Sabrina (2/5)

Sabrina is a new Indonesian Netflix doll horror movie. In other words, it isn’t about a teenage witch. However, it does include demonic forces and that doll is damn creepy!

Sabrina is a doll horror movie from Indonesia which is now available on Netflix. It’s actually a sequel to The Doll and The Doll 2 but you can watch this one on its own.

Maybe watching the two previous movies would make this one better – but I doubt it.

Instead, Sabrina feels more like it’s part of a larger movie universe. Much like The Conjuring universe. And when it comes to this franchise, it also includes it’s own demonic doll battlers.

As far as I’ve read, these are the characters introduced in previous movies. Also, the movie does end with something that can only be described as calling (pun intended) out for a sequel.

A very creepy doll

The thing that works very well for Sabrina is the doll itself. It’s pretty damn creepy! Especially when you see the dolls being made. I mean, the final product is creepy, but before the hair is attached it’s even worse.

However, and this is important, not much of the horror includes the doll. While the doll does seem to work as a vessel of sorts, the actual horror doesn’t involve around the doll.

I know the same can be said for the Annabelle movies, but somehow it still works better in those stories.

It drags on for too long

It’s nothing new that Asian horror movies tend to run too long. The South Korean horror movies that we adore has the same issue. However, when it comes to these Korean movies, the extra long runtime is often used to develop characters.

Also read: The South Korean horror movies you cannot miss >

Unfortunately, that’s hardly the case with the Indonesian horror movies. The obvious (and absolutely brilliant) exception being Satan’s Slaves, which everyone should watch. Now that is a good horror movie – compared to movies made anywhere in the world.

Sabrina suffers from the same issues that May the Devil Take You did. Though I must admit that I preferred May the Devil Take You to this one. The acting in Sabrina is better, but the story is simply too weak. 

Also, it suffers massively from the “we just have to include this scene”-syndrome. Often, this is due to wanting certain effects included and not to have elements of the story elaborated. The latter is something I can easily forgive.

In fact, the more heartfelt moments of the movie is what works the best. That’s when the story shines and you get involved with the characters and care about their wellbeing. 

A Rocky Soraya movie

Sabrina was written, directed, and produced by Rocky Soraya.

Or rather, that’s the way it’s listed in the credits when the movie begins, but Rocky Soraya “only” came up with the story. The actual screenplay was written by Riheam Junianti and Fajar Umbara. Both have already written on most of his other movies.

Soraya clearly loves horror and his stories do strike a nerve with their audience. Another example is The 3rd Eye (org. title Mata Batin) which will also get a sequel. 

Also read: Our review of Rocky Soraya’s The 3rd Eye here >

I just wish someone else could take a bit more control of the final product. Sabrina is an example of the need for hardcore editing.

However, with the way the credits are shown in the beginning, this does seem very much like the Rocky Soraya (and co-producer producer Raam Soraya) show and everyone else is just onboard for the ride. 

Don’t get me wrong, there are definitely elements of Sabrina that I really liked. It just lost me somewhere along the second half and never really won me back completely.

Sabrina is out on Netflix in the US and many other countries now!

Details

Director: Rocky Soraya
Cast: Luna Maya | Rizky Hanggono | Asri Handayani | Jeremy Thomas | Christian Sugiono | Sara Wijayanto | Richelle Georgette Skornicki

Plot

A toy manufacturer and his wife are terrorized by a demon after their orphaned niece tries to summon her late mother’s spirit using a spooky ritual.