Sunyi has been marketed in cinema since end 2018 until the release non stop with the direct notion that this film is a remake of Park ki hyung's Whispering Corridor. While the aesthetic of the trailer is promising, I still doubt how Awi Suryadi (best known for Danur, but I am a big fan of his early romcom works) and the writers can manage to fulfill the expectation for those who love the original film.
Seniority is a devoted tradition to a famous and exclusive Abdi Bangsa High School, which classifies the freshmen as 'slaves,' the sophomores as 'person,' and the senior as 'king.' Alex, the new freshmen of the year 2000, getting bullied after he encounters a problem with the sophomore's gang. Along with the apparition of three ghosts that rumored died because of bullying, the gang's members start to terrorized and died. Helped by Maggie, another freshman who he attracted to, Alex has to know the mystery behind the terror before everything's too late.
While I am a fan of the original one, I must say this movie able to being different yet faithful to the original version. For example, the ensemble cast narration in the original entirely switched by the first-person narrative. It's highly useful for me because it keeps the movie's plot stays simple, and the audience doesn't have to be confused. Like other Suryadi's horror works, the movie also explores many buildups and jumpscares. All ghosts here aren't that scary, but some of the buildups are memorable (ultimately the swimming scene), really have to be appreciated. One of the strongest points of this movie surprisingly comes from the cast who stays in character. Most of the scenes aren't that challenging, but they manage to keep their role until the end, could make us empathized, and also relatable. Also, the usage of the cinematography with cool landscape exterior shot and spinning camera movement complete the ambiance of the movie. Those things able to makes me stays tune even though I already know the plot.
Now to the things that I not quite love; is this 'bullying is bad' theme that heavily used by the movie. I know the movie's message is that, but the ending is like a preaching scene for me. Quite different than the violent nature of the movie, the end seems so underwhelming and soft. The contrast between both bother me until the last scene. At the same time, the difference also makes the climax isn't that enjoyable, because of the twist, climax, and the ending shares almost the same three minutes, which is for me, not enough to build effect to the end. I think it would be better if the climax scene is more violent and prolonged.
I recommend it for someone who likes K-Horror or decent Indonesian horror movie. It's undoubtedly a refreshing attempt and successfully effective to be scary without being shadowed by the original movie. It has flaws like the others, but knowing that most of this company's horror filmography is not quite my cup of tea, Sunyi makes me want to anticipate another horror movie or the remake.
