30. PABRIK GULA (aka SUGAR MILL, 2025)

Released on August 7, 2025 and streaming on Shudder from EST N8!
Directed by Awi Suryadi.
Written by Lele Laila, from a story by SimpleMan.
Check out the trailer here!!

A group of friends gather together on a transport to go to a new job at a sugar factory in the middle of nowhere. They will be living at this facility as it is far from their homes, but this group of friends see the opportunity to hang out with one another all summer and still get a good sum of money out of the endeavor. Once at the sugar cane plantation, the group are informed of some very strict rules. When a horn is sounded at the end of the day, they are not to leave their rooms. Of course, being young’un’s, this is the rule that is first broken on the very first night of their stay. But by breaking these simple rules, the group have awakened evil spirits, placing themselves, and the rest of the workers at the sugar mill in tremendous danger.

I love Indonesian horror. Much like the film output of South Korea, movies from the region have a flavor all its own. It usually involves religious rituals, utter dread, demons, ghosts, and other bits of Indonesian folklore and of course lots, and lots of bugs and centipedes. And PABRIK GULA aka SUGAR MILL has all of these things in abundance. While often times international horror doesn’t translate to American culture, more times than not, Indonesian horror, which relies heavily on ritual, magic, and religious horror works for me. I think it is because these films have a very grounded take on horror, relying on tactile monsters, a heavy dose of atmosphere, the tall reeds and thick forests in the environment, and the low fi nature of the effects. This is what makes films by Joko Anwar like RITUAL, SATAN’S SLAVES, its sequel, MAY THE DEVIL TAKE YOU, its sequel, and IMPETIGORE so potent, as well as films by Kimo Stamboel such as MACABRE and THE QUEEN OF BLACK MAGIC.
It seems horror is something this Indonesian culture knows well and to add to that short list of awesome modern horror Indonesian horrors is PABRIK GULA.

Coming in at two hours and thirteen minutes, PABRIK GULA allows for an awful lot of time to delve into the relationships shared between this large group of friends. Two are soon to be married. A few are simple friends or might have budding relationships had they been given time. One is a sultry little number who has no time for traditions. And of course, there are a pair of goofy dudes simply there for comic relief. That’s a big group of kids to get to know and the first half hour takes its time to introduce all of them. Thankfully, the actors fall into tried-and-true horror tropes; some being very virtuous, while others are less than so at varying degrees. This is always a challenge with international films like this where one is so busy following the subtitles that it is often hard to distinguish one character from another. Don’t start rushing to your keyboards yet though. I’m not saying this cast all look alike. They don’t. But nuance like personality is often sacrificed through translation when it comes to the rate this cast comfortably talks with one another and the speed with which the subtitles go by. Thankfully, this is a big cast, but a distinct one, established in those crucial opening scenes, so it is quite easy to follow who is who.

What really makes PABRIK GULA stand out as awesome is the variety of monsters this group meet at this creepy ass sugar mill. There’s a bunch of smoldering corpses who can only be seen by certain people at certain times. These are the wandering ghosts from a mill fire from long ago that still linger around at night. There are specific ghosts like a warped faced woman and a biker with a large hole where his face should be. There are hooded ghosts that pop out of nowhere reminiscent of the ghosts one might see in a Blumhouse flic. Some of the cast get possessed by an evil entity numerous times, causing them to have bright red eyes, resembling the Deadite possessions seen in the first few EVIL DEAD films. And then there is the scariest mo-fo of them all—a towering devil-like creature that seems to be made of pitch black shadows. Any one of these monsters could be a formidable antagonist for a single movie, but PABRIK GULA smooshes them all into one place, making later in the movie, when the kids are wandering around the sugar mill grounds, dangerous on many levels. It’s almost like a funhouse ride where you get a little bit of everything thrown at you in one trip. The creativity behind these creatures is great, but what’s better is that director Awi Suryadi knows how to make their appearances terrifying every time.

The place where these monsters roam is impressive too. With the ominous sugar mill building, the towering trees surrounding the facility, and the thick rows of sugar cane, the setting is a whole ‘nother monster to challenge the kids and keep the audience looking around every corner with trepidation.

There definitely seems to be a Western influence on PABRIK GULA. It was released on IMAX and caused quite the hullabaloo in Indonesia before making its way to America on Shudder recently, which I where I caught it. But while filmmakers like George Lucas borrowed heavily from Asian cinema for STAR WARS, on a smaller scale, it seems director Awi Suryadi and his writers Lele Laila and someone named SimpleMan, have decided to steal some of these tropes back. Specifically, the two comic relief characters fell a whole lot like C3-PO and R2-D2 as they are simply there to break up the tension with some antics. Most of the time, these little tension relievers actually work, but there are definitely a few duddy moments.

Another critique I have for PABRIK GULA is that while the film does a good job of distinguishing characters, I think there is a lot of redundances in this large cast. There is a virtuous lead gal who seems to be the focus on the film, but there is also the bride to be and another innocent girl who all seem to be playing the same character. This redundancy also occurs as there are a pair of bumbling security guards that have the same function as Franky and Dwi, the two comic relief dudes. That’s one pair of bumblers too many. Same goes for the mystics where there’s an old guy and an old gal basically doing the same thing acting as mystics protecting the mill. I don’t know. Maybe I’m just used to low budget horror, where there is just a bare bones cast. Either way, this film feels crowded.

