Impetigore director Joko Anwar has confirmed that the film will be Indonesia's official submission for the 93rd Academy Awards. The film joins Jayro Bustamante’s La Llorona as the second Shudder original to be its country's official submission to the prestigious awards show. La Llarona has been submitted by Guatemala.
Impetigore (Perempuan Tanah Jahanam) is Indonesia's official submission for the 93rd ACADEMY AWARDS. pic.twitter.com/ud7KTVUKsLNovember 10, 2020
Something worth clarifying is that just because these two (exceptional) genre films were nominated as their countries' official submission, it doesn't mean that they'll ultimately chosen for the foreign film category. All the same, it remains a prestigious honor for both films.
Check out snippets from our reviews on both films:
In no way is Impetigore a letdown. Joko Anwar’s follow-up to my favorite horror movie of the last few years (Satan’s Slaves) succeeds as worthwhile foreign horror titles should. We’re welcomed into a cultural representation of a country’s homegrown nightmares, which are not dulled for mass-marketable appeal. As we discover what materials Ki Saptadi’s puppets are made from, as Maya reflects on the horrors of her ancestral history, there’s plenty of suspenseful discomforts to withstand. Spilled blood, torchlit hunting parties, and outsider damnation are all in play. It’s just a more fantastical horror film that doesn’t care about jump scares or familiar structures, sometimes to a detriment. Nevertheless, Impetigore whispers a chilling lullaby about family, fortune, and how the sins of our past send ripple effects into yet-to-be-understood futures.
- Matt Donato in is Impetigore review.
La Llorona is many things you wouldn’t expect, and all the things The Curse Of La Llorona isn’t, including a culturally representative and gut-wrenching horror film. A country on the brink, and the thoughtlessness of leaders with protective egos. An age-old urban legend about a crying woman whose sobs you dare not hear—a tale of classism, war crimes, and merciless humanitarian abandon. Jayro Bustamante dwells on histories never to be forgotten in ways that will leave you breathless, albeit shaken or stirred versus outright terrified. Don’t be deterred by the “slow-burn” nature of La Llorona. This sensational dark fable defies how we define “horror” and “terror” beyond the most basic genre executions that Bustamante strives to avoid.
