After they each have the same nightmare of their mother’s suicide, Hari (Cornelio Sunny) and his sister Eka (Widika Sidmore) receive a call from their Uncle Rahman confirming the news. They hadn’t seen their mother in years, but reluctantly return to the small, remote village where they were born to deal with the funeral, take care of the house they grew up in, etc. However, upon their arrival, they are met with lots of animosity from the local villagers, who hated their mother, and called her a shaman. Their mother was a practitioner of black magic, like her mother before her, and many believe that she was cursed, making a pact with the devil when her children were born. The villagers blamed their mother for the area’s unusually high suicide rate and poor economic conditions. Every year around this time, the village experiences the harvest, where several people in the town will just suddenly and inexplicably hang themselves. Hari, Eka, and her husband Adi (Morgan Oey) are eager to settle things as quickly as possible and get back to Jakarta, but every time they try to leave town, something seems to prevent that from happening. They also start to see and experience strange and horrific things. There may just be some truth to the things the villagers have said about their mother and her cursed home. Can they manage to escape their family’s deadly legacy and leave this town before it’s too late?!
Death Knot starts off right away letting you know this is going to be a very eerie movie, as we see this old woman doing some sort of ceremonial dance in the forest just before she offs herself. Then, as the siblings arrive in town, which is always dark and overcast, we know that something isn’t quite right as they get evil stares from the villagers, their mother’s funeral is sparsely attended, and they meet their uncle who seems more concerned about getting a cut of the inheritance than his sister’s suicide. While Hari and Eko had become a bit estranged from their mother, being back in their childhood home—the only connection they had left to their mother—brings back some old memories, and makes them question whether they should sell the house. However, the longer they stay here, the more odd and haunting things they start to experience, and soon it seems like some evil force doesn’t want them to leave. Ever since their mother’s suicide, Hari has been having vivid visions and can’t really trust what he’s seeing. It seems as though some evil spirit or the devil itself is trying to get him to plead his allegiance like his mother. But the more he fights this off, the more death and destruction it seems to bring—the harvest is once again happening and people are suddenly and mysteriously killing themselves.
The film sets up a nice harrowing atmosphere throughout, and provides some genuinely disturbing visuals. I couldn’t help but be reminded a bit of Smile in the way some of these eerie scenes play out. There’s also a bit of humor thrown in to help ease the tension—a lot of this comic relief comes from Eka’s more laid-back husband, Adi. Overall, I found the larger supernatural storyline with the town, the mother’s pact with the devil, and how the kids were involved in this to be a little confusing and hard to fully understand. Also, there were a couple story elements that weren’t fully resolved to me. But for those who like a more atmospheric horror movie, this film definitely has that in droves.
Unlike many of Well Go USA’s other foreign film release, this Blu-ray does not offer an English dub option. However, the English subtitles are well done, and the Indonesian track provides a very immersive experience, from the tense score, to the excellent use the surround and stereo channels to provide ambiance, especially when there’s a storm outside, to the harrowing and mysterious bumps in the night that help to provide scares and a general uneasiness. The video track is also very solid. The film’s color palate is comprised of mostly neutral tan and earth tones, which helps build the more eerie tone of the movie. And even in darker scenes, the detail remains very noticeable.
Well Go’s Blu-ray release is bare-bones. There is no bonus material except for the film’s trailer and some previews for three other Well Go releases. The disc comes packed in a locking HD keepcase, and doesn’t include a digital copy. Our review copy did not include a slipcover.
What’s Included:
Film: (1:51:15)
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Blu-ray:
- 1080p / Widescreen 1.85:1
- Audio: Indonesian DTS-HDMA 5.1, Indonesian Stereo
- Subtitles: English
Extras:
- Trailer (2:10)
- Previews
- Project Wolf Hunting (1:04)
- Unwelcome (2:19)
- They Crawl Beneath (1:59)
Final Thoughts:
Death Knot is a tense, atmospheric horror/thriller that brings viewers into this small, remote, creepy village where things are definitely off. As the main characters uncover more of their mother’s dark past, an evil spirit tries to get them to make the same pact their mother did in order to keep the deadly cycle going that has haunted this village for decades. Well Go’s release is barebones, but features solid picture and sound. Worth a look for atmospheric horror fans.
Death Knot
12% Off $16.98 $12.99 (as of November 25, 2024 22:50 GMT -05:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
Death Knot
$18.19 $14.19 (as of November 25, 2024 22:50 GMT -05:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
