This fascinating article on a best-selling Indonesian film (Ayat Ayat Cinta, 2008) offers a fine example of Gothic fear. That is, of how people fear or resent horror stories. The mix the article shows draws on global Gothic culture, with a national flavor.
First, note the combination of undesireable things: sex and ghosts.
Indonesian religious leaders often have voiced their objections to popular film productions that contain sex and ghosts calling them film maksiat (immoral films).
The article seems to assume that depictions of religion don't involve the supernatural. That seems to mean focusing on religious practice in personal life, and not showing any divine intervention, miracles, etc.
Second, there's a class argument. The author complains about "Idonesian lower class horror films," without mentioning art films (if there are any, in this context). This is compared with art which appeals to viewers who are "hip, fashionable and capable of socializing" - in other words, horror presents an economic anxiety. Moral films represent the upward economic path.
Third, the paper is concerned about distancing Islam from horror. For instance,
Fourth, there seems to be an anxiety about gender and sexual relationships. Note the familiar concern about sexualized women, not men. Combine that with the movie's plot, which focuses on marrying a man. His sexual desires aren't a danger, apparently. He is, in fact, a pious lad, and a religious student.
Fifth, there's a fear about... fears, specifically how some Muslims (not the author's side) might react:
The article does historicize these concerns:
It would be a useful classroom assignment to ask students to compare this with, say, the history of British Gothic in the 1790s, or the 1950s American panic about horror comics.
(thanks to Ed Webb)
It would be interesting to see how this compares with other countries in the region - I know Cambodia and Thailand have horror films, don't know about Malaysia or Vietnam offhand. See for example this article from 2004.
Posted by: Steven Kaye | November 29, 2008 at 10:45