A new week, another day off, and another review!! This time out a quick look at one of the horde of Indonesian horror films currently teetering precariously on top of my “To watch” pile next to the DVD player. I swear…. at the rate new stuff arrives at the apartment, I’ll be buried before long.

Our quick synopsis goes like this: “A young gentleman called Putra (played by Restu Sinaga) marries Amira (played by Indah Kalalo) and would like to give the best honeymoon experience for his wife in his privately owned island. However, strange ghostly incidents are haunting them as a newly wed couple.

From an exotic bedroom to a swimming pool filled with excitement to their romantic bathroom and in every corner of the island, a female ghost dressed in a wedding gown is seeking blood debt from the couple.

A dark secret is waiting to be revealed, changing their romantic night into a scary encounter with the ghost. Who is the ghost and why is she terrorizing them?”

Yep…. this sounds pretty much like your standard Indonesian horror effort. It’s been a while since one really wowed me…. is this one gonna be one of those amazing hidden gems your Favorite Cargirl occasionally encounters? Maybe yes…. maybe no. Am I still gonna watch the goofy thing? Yeah….

Guess you’ll just have to stick with me and see how this one stacks up. (C’mon!!…. it’s not like you don’t wanna!! Neko knows you all too well. Hehehehe!!)

So surrender to your secret needs and “Read On”!!

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OMG!! She’s BAAAACCK!! Dewi Perssik… Indonesian singer and wannabee actress is coming at us again in her latest Indonesian Horror/ comedy attempt, “Paku Kuntilanak”. Yes… I know, Dewi seems determined to become a movie star even if it kills us…. and worse, this one is a sequel to the utter waste of celluloid, “Setan Budeg”….

Synopsis? Yeah… we got one, and it goes somethin’ like this: “Three corpse hunters Sukun (Edi Brokoli), Obeng (Rizky Mocil) and Odjie (Hardi Fadhilah) have been assigned to search for a kuntilanak that has been reincarnated following the removal of a nail on its head by their superior, Pak Joko (Kiwil).

Pak Joko has been pressurized by his mother to get married in his increasingly old age. He tries to woo his secretary Mona (Chinthyara Alona) but got rejected by her. One day a beautiful lady called Kunti (Dewi Perssik) appears and she is actually the corpse that the hunters have been searching for.

Pak Joko falls in love with her beauty and decides to marry her. The hunters and his secretary try to convince Pak Joko that Kunti is a reincarnated kuntilanak that is seeking revenge against people who have hurted her in the past. Will Pak Joko succeeds in marrying Kunti?”

Sigh…. Dewi Perssik… and that goofy bunch of comedians from “Setan Budeg”… am I really ready to sit through this? Even if it does have a version of the kuntilanak in it? Grrrr!! Alright…alright!! I’ll do it… but only because I like trashy movies sooo darn much!! (Please.. gentle visitors, pray for me!!)

Luckily… the rest of you can simply “Read On” and get the jist of this one without risking the actual viewing of what I’m almost certain will redefine terrible movie entertainment.

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More creepy goodness from Indonesia, this time out your Favorite Catgirl has for you “Pintu Terlarang” aka “The Forbidden Door” by Indonesian director Joko Anwar who also did the quirky neo film-noir/ horror/ hard boiled detective mash up “Kala” aka “Dead Time” back in 2007. Having seen that one, I was struck by it’s oddness and great sense of imagery….. and I can tell you he’s back in fine form with this one as well.

Our synopsis goes: “The life of a successful sculptor (played by Fachri Albar) is turned upside down when he begins receiving mysterious messages from somebody who’s asking for his help.

When he stumbles upon an illegal TV broadcast which offers snuff, he finds out that the person who’s trying to reach him is a 7 year-old boy who has been kept and abused by a vicious couple. As he digs more, he discovers that his wife (played by Marsha Timothy) just might be connected to the whole mystery. Soon he has to decide whether or not to abandon his search and leave the boy to die or to lose everything and everyone he knows.”

This one is definitely strange…. and that’s something coming from this movie lovin’ girl…. Given my tastes in movies, I’ve certainly seen some strange films over the years, but very few that take the idea of such deliberate quirkiness and make it their own.

So what’s the story on this one? Well… by now you know it’s time to “Read On”… so let’s get to it!!

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Another day closer to Halloween, and we’ve got another creepy Indonesian ghost story for you, “The Real Pocong”. Yep… our favorite “ghost in a sack” is back…. and this time it’s gonna steal away a cute lil’ girl forever!! OMG!!

