Fans of Indonesian horror know the name Joko Anwar. He’s a leading force in the country’s burgeoning genre scene, and while his films don’t always get stateside releases, the ones we’ve gotten to see have been standouts. That includes 2017’s Satan’s Slaves and its 2022 sequel, 2019’s Impetigore, and 2024’s Grave Torture.
Anwar also wrote the 2019 remake of the 1981 Indonesian horror classic The Queen of Black Magic and created the 2024 Netflix anthology series Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams.
So to get a new Anwar film in U.S. theaters is cause for celebration, especially when it’s a film as entertaining as Ghost in the Cell, a blend of extreme gore and manic comedy. It features a ghostly killer whose technique evokes the grisly artistry of Hannibal Lecter and Art the Clown and who targets men already struggling to survive daily life in a brutal prison.
Ghost in the Cell (bonus points for that clever title, by the way) begins far from the torment in Block C. We meet Dimas (Endy Arfian), a journalist rushing to finish his big expose of an illegal mining operation supported by crooked government officials. His frustrated boss pushes back on the inclusion of a detail that several workers on the site, located deep in the Borneo forest, died in mysterious ways—until we see the man’s own horrific demise at the hands of a ferocious spectral presence.
Dimas is swiftly blamed for the murder, and that’s how he ends up in prison with a motley assortment of other inmates. There are a few psychotic gangster types, but mostly, it’s regular guys suffering the consequences of annoying someone higher on the food chain.
Ghost in the Cell is stuffed with social, political, and religious commentary that’s both sly and in-your-face, something Anwar favors including in his films. Though the context applies to Indonesia specifically (at one point we’re told, “Hard work means nothing in this fucked-up country”; later, “It’s easier to survive in this country if people think you’re dumb”), it’s the kind of frustration that American audiences can also appreciate.
Block C is lorded over by a sadistic head guard who administers regular beatdowns to keep the prisoners in line. There’s also a sleazy warden who spends most of his time placating a different class of inmates: corrupt government officials who haven’t lost any of their power despite their convictions—and who occupy cells fixed up to look like luxurious hotel suites.
The main action, however, takes place in the grimy cell block, where new guy Dimas falls in with a group of good-natured robbers and scammers, including the natural-born leader Anggoro (Abimana Aryasatya) as well as Six (Yoga Pratama), whose psychic abilities become essential once the titular monster makes itself known.
And boy, does it ever leave an impression. People aren’t just killed; body parts are removed, rearranged, and displayed in macabre yet undeniable creative ways, with “dangling from the ceiling” emerging as a particular favorite. To be clear: Ghost in the Cell features operatic levels of gore.
The inmates, including Anggoro’s group and the rival gang they’re constantly beefing with, quickly realize there’s a supernatural invader in their midst. They reluctantly band together to try to figure out how to stop it and learn what its ultimate goal might be.
Thanks to Six’s ability to see beyond the veil, they also start to understand how the ghost is picking its victims—and since it seems to be attracted to anger, everyone stuck in this terrifying situation has to try to remain as happy as possible. Or at the very least, to mitigate their fear and rage by focusing on something silly, which is how Ghost in the Cell gets away with multiple goofy dance numbers.
It also manages to be downright earnest and heartfelt at times, which is incredible considering all the graphic mutilations that are also very much present throughout the movie. All that and twerking too! Definitely don’t miss the end-credits dance-off involving the cast and crew.
Also featuring Almanzo Konoralma, Aming Sugandhi, Arswendy Bening Swara, Bront Palarae, and Dimas Danang Suryonegoro, Ghost in the Cell opens in theaters October 2.
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