Review of The Act of Killing (2012) by Sarfaraz A — 22 Jan 2014

The Act of Killing (Indonesian Jagal) British / Norwegian / Danish documentary (although the director Joshua has called it an Indonesian documentary) - executive-producers German auteur Werner Herzog, Errol Morris, and Signe Byrge Sørensen, co-directed by American-British Joshua Oppenheimer, alongside with Christine Cynn (an anonymous Indonesian co-director). Cinematographers Carlos Arango de Montis and Lars Skree worked on its colorful photography. Joshua's interest in making this documentary came from his earlier making of the documentary called "The Globalization Tapes 2003"; where they met the central figure for their upcoming project 'Anwar Congo'.

Film has received Oscar nomination for Best Documentary - other honors include European Film Award for Best Documentary, the Asia Pacific Screen Award. Film was shot in Medan (North Sumatra - Indonesia). It was shown at Berlin Film Festival where it received 'Audience Award' with powerful positive response from the spectators. The Act of Killing was released in Indonesia and Denmark in the year 2012 - and 2013 was the UK and Norway release year. Its run-time for US release is 122min, on the other hand I watched Director's-Cut that runs 159min. The documentary was made on budget of $1million. The documentary has been listed on top-critics lists as well as film organizations such as Sight & Sound. Joshua spent half a decade on the making of this documentary.

MEDAN, NORTH SUMATRA, Indonesia; Film opens with bunch of women dancing in a re-enacted scene (just like in the poster of the film). The description appears on the screen.

" In 1965 the Indonesian government was overthrown by the military. Anybody opposed to the military dictatorship could be accused of being a communist; union members, landless farmers, intellectuals, and the ethnic Chinese. In less than a year, and with the direct aid of western governments, over one million 'communists' were murdered.

The army used paramilitaries and gangster to carry out the killings. These men have been in power - and have persecuted their opponents - ever since. When we met the killers, they proudly told us stories about what they did. To understand why, we asked them to create scenes about the killings in whatever ways they wished. This film follows that process, and documents its consequences. ".

Film then shows an elderly, white-haired, slim man, named 'Anwar Congo'. He looks more like Morgan Freeman. Anwar is led by Herman Koto (gangster and paramilitary leader), they go to the town to recruit ordinary people for re-enactment of showing on documentary - how they carried out their executions in 1960s. We are then led by Anwar, on the roof where he claims to have executed communists by strangling them with kind of wire that he especially used. Congo then dances 'cha-cha-cha'.

Anwar mentions to Joshua (the director and interviewer off-camera) that he was a local gangster along with his side-kick Koto. The two show us a cinema where they say, that they used to hangout and sell tickets on black. He goes on that he was an avid fan of American movies, Elvis Presley, John Wayne but his top favorite of all, has been Al Pacino.

Anwar then takes us to his former office at local news-publisher run by Ibrahim Sinik, to whom he used to bring communists for interrogation. It was Sinik who would wink at Anwar, if to kill the guy or not.

The documentary then proceeds to re-enactment of some interrogations and tortures that Anwar and his aides carried out - they voluntarily act, both as executioners and victims.

Koto shows us local market where he threatens Chinese dissidents to obtain extortion. Koto also believes that his threat and backing from paramilitary, could help him win election to be elected to parliament. Thus, he launches campaigning locally but loses it ultimately. Anwar sympathizes him by saying that parliament is place for honorable people not for corrupt and dirty people, some of who already occupy parliament.

Anwar receives Adi Zulkadry at airport - his former fellow executioner. Adi speaks out his mind, when asked about opening of case against him at the Hague (International Court) - Adi believes that old cases stand baseless after the death of General Suhartu. Joshua puts it to him that he was in violation of Geneva Convention; to which Adi says the Geneva Convention does not apply to Bush Jr. when he put people in Guantanamo Bay, or Saddam Hussain. If the Hague is serious to prosecute me, he says, then I will be glad to go the Hague; this way I will become famous all over the world.

Anwar and Adi ride in roofless vehicle to studio - on the way, they show us a river in which the two dumped bodies. Saying, 'we dragged them by feet... one, two, three- throw - they looked beautiful like parachute, bam!

One of their fellows at studio who tried to polish himself by acting that Anwar's way of execution was so smooth that he never knew he was into that work. Anwar takes on him by saying that he shared the same office, so it is silly that you claim now that you did not know what I was doing. 'You are simply trying to run from it' Anwar funnily says to him.

Film now proceeds to show us that Anwar has been suffering from nightmares - seeing figures of those whom he killed. He says that his worst nightmare is sight of open eyes of a severed head, whom he decapitated using machete. 'Why did I not close his eyes', says Anwar.

Final sequences in which Anwar volunteers to be victim, and be performed on the wire-strangling that he would use on his victims. Its pain brings shivers to Anwar, who bursts into tears. The director reminds him that the suffering of people whom he killed, were far horrific than his re-enactment - because they were killed eventually.

Unlike many other documentaries, we come in contact with actual killers (since the prevailing of sensitive issue and threats issued to filmmakers, made it impossible to go on with interviewing victimized or the children of victims. They were instead told, why not to interview killers themselves).

Joshua himself believes that America is involved in all the violence across the world, so the killings of 1960s in Indonesia, were no exception at all. And it is no secret, since the US launched Korean-War to put limit from spreading in Asia, and Vietnam-War.

Pakistan Prime Minister Z. A. Bhutto 1928-1979 said the following about dictators, from inside of prison-cells -.

"Tin-pot dictators have ravaged Asia, Latin America and Africa. In the aftermath, they have done more to promote communism than the works of Marx and Engels, Lenin and Mao. They are the worst tyrants of the post-colonial period. They have destroyed time-honoured institutions and treated their people like animals. They have caused internal divisions and external confusion. The dictator is the one animal who needs to be caged. He betrays his profession and his constitution. He betrays the people and destroys human values. He destroys culture. He binds the youth. He makes the structure collapse. He rules by fluke and freak. He is the scourge and the ogre. He is a leper. Anyone who touches him also becomes a leper. He is the upstart who is devoid of ideals and ideology. Not a single one of them has made a moment's contribution to history.".

The actions of Anwar Congo and all people like him are never going to be justified with anything - although they look gleeful and emit hilariousness. Should we not consider their actions to be slip of youthfulness, under which their crimes ascended to grow. Money, power, ammunition, and backing from powerful institutions like army and law-enforcement agencies can be weakness for unemployed, badly-off, roaming kids.

As Anwar mentions that he tries to forget all that by dancing, listening to songs, smoking marijuana and drinking. These desperate young people exist everywhere. Based on the information about suicide-bombers who blow themselves up, it is said that these people are as young as 14-years old. Now, why is that so - the threats from the agencies, and terrorist-organizations against would-be perpetrators' family in case they refused?

Should we consider Anwar Congo, in comparison to what Red (Morgan Freeman) says in Shawshank Redemption;.

'There's not a day goes by I don't feel regret. Not because I'm in here, because you think I should. I look back on the way I was then: a young, stupid kid who committed that terrible crime. I want to talk to him. I want to try to talk some sense to him, tell him the way things are. But I can't. That kid's long gone, and this old man is all that's left. I got to live with that. Rehabilitated?'.

NOTE: There is uproar across China after the film received Oscar nomination.