TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
'Badarawuhi di Desa Penari' set to put Indonesian horror on global map
Putting quality over cheap thrills has clinched MD Pictures a deal to release its latest folk horror offering in North American theaters, which could bewitch audiences enough to put Indonesia on the global cinematic map.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Dancing phantom: MD Pictures’ ‘Badarawuhi di Desa Penari’ (‘Dancing Village: The Curse Begins’), both a prequel to and a spin-off of 2022’s ‘KKN di Desa Penari’ ('KKN: Curse of the Dancing Village'), premiered on April 11, 2024 in Indonesian theaters.
(Courtesy of MD Pictures/-)
T
he press screening on March 28 made it crystal clear that Badarawuhi di Desa Penari (Dancing Village: The Curse Begins), crafted as both a prequel to and a spin-off of the Indonesian folk horror pic KKN di Desa Penari (KKN: Curse of the Dancing Village, 2022), is a Herculean project of high aspirations and formidable finesse.
Easily trumping its predecessor in terms of plot and production value, Badarawuhi has managed to check (almost) all boxes to become the go-to fright flick for a collective, familial experience. While the jury is still out on whether Badarawuhi is scary enough to satisfy thrill-seekers, it is hard to deny that MD Pictures, the studio behind the Desa Penari cinematic universe, is fearless enough to swing for the fences.
On March 21 and 27, the film’s producer Manoj Punjabi and director Kimo Stamboel sat down with the writer to discuss their latest feat. As Manoj said, "I'm not afraid of what the audiences want."
Quality over cheap thrills
