Movies
Celluloid Dreams to Perform Witchcraft on ‘Dachra’
Celluloid Dreams has acquired international rights to Tunisian director Abdelhamid Bouchnak’s horror picture Dachra ahead of its world premiere as the closing night film of Venice Critics’ Week, running Aug 29 to Sept 8 this year, reports ScreenDaily.
In the film: “Set against the backdrop of contemporary Tunisia, the feature revolves around female journalism student Yasmin and two male classmates who set out on a university assignment to solve the cold case of Mongia, a woman found mutilated 25 years ago and now imprisoned in an asylum, suspected of witchcraft.
“As they pursue their investigation, the three friends stumble into the archaic and ominous world of Dachra, an isolated countryside compound filled with goats, silent women, mysterious drying meat and steaming pots, which is home to a cult.
“When the cult’s jovial but menacing leader invites them to stay overnight, Yasmin is drawn into Dachra’s dark secrets and a desperate attempt to escape alive.”
“Witchcraft has always been my biggest fear and with Dachra I wanted to show how dark the human soul can be,” Bouchnak explains.
Bouchnak plays with the contrast between Tunisia’s image as one of the most liberal and modern countries in the Arab world and deeper primitive fears of witchcraft and cannibalism.
As well as directing, Bouchnak also wrote, edited and produced Dachra with Omar Ben Ali on board as co-producer.
The young cast features Yassmine Dimassi, Aziz Jebali and Bilel Slatnia in the co-starring roles. Hatem Nechi is the director of photography and Fatma Madani, the set designer.
An Indonesian remake of Justin Powell and David Charbonier’s intense 2021 thriller The Boy Behind the Door, titled Monster, is on its way. Netflix has unveiled images from the twisted thriller ahead of its debut on the streaming service.
In Monster, “After being abducted and taken to a desolate house, a girl sets out to rescue her friend and escape from their malicious kidnapper.”
As of now, Netflix hasn’t set an official date for Monster, only that it’s coming soon.
Monster is directed by Rako Prijanto and written by Alim Sudio. It stars Sultan Hamonangan, Anantya Kirana, Alex Abbad, and Marsha Timothy.
The Boy Behind the Door follows twelve-year-old Bobby and his best friend, Kevin, as they’re abducted from a park. Bobby wakes alone in a trunk and escapes, only to return when he realizes his best friend is still held captive inside a desolate house.
The Indonesian remake gender swaps the ill-fated kids embarking on a harrowing cat-and-mouse chase to escape, but, according to an interview with Kapanlagi, Monster also updates the original story by making one of the main characters mute. Meaning, expect very little dialogue in this update. The change will likely make the horror-thriller even more suspenseful, which is saying a lot considering how intense The Boy Behind the Door is.
I wrote in my review of The Boy Behind the Door that “it gives a unique and intense spin on the home invasion. The constant ratcheting of tension leaves you alternating between edge-of-your-seat panic and cringe-worthy repulsion; this thriller isn’t afraid to put its children through absolute hell.”
Check out new images from Monster below, as well as a tense trailer from the film’s premiere at the Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival last November.
Stay tuned for an official release date as it’s announced, but expect this to arrive on Netflix soon.
Monster. Anantya Kirana as Alana in Monster. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2024
Monster. Alex Abbad as Jack in Monster. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2024
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