Our synopsis reads: “Ivan (Ashraf Siclair) and Rini (Nubila Syakieb) have a beautiful child, Laura. After so much time without a house of thier own, finally Ivan has bought a small bungalow out in the forest. But from the first time they step foot in the house, Laura is afraid and feels there is something wrong with the place. Rini presumes than Laura just doesn’t like the lonely house and doesn’t want to live there. Ivan feels Laura just needs some time to adapt to living there. Then a mysterious cat is been found by Laura. With the arrival of this cat, Laura feels more comfortable and forgets her initial fears. One day while sleeping, Laura always hears a song never sang by her mother, Rini. Laura sings this song to Rini for next morning. Rini starts to believe there is something strange happening with Laura. Rini becomes very afraid and becomes upset with Ivan who has hidden the house’s tragic past. He doesn’t believe in bad luck or ghosts, and dismisses her fears as foolish. Laura gets lost on afternoon under wierd circumstances. Rini believes the loss of Laura was caused by supernatural; forces, but Ivan beleives Laura has been kidnapped. Ivan goes to report to police. After Ivan goes, Rini calls in a Paranormal to help find Laura. However the Paranormal is too weak to battle against the evil spirit that haunts the house…. What can be done to save Laura from, “The Real Pocong”?”

Yep…. creepy ghosts just seem to haunt Indonesia everywhere. And…. from this lil’ Catgirl’s perspective, that’s a good, good, thing!! It means oodles and oodles of ghost stories for lil’ ol’ me to enjoy, and plenty of opportunities to tell you all about them… so by all means, Gentle Visitors, it’s time to “Read On” !

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Another day… and another creepy Halloween goodie for you all! This time, from Indonesia, another of those scary ghost stories this lil’ Catgirl just can’t get enough of, “Kuntilanak Kamar Mayat”.

Our quick synopsis reads: “Andini is a young female college student. Lately, she has been having very vivid dreams about her sister, Miranda, who works as a hospital nurse. Soon the dreams begin to grow into frightening apparitions. In fear that something terrible may have happened to her, several of Andini’s college friends join together to help to search for news of Miranda. After talking with a woman named Vivian, who lives in Miranda’s residence and works with her in the hospital, she finds out a surprising truth about her sister. The reason Miranda left home with little warning, is because she is pregnant.

After talking with Vivian, Andini went to see another of Miranda’s coworkers, Dr. Indra. He has also been plagued by disturbing visions after having last seen his coworker Miranda. The visions include the appearance of an apparition in the hospital morgue that he thought was a Kuntilanak. He now believes that the kuntilanak is not only real, but is stalking him.

Can the friends discover what has happened to Miranda before it is too late for her and maybe for them too!”

Sounds good! Haunted morgue…. scary pregnant women ghosts getting revenge….. It’s been a while since we got to see what the nasty ol’ Kuntilanak was up too, so what are we all waiting for? Let’s all  “Read On”!!

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Well… while wading through the avalanche of DVD’s in my recent “To Watch” pile, this Indonesian one finally caught my eye again. The cover is certainly striking with it’s neat “skull illusion” thingee…. So naturally it moved right up to the top of the pile…. (and they say that what sells a movie more than anything else is a decent bit of poster art.. I guess they’re right….)

Our synopsis goes like this: “In the days leading up to her wedding, Abel (played by Nadine Chandrawinata) is visited at her home by a pregnant woman, Lisa, who claims she’s carrying the child of her fiance, Wisnu (Yama Carlos). Shocked by this revelation, Abel feels utterly betrayed and decides to kill herself. She fails in her suicide attempt and falls into a coma for a time.

Now troubled and depressed, she is comforted by her best friend, Charlie (played by Keith Foo), who asks her to take some time off at a rundown mansion he owns well away from Jakarta and her problems. Strange events begin to occur as it seems the house is haunted by apparitions of the dead. Something from Abel’s brief brush with death seems to be following her and the only way she can escape it is if she dies once again.”

Hmmmm? Well that sounds all pretty standard for an Indonesian ghost film. But Neko lives in hope for that creepy lil’ gem that will rival my favorite Indonesian horror film, “Kuntilanak”, and with that film’s director Rizal Mantovani on board for this one as well, maybe this one is finally gonna be the one!! Let’s all “Read On” and find out… shall we?

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An absolutely whacking biiiiig ol’  package arrived this week from Indonesia….. my long awaited chunk of DVD’s from that part of the world, having spent some time kicking about somewhere in the Pacific and nearly presumed lost. It seems that the “Mystical  Fairies of Cheesy Movies” love me this month and they made it here safe and sound. (Luckily I also happened to be equipped with a plate of yummy cookies that day to reward the Mailman for schlepping them all the way up to my apartment as the box was waaaay too big to fit my mailbox…. Yay!!)

The synopsis we have reads like follows: “Directed by Koya Pagayo (“Hantu Ambulance”, “Lewat Tengah Malam”), the movie revolves around a beautiful, sexy ghost known as Hantu Jamu Gendong who betrays her friends. Kafka never believed in ghost, but somehow he always gets the chance to see the ghost with her medicine basket wandering the streets thinking that she’s human. Later on, Kafka and his two friends, Meisya and Andien feel something amiss when she always appears to be around them.”

