Qorin

*Qorin* is an Indonesian horror film that tackles an ambitious and culturally rich narrative, yet ultimately struggles to deliver a cohesive and compelling experience. While the movie has intriguing elements and strong performances, it is hindered by a disjointed storyline and pacing issues that prevent it from reaching its full potential.

The film's premise, revolving around the concept of Qorins-Jinns that compel individuals to commit evil deeds-offers a unique and culturally specific take on horror. Set in a Java boarding school, the story follows an evil teacher who manipulates his students to summon their Qorins, seeking control and power over them. This setup provides a fertile ground for exploring themes of control, power, and resistance, particularly within the context of Indonesian culture and Islamic beliefs.

However, the execution falls short. The narrative is plagued by numerous story gaps and a lack of focus, making it difficult for the audience to stay engaged. The film starts strong but quickly loses momentum as it attempts to juggle too many plot threads without sufficient development. The transitions between scenes are often abrupt and confusing, contributing to a disjointed viewing experience. This is exacerbated by the slow pacing, which fails to build the necessary tension and suspense typical of effective horror.

The characters, while well-acted, are not given enough depth to make their struggles fully engaging. The evil teacher's motivations and backstory, including his hatred towards his father-in-law and his perverse behavior, are clear but not explored in a way that adds substantial weight to the narrative. The two lead actresses deliver strong performances, but their efforts to fight back and save their peers are undermined by the film's lack of narrative cohesion.

Despite these shortcomings, *Qorin* does have its moments. The atmospheric setting and cultural context provide a fresh backdrop for horror, and there are several genuinely creepy and suspenseful scenes. The concept of Qorins and the religious undertones offer a different perspective on the genre that is worth noting.

In conclusion, *Qorin* is a film with a lot of potential that ultimately falls short due to its fragmented storytelling and pacing issues. While it has interesting ideas and strong performances, these elements are not enough to overcome the disjointed narrative and lack of focus. It is a watchable film for those interested in Indonesian horror, but it may leave many viewers wanting more in terms of coherence and impact.

Well, it was just a bad movie, wasn't it?

To start, as a random Muslim who ended up watching this film, I hope that non-Muslims or even young Muslims who aren't very well-read, are intelligent enough to understand that this is a poor depiction of Islamic schools and what goes on in (most of) them.

Moving on to the film itself, I believe after the opening which was decent, the people behind the film missed out on something that could've been done in a much better fashion. All of a sudden, you're thrown into a pool of suspense, without quite clearly understanding WHAT and WHY. The film does not do a very good job at explaining the story, and consequently, the plot ends up being all over the place. Also, there appeared to be two main characters, and I'm not quite sure what about their personalities would have made me root for either of them. Overall, it felt like a concoction of ideas, as if the writer or the director just thought he had a couple of brilliant notions that he just could not choose between, so might as well put them all together. A big mess.

Additionally, the make-up and little bit of CGI used were both awful. And what in the world was that dreadful "villain laugh" from the antagonist towards the end?

The one positive I can extract is that the cinematography was rather impressive. Oh, and the acting was actually pretty good, especially from the actors playing the two main girls.

In conclusion, would I watch this a second time? No. Do I recommend you to watch it a first time? No.

I don't think this was nearly as bad as all the scathing reviews are making it out to be at all. There was a really interesting story here with solid spook factor that got a little muddied by maybe a bit too much going on.

The sequence of events throughout this story were a little bumpy. It generally felt disjointed and there wasn't much finesses when attempting to weave a smooth story with cohesive transitions. It was very much that kind of movie that confuses you to then explain itself later for that "ah ha" moment. I think some of the confusion could also be bits and pieces getting lost in translation.

Regardless of this I really did enjoy this movie for what it was, granted I am a bit biased towards Indonesian horror. They made it successfully creepy and atmospheric with an engaging story. I think it would have bennifited from a bit more focus, editing and a shorter run time but it was for sure a solid watch. 6.5 rounding to a 6. Would recommend.

This was my first Indonesian horror movie and must say that the start was amazing. It starts building up expectations but the second half of the movie feels like a drag.

Most of the scenes are in dark making it difficult to understand what's going on, the story goes from being great, to mediocre and finally a joke. There is so much confusion that it's difficult to focus on the plot (if that exists at that point) and understand what's going on.

The last minutes were watched on fast forward because I just wanted it to be over.

For what started as something that will haunt me for a while, ended up as a movie I would forget about as soon as it finished.

When it comes to assessing a hyper local horror movie, there are several factors that can make or break the overall experience for a viewer. While the cinematic elements of a film, such as color grading and set design, may be visually impressive, they alone cannot save a movie that falls short in other key areas. Unfortunately, this is the case with the horror movie in question.

Despite its stunning visual presentation, the film fails to deliver a compelling story that is truly terrifying. The script feels unprepared and lacks the necessary depth to draw the viewer in, leaving them disconnected from the characters and their experiences. As a result, the horror elements of the movie fall flat, failing to elicit any real fear or suspense. I am myself not feeling it at all.

Ultimately, this movie is a disappointing example of a horror film that fails to deliver on its promises, leaving viewers feeling underwhelmed and unsatisfied. Waste my time.