hororia riviu

self archive of (mostly horror) movies

[hororia]

Under Paris (2024)

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Not a good one. Already can tell from the beginning, tried so hard to watch it, skipped a lot, put it on again. And still don't like it. About a mutant shark (?) that escaped in the Seine river, Paris, and brings out terror to town. Pretty much that's about it.

[hororia]

Stopmotion (2023)

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This movie is extremely frustrating. About a girl who is overtly obsessed with creating stop-motion under the shadow of fame of her mother, who is a popular stop-motion filmmaker.

Everything is already dark from the beginning, the storyline is good, and the thickening plot also delivered well. I can almost feel the emotional attachment in the mother-daughter relationship, which leads such pressure to the daughter. This haunted me the whole play. Since the main actor delivered her character superbly, it makes a complete package of a slow-burn yet frustrating thriller movie.

To me this is quite entertaining, even though it is slowly burns your excitement.

[hororia]

Suddenly in the Dark (1981)

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There it is. Korean cult horror movie time. Randomly watched it on a streaming platform, expecting something nice (as in a good horror movie). And it is. It is good.

This was the first classic horror movie from Korea that I watched. All the elements remind me of Indonesian classics where Suzanna was in. Carpeted floor, western floral shabby wallpaper, sheer outfits, etc. Only the village girl with an inherited shaman doll suddenly brings the traditional, mystical value to the plot –which led to the conflicts. The movie is filled with harmful thoughts of a wife, for she mistakenly (or maybe she wasn't?) thinks her husband cheated with the new maid. It was very paranoiac, quite intense, and draining. The ending somehow reminded me of Evil Dead (1981), and although as cliché as it always is in cult horrors, it is still enjoyable to watch!

PS: The movie has a beautiful classic editing as shown in the image above. Loveeeee it.

[hororia]

Exhuma (2024)

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Watched it at the cinema, and for the first time after god knows how long, I felt a sense of relief. What an entertaining horror movie!!! This is not a slow-paced one. Just like everyone, I was also amazed by the performance of Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun as shamans. They were excellent. Exhuma has all of a good horror movie: comedy, intense plot, good actors, strong motives. There are scenes that I consider to give me some goosebumps.

However, some things are left abruptly, and the background of the story is presented vaguely. Too many things to tell in the middle of the movie. Also, many people compare it with The Wailing, but I do not think it is the same. Exhuma is all about fantasy creatures, while The Wailing will give you a real terror embodied from your day-to-day life (especially when you live in a village or remote area).

[hororia]

The Conjuring 2 (2016)

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Just rewatched it on Netflix, and I love it, even better than the first Conjuring. James Wan is quite good at recreating this true story with ( nearly ) perfection as it is really entertaining!

All the settings are made almost similar to the documentation that has been published. The ambience of London is always super gloomy (and even seemingly humid), combined with the problematic condition of the Hodgson family (broken home and impoverished)-already put a damper on the family's situation. The presence of a haunted entity in their home also worsens their family's condition. Interestingly, due to their difficult financial situation, the Hodgson family chose to stay in their home despite the paranormal disturbances.

The struggles of the Hodgson family in this film are real and painful. But Wan still manages to squeeze in a bit of comedy amidst the growing darkness of Enfield's paranormal activity. Wan even managed to include a romantic drama in it - where Ed and Lorraine struggle to fight for each other's lives.

My review could be bias since I was already invested on this Enfield poltergeist story before. Anyway, this is a very good Conjuring sequel, and I am entertained.

[hororia]

Insidious: The Red Door (2023)

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Oh it is bad... I was expecting more as they bring up a nostalgic family drama with Dalton as a rebel teenager. But yea, nothing but a traumatic resolution swirling around the plot. Some nostalgic ghostly creature from the initial Insidious appears, and it was just nostalgic –not scary. I do not like it.

[hororia]

Fresh (2022)

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It was okay. The movie is clean, aesthetic, and just beautiful. Daisy Edgar Jones as the main girl is slaying. Her performance is good. The story is good and keep twisting until almost reaching its own end. It was okay but it is not for me.

[hororia]

The Glory (2022)

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I stayed late trying to finish all of the eps because it is that intense. It is certainly an excellent plot for revenge! All of the details is carefully put during the whole episodes. What a grande revenge!

This series has a lot to tell to the audience: bullying, parenting, social class-clash, and especially empathy. I find that every character connects to each other through a heedful story, that it could lead to another storyline or simply another character.

