that something evil is coming for Andin.
I rarely review, or even watch sequels to movies that
I haven't seen the original for - but in this case
I felt like I had to make an exception. Why? Because
the first movie, Dendam Pocong, was banned and is damn
near impossible to track down. So why make a sequel
to a movie that no one's seen? Well because the director
had all ready started shooting the sequel before the
first one was banned - or at least that's what I've
heard. Either way, it's a good thing that he did because
Pocong 2 is undoubtedly the best Indonesian horror
movie that I've ever seen.
Unfortunately for me, this isn't a free-standing sequel,
and there are several connections to be found with the
first movie. That didn't spoil it though since they
explain everything very thoroughly for the ones who
haven't seen the first movie (though I'm not even sure
the first movie ever got released). Obviously inspired
by "The Eye", Pocong 2 is a chilling and extremely
suspenseful horror flick about two orphan sisters who
move into a new building, only to realize that it's
haunted by a pocong. A what now? A pocong! A ghost
wrapped up in sheets so that the spirit of the ghost
will suffer for all eternity. Thank god that they
explained that in the movie, right?
The first time that the ghost appears, you can't help
but to start laughing, because, well, it looks like a
bunny jumping down the stairs. Nevertheless, everything
else about that first revealing scene was just nail biting.
Luckily, the ghost doesn't do any more jumping around
after that and instead you get more and more creeped
out by the dead mummified woman until you're finally
hiding under your blanket, covering your eyes. I have
not been this scared for a long time, so if you plan
on checking this out, prepare for nerve-shredding terror.
So what exactly is it that makes Pocong 2 such an
outstanding horror flick? Because it's not really that
original. Well, just like every other successful Asian
ghost movie, it takes time to build up a genuinely
creepy atmosphere and does not let go of you until
the end credits start to roll. It also has genuine
characters so that you can feel for each and every
one of them. I really liked the fact that they had
nice and sweet teachers rather than mean and strict.
Then we have the flawless directing. Sure, the movie
obviously didn't have the best of budgets, but that
actually works in favour of the movie. The director
gives it a realistic look and makes everything about
the movie feel very genuine. It almost feels as though
you're in the movie for some reason. Many directors
have attempted this before, and few have succeeded
(Ils aka Them is one of the successful movies), but
these guys have clearly nailed it.
I strongly recommend that you check Pocong 2 out and
I'm going to do everything I can to try to get my
hands on the first movie as well because I can't wait
to see that. This is a top-notch horror flick with
a creepy atmosphere, some terrifyingly suspenseful
scenes, and a couple of scares which will scare you
right out of your seat. Don't miss this!
Nothing really.
The humming bass and slick music works perfectly
together with the movie and helps add to the atmosphere.
I'm just stunned. Going into this I had expected a
dull ghost movie, but what I got was a top-notch horror
flick with a great story, lots of atmosphere and
some brilliant scares. If you're in the mood for
something scary, watch this late at night, alone,
you will not be disappointed.
|
|
