A substantial amount of the Indonesian films that made big waves in “the west” have been their stellar action movies that usually come with extra kicks and blood splatter. Headshot among them, was co-directed by Kimo Stamboel who has come back to direct one of the latest in delicious scary movies out of the country, The Queen of Black Magic (Ratu Ilmu Hitam).
Written by Joko Anwar (Satan’s Slaves), The Queen of Black Magic tells the haunting tale of an orphanage plagued by a witch and its sordid history. When some grown orphans, now married with children, return to their old home to visit their patriarch, they’re plagued by bad omens and the devastating look of their withering parental figure. Leaving their children to explore the spooky home, some of the adults check on the deer one suspects he hit up the road and discover a bus full of dead children. Terrified, they investigate the fright, while the visitors slowly descend into a haunting madness that begins to reveal the dark secrets held within the orphanage’s walls.
Final Thoughts:
