Ratu ilmu hitam

This was a fun movie. In no way is it a good movie but for all of us out there that like gory B horror films, this was a great film. With plenty of gory moments, bad dubbing, bad filming, and did I mention gore, this one was a keeper.

Basically, a few people in a small Indonesian village have been murdered in mysterious ways. The village people believe it to be black magic and point the finger at an innocent woman. After they throw her from a cliff, an older man helps to heal her wounds. He is skilled in the black magic ways and teaches her what he knows so that she can exact revenge upon the village.

I believe that this movie was made working from the fame of the movie Black Magic from the mid 70's which was a Shaw Bros. film. In know way is this movie similar. This movie is straight schlock, but good schlock. The storyline wouldn't survive without the gore scenes. Those scenes are rather well done, I might add. Some of the scenes are very similar to a film made just a couple of years later name Scanners. We see bursting veins, a man ripping his own head off, a body exploding, bee attack, etc etc.

If you are into these crazy types of film, this one is so worth checking out. You won't regret it. 7/10

Who else than the terrific people working over at Mondo Macabro DVD could have picked up this deranged flick from oblivion and unleash it upon madness-loving cinema fanatics all over the globe? "The Queen of Black Magic" is an Indonesian film (a country of which most people don't even know they produce movies) that is bad from every possible viewpoint, but simultaneously one of the most hilariously entertaining and excessively demented experiences one could ever have. The plot is thinner than an anorexic top model and completely devoid of coherence, dialogs as well as acting performances and dubbing jobs are atrocious and there isn't the slightest trace of tension building or character development. But all these 'minor defaults' are more than widely compensated by the gigantic amount of over-the-top splatter effects, demented imagery and simply the sheer craziness of it all! Particularly late at night, with a group of friends and loads of cold beer in the fridge, watching "The Queen of Black Magic" is guaranteed hilarity! The film tells the heartbreaking story of Murni, a beautiful young girl who reluctantly offers her virginity to the man she loves, only to get dumped by the guy in favor for the village headman's daughter. If that isn't painful enough yet, poor Murni subsequently gets falsely accused of placing the village under a black magic spell and thrown of a cliff. She survives (which is practically impossible if you see the fall) and lands straight in the arms of an actual black magic artist who fanatically encourages her to seek vengeance and offers to be her teacher. Murni completes her revenge with the beheading of her treacherous ex-lover, but her mentor insists to carry on murdering the entire village. Meanwhile, a handsome and allegedly holy man arrived in town and suddenly Murni doesn't feel all that furious anymore. "The Queen of Black Magic" is recommended to laugh at the stupidity in its dialogs (character endlessly repeating the same thing without even rephrasing their words) and especially to gasp at the extreme gore. We've got maggot-infested cadavers, veins bursting with blood, exploding heads and – top of the bill – a decapitated head flying around town. If these represent the Indonesian gore standards, then I can't wait to get my dirty little hands on that other Mondo Macabro release named "Mystics in Bali". Somewhat strange, however, is that this film doesn't feature any nudity and only a minimum of sleaze. I know I wouldn't have minded some nude scenes of lead actress Suzzanna, even in spite of her obviously enormous bottom. Speaking of Suzzanna, through this website I found out she passed away recently, which is a damn shame and surely a great loss for Indonesian cinema.

Contemporary horror flicks coming out of Hong Kong, including from such esteemed studios as The Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest, tended to draw significantly on black magic for their material. In what could have been and were intended to be gnarly effects extravaganzas, however, it didn't always feel like the full potential was being met. Thankfully, the same is not true of this Indonesian classic. It comes across in no small part that filmmaker Liliek Sudjio and/or screenwriter Imam Tantowi conjured the scenario particularly with a mind for filling it with as much striking imagery and as many effects sequences as they reasonably could. Working from the premise of a woman who was horribly mistreated, and who is taught black magic to exact revenge, 'Ratu ilmu hitam' ("Queen of black magic") is flush with imaginative, wild visions to keep us entertained. It isn't necessarily absolutely perfect, yet there is superb, enduring value here that shows Indonesia isn't to be counted out as a source of terrific genre cinema.

The practical effects and stunts are uniformly outstanding, from blood and gore to wire work, fire, explosions, and more. Even setting aside such specific, twisted violence, however, we're given an array of splendid, creative sights that lend tremendous dark flavor to the tale. From art direction to props, even the costume design, and not least the casting of spells, in the spectacle is represented a bounty of vibrant, colorful delights, all equally fantastic. Everyone working behind the scenes is to be congratulated for conjuring such a great treasure, to say nothing of the filmmaker and writer who give the proceedings such obvious, welcome focus. There's a point to be made that just as like-minded fare out of Europe or the United States leans on opposition to Christianity, this is a tad heavy-handed in how it weaves in Islam as a panacea for the ills facing the village, though as far as that goes it's not as gawky about it as some other Indonesian horror. One might also argue that the picture isn't as dark as it could have been, and maybe in turn not as satisfying, but as far as I'm concerned 'Ratu ilmu hitam' is so strong that any such questions are resolved for me.

With the film being given such a strong center, everyone involved is able to gladly do their part to bring it to vivid life. The cast are to be commended for their admirable performances of nuance and range, with Suzzanna obviously standing out most as beleaguered protagonist Murni. From editing and cinematography to Sudjio's direction, the title is shaped in every manner to let the story play out meaningfully, but more so to elevate the intended spectacle - to superb results! The filming locations are gorgeous, the hair and makeup are lovely, the sets in general are swell, and in every regard this is well made and enjoyable. We're all here for one thing, though, and the participants knew it, and 'Ratu ilmu hitam' does not disappoint. As a matter of personal preference this won't appeal to all comers, but I'm inclined to believe anyone who appreciates the genre will find something to like here, even if they're not as wholly taken with it as I am. In my opinion this meets or surpasses the standards set by some similar works, and it's a pity that it's not more well known. This is one horror classic that's well worth seeking out, and I'm pleased to give it my heart recommendation!

This film begins with a young bride by the name "Baedah" (Siska Widowati) preparing to marry her future husband named "Kohar" (Alan Nuary). But as Kohar approaches his new bride, Baedah has a hallucination which so terrifies her that she runs inside the house to escape. While this is happening, a terrible storm suddenly develops which wreaks havoc upon the wedding feast and sends the guests into a panic. Not long afterward, Kohar becomes convinced that a past lover by the name of "Murni" (J. P. Suzzanna) has done this through black magic, so together with several young men from the village, they march out to kill her. Meanwhile, Murni just happens to be at home with her mother and doesn't know anything about what has happened until the mob reaches her house where they drag her out and subsequently throw her off a cliff. As luck would have it, however, she is rescued by an evil wizard (played by W. D. Mochtar) who takes her to his small hut where he nurses her back to health. And it's then that he teaches her the art of black magic and fills her with a terrible rage so that she can exact her revenge. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this was an interesting film which benefited greatly from the performance of J. P. Suzzanna, who was not only beautiful, but played her part extremely well. Likewise, the exotic scenery aided this film to a certain degree as well. On the flip side, however, the suspense was lacking, and the script could also have used some improvement. Be that as it may, while this wasn't a great movie by any means, it wasn't necessarily that bad either and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Slightly below average.

'The Queen Of Black Magic (1981)' is an Indonesian horror film in which a woman is accused of using black magic to ruin the wedding of her ex-lover and, after being thrown off a cliff, is subsequently taught black magic by a mysterious stranger who wants her to get revenge on those that did her harm. It's a bit of an odd film, with a serious tone that's offset somewhat by its often silly surrealistic visuals. Still, it works well enough for what it is. What it lacks in atmosphere and compelling characters it makes up for with pulpy special effects and a straightforward plot. It more or less just sees its protagonist pick off her wrongdoers one by one, until it moves into its final third and it starts to focus more on the fact that she doesn't want to keep hurting people. There's a really weird and unnecessary plot twist near the end that doesn't do anything other than make things really uncomfortable and, in general, the picture is only ever so compelling. However, it's generally enjoyable and features some entertaining special effects. It's a solid effort. 6/10.