Still, for its menagerie of monsters, likable cast, wonderfully unique setting, and plenty of scares and gore (don’t forget the centipedes), PABRIK GULA stands out as a film that is good no matter where it is from. I often rattle off a bunch of Indonesian flicks whenever I’m with my horror buddies, when I’m trying to impress them with my sick knowledge of all things horror. Now I have PABRIK GULA to add to that list of potent horror exports from Indonesia.

Worth Noting: #MISSINGCOUPLE (2024)

Released on October 8, 2025, and streaming on Tubi from Massive Mission LLC and Virgil Films!
Directed by Jacques Edeline, Oliver Maudlin.
Written by Jacques Edeline.
Check out the trailer here!!

An influencer couple, Austin and Jenna Jenkins (who play themselves) decide to renovate a secluded farm and document it on social media. But soon after they arrive, they begin experiencing strange phenomena. The motion sensors go off. They fear someone has been inside of their house when they are out. And the trail cameras they set up begin showing shadowy figures lurking on the grounds. Meanwhile, an online investigator (played by writer/co-director Jacques Edeline) attempts to track down Austin and Jenna when their social media posts suddenly stop. The film splits the timeline in two, documenting the couple and the investigator as they inch closer to the truth.

Are the actors successfully acting like they aren’t acting?
Everyone feels natural, which is something that is necessary for these found footagers. Remember, authenticity is a crucial part of making a good found footage film. If it feels like the actors are acting, then it really doesn’t work. Both Austin and Jenna feel authentic. They are both flawed in their own way with each not being completely honest with each other. Austin feels aloof at times, not believing in what Jenna is doing or trying to protect her by leaving out dangerous goings on at the farm. But they never feel like actors. The nameless online investigator played by Jacques Edeline is creepy as all get out. He’s got this blank stare and this bizarre dedication to solving this case that feels unhealthy. This turns out to be part of the story and Edeline does a fantastic job playing this complex character, juggling writing, and directing duties.

Does the footage found seem authentic and untouched by additional production?
Yes. For the sake of unfolding the mystery of the missing couple, the story shifts from the couple’s footage, which the online investigator is watching to what is actually happening to the online investigator and what’s going on with him. It’s a clever way to tell a story, but kind of cheats by shifting from one set of footage to a second set. I’ll give it a pass because I really dug the way information is released here. Still, the editing between scenes was occasionally confusing since both parties use multiple formats for recording. There are a few scenes during the tense moments where music was added which ripped me right from the story. Nothing like a keyboardist banging away on a synth to kill the authenticity. The sad thing is that the scenes were tense enough that they didn’t need the extra oomph of added music. It’s a shame. There are produced TikTok and Instagram videos set to music, which felt much more natural.

Why don’t they just drop the camera and get the hell out of there?
Being online influencers, Austin, and Jenna film everything. I’ve come to simply buy this as a reason the camera isn’t dropped. When the weird stuff happens, Jenna wants to share with her viewers as a means to understand it all. The online investigator, on the other hand, is building his entire show on finding this couple, so he wants to keep filming no matter what, which is a good enough excuse for me.

Is there an up-nose BLAIR WITCH confessional or a REC-drag away from the camera?
Not so much. There are a few confessionals, but they are done in order to provide added information to the story, not as some cliched aping of BLAIR WITCH. And while the camera is dropped a time or two, the film manages to be original in the way the one filming disappears into the darkness.

Does anything actually happen? Is the lead in too long and the payoff too short?
Now, I don’t want to say this was a thrill-a-minute, but the way this film was edited between the two timelines, the story really moves along at a good clip. Early on, there was a mention that something was in the background of some of the footage shot by Austin and Jenna, and it made me scour the background while watching to see if there are other instances of this. It was fun for a while, but this was distracting me from the story. I didn’t see any more instances. The shadow people were there, but I didn’t see them. There are a few instances where Austin and Jenna are reacting to something on the screen seen from one of the outside cameras. The scene then cuts to the camera, and you really can’t see anything but darkness, but something was there, due to the reactions by Austin and Jenna. Yes, this is another slow build film with the bulk of the action happening in the ultimate moments, but #MISSINGCOUPLE manages to pepper in interesting moments all the way through to keep your attention.

Does the film add anything to the subgenre and is it worth watching?
I actually liked this one quite a bit. This is an extremely low budget film, but it sets the mood very well. I liked the mystery aspect of this one and the way little bits of information about the couple and the online investigator are revealed along the way, giving light to a pretty fascinating and original story. The shadow people were creepy, though they are pretty rudimentary CG effects. It’s definitely a slow builder, but if you don’t mind watching influencers doing what influencers do while an intriguing mystery unfolds around them, # MISSINGCOUPLE is worth checking out.

The Best in Horror Countdown 2024-2025
#31 – GET AWAY (DARK MATCH)
#30 – PABRIK GULA (#MISSINGCOUPLE)