Admitting that they have “bad taste in movies,” Azzam Fi Rulah and Alzein Putra Merdeka, known as Amer Bersaudara (Amer Brothers), are a young film-making duo trying to find a place in the Indonesian independent cinema scene. With their love for campy, low-budget motion pictures, often referred to as B movies, this has not been easy. In the last few years, the duo have produced some wacky and provocative titles such as Pocong Hiu Unleashed (Ghost Shark Unleashed, pocong is a mythical ghost in the form of a white-shrouded ghoul that hops around), Rangsangan Gaib, which has official international title of Corpsegasm, Sebuah Film Karya Setan (A Film by Satan) and more. The goal is to revive a genre that once, for better or worse, ruled Indonesian cinemas.

Thanks to VHS and pirated VCDs, 28 year-old Azzam grew up on horror movies. He found them scary, and yet strangely addictive.

“I remember watching Ringu [the original, Japanese version of the famous horror franchise, The Ring] on [video], which made the experience scarier, since it felt like I was watching a cursed movie,” Azzam recalled, “Plus the censorship on national TV wasn’t as draconian as it is now, and they would air Hong Kong and Indonesian horror movies in the afternoon for everyone to see.”

“I got exposed to all that and became really acquainted with the genre."

A graduate of the Jakarta Institute of Arts (IKJ), it was only in 2017 that Azzam released the first movie he is proud of, Pendakian Birahi (The official international title is Deranged Behaviour), the story of a young woman selling her body to finance her sick mother gone wrong.

Hearing about the movie, Yogyakarta-based horror comic artist, Alzein, known as “Deka”, approached Azzam online and the two exchanged their creations. They immediately hit it off. Deka would later make posters for Azzam’s movies before the two began making movies together.

A love letter to Indonesian B movies

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Indonesia produced a good number of exploitation movies, spewing forth gore, low-budget visuals and outrageous shock elements as their main components. During the New Order regime, any type of criticism of the government was prohibited, so many filmmakers—and audiences—turned to violence and sexual innuendos on the screen for entertainment.

Titles such as Jaka Sembung (international title: The Warrior), Ratu Ilmu Hitam (The Queen of Black Magic), Pengabdi Setan (Satan’s Slave) became cult classics and enjoyed massive popularity both in Indonesia and abroad with distributors such as UK-based Mondo Macabro selling them to European audiences.

However, the Asian financial crisis in 1997, along with the emergence of imported movies aired by free-to-air television, collapsed the Indonesian film industry.

Since then, some Indonesian movies have borrowed elements from this era, and some titles have even been rebooted and adjusted—by popular contemporary directors such as Joko Anwar—to fit the more current aesthetics of cinema.

But perhaps what makes Amer Bersaudara’s movies fascinating is how unashamedly absurd and over-the-top they are. On their latest 10-minute short movie,  Arumi dan Lidah Pocong (Arumi and the Pocong’s Tongue)—clearly referencing the critically acclaimed 2018 Indonesian drama Aruna dan Lidahnya (Aruna and her Tongue) - a young girl named Arumi wants to see whether a local superstition is real: that food tastes better with the saliva of a pocong. The movie ends with her being chased around the house by a pocong, which uses instant noodles as a weapon.

Their longest movie so far, Noda Ranjang Membekas (International title: The Sinners and a Stained Bed) is, according to Azzam, “a pure homage to 80s/90s Indonesian movies, which were full of violence, blood and sensuality.”

Homage: Noda Ranjang Membekas (International title: The Sinners and A Stained Bed), a pure homage to 80s/90s Indonesian B movies. (Amer Brothers) (Personal collection/Courtesy of Amer Brothers)

Even the audio quality of the movie mimics its influences.

“We specifically asked the audio engineer to degrade the dubbing quality,” Azzam said laughing.

In Kuntilanak Pecah Ketuban (International title: Hellish Abortion) the duo employs many elements that audiences of Indonesian made-for-TV soap-opera movies, often with heavy religious overtones called FTV drama, would be familiar with, such as the over-dramatic face zoom-ins.

While this could easily be interpreted as a critique of FTV programs, Azzam said it was actually the other way around.

“We love religious FTV,” he said, without irony.

Deka added that everything they borrowed was supposed to be a sign of respect and not ridicule.

“We studied movies from the past and borrowed their aesthetics. We’re not making fun of them, but rather celebrating them.” he said.

Not for everyone

Amer Bersaudara’s bold and often extreme nature of art has drawn some controversy, however.

During the screening of Rangsangan Gaib in Bali, a number of audience members left mid-session because they were uncomfortable with what they saw on the screen.

The movie, which touches on the theme of necrophilia, went viral on the social media platform Twitter with viewers questioning its moral values.

The provocative movie titles also do not help. The duo admitted that they have often faced rejection when pitching their movies to investors or events, forcing them to become independent, working with local communities to organize their own screenings at cafes and college campuses all across Java.

Many also seem to look down on B movies, which is something that Amer Bersaudara aims to change.

“We have done plenty of interviews with the media, and a lot of them often question our endeavors,” Azzam said, “Some ask ‘Why make these kinds of movies? Why not make proper movies?’”

“We want to coexist with A-class movies. Indonesian cinema is so diverse now and I think it’s time that B movies should be treated equally,” Deka said.

Pure horror: Arumi dan Lidah Pocong (International title: Arumi and The Tongue of Pocong) and many others Amer Brother's movies is a celebration, not a mockery of genre movies. (Personal collection/Courtesy of Amer Brothers)

Alternative platform

Azzam and Deka also started Kolong Sinema as a platform to promote their own movies. However, the two dream that one day it could function as a platform for B movie, genre movie filmmakers.

“We want to send out a message to young filmmakers that it’s okay to make fun movies like ours, that your movie can be featured in festivals without having it being about poverty or socio-political issues,” Azzam said, “We want them to have a safe space to make art without judgement.”

“We have always wanted for Kolong Sinema to be like an alternative cinema that plays genre movies, in its own venue. So that’s where we’re heading,” Deka admitted.