Not to mention that all of the casts are sooooooo great –I could cry! It is as if they impersonate their role with all of their soul.

[hororia]

Little Women

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It is good, but it is just not my cup of tea. It is quiet boring, I skipped many days to finish the series. It is boring maybe because the theme is overtly overrated (whoa can you imagine), I mean it is a Cinderella story in a mystery plot. While actually I like the sick motive behind it all, the accessories of the story, i.e. the deadly blue orchid –this is not for me.

[hororia]

Unlocked (2022)

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Is not bad! About a girl who lost her phone to a serial murderer. The murderer cast is undeniably baby face. Sent me to chill because he played in Strangers from Hell, and really has such innocent face. Along the story, I was shocked by every piece of fact in relation to the murder. A neat psychotic motive after all.

[hororia]

Benny's Video (1992)

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I've been curious to watch this movie just by seeing its poster. As my first encounter with Haneke is from Funny Games (1997), I'm curious on how far he'd go with this kid Benny. It went well at first, but beginning to stale right after Benny and his mother went for a trip to Egypt. I guess this was meant for us to be involved emotionally with this strange situation.

It's getting weird when I recognized Benny's face, turns out he was the cast in Funny Games (1997). So creepy how I was drawn to this movie from there.

[hororia]

Caché (2005)

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A French version of the watchers, where a family being stalked by unknown relative (at least I think so). Quiet a disturbing routine for a well-known family, George & Anne –as the frequently sent a videotapes containing the footage of their neighborhood, focusing only on their house. It is beginning to revoke George's childhood memories as a piece of drawing sent along with the videotape.

For me, this is beautifully haunting, and is quiet triggering. Even though it is so intense, Haneke was able to not rush everything. It is as if the plot is crafted carefully as humane as it should. Just beautiful.

[hororia]

Blue Ruin (2013)

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Initially, it was difficult to be observed (at least for me). Dwight is a drifter, who all of the sudden called by the police, to be informed that someone who murdered his family is released from prison. From there on, I find it (quite) difficult to catch up with the characters. Also related to how the director presents such minimal motive to the main character, I think this is why I find it hard to get the main information of the story. I would not say it is a slow-burn thriller, all of a sudden character execution was directed naturally along the story –and it is nice.

[hororia]

Spree (2020)

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What the hell is this....?? I'm sorry but this movie is boring. There is too much aggression in the beginning of the movie, with such naive motive. I feel bad for Joe Keery...

[hororia]

Castle Rock (2018)

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Pretty much cannot pause watching this series, definitely one of the best thriller series! Lizzy Caplan is sick, her appearance sets the second season as my most favorite one. The first season is kind of slow-burn and all gloomy, but heartwarming at the same time –with all the intimacy of a long-lost interaction within the family. And it changes quite abruptly to something aggressively pensive and dark. Still about the dysfunctional interaction in the family, with a mistaken obsession. Caplan plays very well as a compulsive mother with profound trauma. However, rumor has it that this series is canceled for newest season. Too bad!

[hororia]

Squid Game (2021)

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Dengan segala motif dan konflik sosial ala survival game pada umumnya, pengemasan serial ini apik untuk ditonton. Aku menikmati sekali setiap permainan dan setiap masalah yang ditimbulkan. Permainan tarik tambang menjadi permainan favoritku, menegangkan sekali. Banyaknya teori-teori berkembang dari para penonton juga cukup memeriahkan popularitas Squid Game. Sayangnya, isu efektivitas dalam penerjemahan takarir di serial ini cukup bikin ilfil sehingga membuatku cukup kepikiran setelah selesai menonton serial ini. Lalu adanya season kedua juga agak bikin nggak banyak berharap.

[hororia]

The Medium (2021)

⭐️⭐️ out of 5

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Kalau saja mereka fokus akan satu motif, menurutku film ini mungkin bisa jadi menarik. Mungkin maksudnya menceritakan satu hal yang berkelindan dengan hal-hal buruk lainnya. Tapi menurutku malah jatuhnya inkonsisten. Banyak pengambilan gambar ala candid/footage yang jatuhnya juga too good to be true alias disengaja. Jujur kurang bisa menikmati filmnya, padahal ada beberapa motif yang menurutku akan jadi sangat menarik kalau dikembangkan dengan fokus.