Hmmmm… not bad, given that I had to get my translations direct from the Indonesian…. but hey, look at the poster!! Freaky skull headed ghosts in flowered robes always get this lil’ Catgirl’s attention. Unfortunately, with Indonesian or Malay films that doesn’t actually give you any guarantee that the movie will be anything like that….

Still…. the movie was inexpensive and I’m such a crazy lil’ doofus for these, so let’s all “Read On” and find out if it’s a good one or a real stinker, shall we?

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He’s up to no good again…. naughty Satan, I mean…. Well, OK, maybe not him specifically, but those darn Indonesian spirits are restless again… and Dewi Perssik still thinks she can use them to become a movie star.

Sigh….. So will I be tricked into watching yet another Indonesian horror film following the terrible.. terrible “Tiren Mati Kemaren”? Yes… I’m just that big a sucker for these goofy films…..

Our synopsis reads: “Three body hunters have been assigned with the job of finding unidentified corpses scattered around Jakarta. One day, they are surprised when a female corpse that was hit by a train went missing from an ambulance. Joko (Kiwil), the head of the group gives an ultimatum that they must find the body and return it to the mortuary. The female corpse was a deaf girl named Lala, the twin sister of Anita (Dewi Perssik). While the body hunters are looking for Lala’s body, they are unaware that a revengeful spirit is following them.”

Yep…. sounds like another standard Indonesian ghost movie alright. The big question is…. “Will it actually redeem the career of Miss Perssik in my eyes or will it confirm her lowly status of “Queen of Indonesian Sexploitation/ Horror Craptaculars”….. Guess there is really only one sure way to find out….. So pray for your Favorite Movie Lovin’ Catgirl, o’ gentle visitors, and “Read On” if you dare!!

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Sigh…… Another lonely weekend at home, another couple of cheesy horror films in the ol’ DVD player…. This time out your Favorite Catgirl Princess is bringing you another of those Indonesian Ghost stories I just keep watching for some unknown reason….Hehehehe!! Anyway, our film for today, “Tiren Mati Kemaren” aka “Died Yesterday” comes direct to me by way of the Malay Region 3 PAL release.

The synopsis reads as follows:“Ranti (Dewi Persik) is suddenly found murdered under a cloud of mystery. Hendra (Baron Hermanto), her father, becomes very upset and vows vengeance. During the burial ceremony, Hendra purposely keeps Ranti’s corpse string, intending to summon Ranti’s spirit to find the murderer. As a result, Ranti’s spirit truly angered spirit and creates a disturbance.

The first victim that is visited by Ranti’s spirit is her husband, Leo (Renee The). When Ranti was alive, she once caught Leo having an affair with her only friend, Maya (Deriell Jacqueline).

After, Ranti changes into a beautiful woman and teases Reno (Aldi Taher), Maya’s husband. Reno is powerless against Ranti’s seduction and gets involved in an affair with her spirit.

What happens afterwards will be scarier than your worst nightmares…”

Sounds like another of our standard “Revenge Strikes From Beyond the Grave” sorts of plots…. Will it meet with this lil’ Kitten’s hopeful expectations and bring on the goosebumps or will it just plain stink as bad as a three day old corpse left out in the sun? Let’s all “Read On” and find out, shall we?

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Yep…. another Indonesian horror film  has snuck on top of my stack of DVD’s waiting to be viewed, so who is this lil’ Catgirl to ignore it? Watching an evening of these is sometimes a tough job, but then some goofy movie lovin’ girl’s just gotta do it so that the rest of you you can just pick the cream of the crop to rot your brains on “movie night”. Hehehehe….

But seriously, I just can’t seem to get enough of these, even if the Indonesian film market is flooded with a virtual avalanche of derivative and stale ghost stories. So here we go. It’s “Kerata Hantu Manggarai” aka “The Ghost Train of Manggarai Station”

Our synopsis for it reads: “Rossa (Sheila Marcia) and Emily’s relationship as sisters is getting sour. Emily’s stubbornness makes Rossa lose her temper and kick Emily out of their house. Emily goes to her aunt in Bogor, and the two never cross paths again. Rossa tells her best friend Tari that she senses something wrong. She worries that Emily has been abducted by the ghost train or “Kereta Hantu”. Even though Rossa doesn’t believe it, she follows Tari to meet Bobby who can cross over to the supernatural world. Finally, Bobby and two others hunt the ghost train, with the guidance of Ki Anom, a man who deals with the supernatural. But in the ghost train, the ghost that haunts them starts killing them one by one.”

Sounds good…. so let’s all “Read On”, shall we?

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