Director: M.S. Prem Nath
Year: 2021
Country: Malaysia
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Supernatural
Plot:
Attempting to investigate a strange story, a documentary crew and a team of paranormal investigators arrive to check out a rumored haunted hotel in the middle of the jungle, but when they arrive they realize their actions have brought them into contact with something far deadlier than they expected.
Review:
Overall, this one has a lot to like about it. Among the better aspects present is the general atmosphere and aesthetics generated here. The film manages to provide a genuinely unnerving and unsettling atmosphere while shooting within the haunted hotel as various aspects of the genre are utilized effectively. The layout of the house is one of general disarray and disuse perfectly captures the abandoned nature of the structure, which makes sense given how long it's sat empty as it's covered with messy furniture and papers scattered over the floor. As well, the eerie whispers and noises heard in the background don't seem out of place here and just add to the atmosphere of the film. With all the backstory given about the incidents that took place years earlier, there's a sense that something creepy and chilling should be occurring at the location which is what happens. The atmosphere in the area goes a long way toward setting up the terrifying action to come later on.
That terrifying action is where the film gets plenty of positives. This offers up an impressive amount of interactions with the group encountering all sorts of strange situations inside the house, where they get pulled into rooms and locked out from helping, acting as though under the influence of an outside entity and drawn to areas of the house that are inaccessible without help in the time that's elapsed. That these actions usually occur to the same person enhances the suspense as the otherworldly incidents feature quite a wide range of ideas for scares as the progress of the events from traditional knocks on objects in the distance to demonic encounters and finally getting to the outright creepy finale. Mixing together not only human antagonists alongside the demons and creatures that appear, but the action also works to introduce some intriguing twists to the story that add a rather dark epitaph to everything. These elements all combine into a rather impressive feature.
There isn't a whole lot really wrong with this one. The main issue is based mostly on a formulaic story that crops up in most found-footage films and comes across here. The idea of a haunted building out in the middle of nowhere surrounded by superstition and local reluctance to admit outsiders into the truth surrounding the events that transpired is a pretty familiar setup that's featured in the film. There's a troubling backstory that caused everyone to think it's haunted that's rooted in a tragic incident and brings about the group of truth-seekers looking for something to explain it, only to get caught out of their element in a far darker experience that puts everyone's lives in danger. Countless genre efforts, both found-footage and more traditional features, have used a similar storyline for their setup and that's the case with this one as there's very little originality about the setup.
As well, there's also a slight issue with the pacing featured throughout here. This one doesn't offer up a lot of action for the first half of the film as it takes way too long to get to the main building where the supernatural events take place. Going through the motions of gaining permits to film at the location, taking several visits to the area before finally settling in for the shoot, and the overlong setup of their equipment all come together to make the first part unnecessarily long. It takes until halfway through the film before the team even starts on their mission to investigate the hauntings in the hotel which can cause some discomfort in viewers looking for a more lively start to their films. However, neither of these problems are overly detrimental to this one.
Overview: ***.5/5
Filled with plenty of great action and some intriguing twists to go along with a fantastic atmosphere, this one is a highly impressive and enjoyable found-footage effort that holds itself up over its few insignificant flaws. Give this a watch if you're a fan of the style or of the creative crew's past work, while mainly those who don't appreciate found-footage films will have an issue here.
This review was originally published on Asian Movie Pulse and is gratefully reprinted with their cooperation.
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