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| The Act of Killing | |
|---|---|
| Name | The Act of Killing |
| Director | Joshua Oppenheimer |
| Producer | Signe Byrge Sørensen |
| Starring | Anwar Congo, Herman Koto, Adi Zulkadry |
| Music | Anohni |
| Cinematography | Rein Kotov, Lars Skree |
| Distributor | Drafthouse Films |
| Released | 2012 |
| Runtime | 122 |
| Country | Indonesia, United Kingdom, Denmark, Norway |
| Language | Indonesian, English |
The Act of Killing is a 2012 documentary film directed by Joshua Oppenheimer that examines the 1965–66 anti-communist mass killings in Indonesia through the testimonies and reenactments of former death squad leaders. The film foregrounds figures who participated in or organized mass violence and permits them to stage cinematic sequences reflecting their memories, fantasies, and rationalizations. It received major international awards and provoked debates involving historians, human rights advocates, film festivals, and political institutions.
The film follows former paramilitary leaders such as Anwar Congo and Adi Zulkadry as they recreate their roles in the purge that followed the alleged coup attempt associated with the 30 September Movement, linking to broader Cold War struggles involving United States covert policy, Sukarno-era politics, and the rise of Suharto. Filmmaker Joshua Oppenheimer collaborated with producers including Signe Byrge Sørensen and editors linked to the Danish film community to craft a hybrid work positioned between the traditions of documentary film exemplified by Werner Herzog, Errol Morris, and Agnès Varda and the reenactment strategies of Peter Watkins and Jean Rouch. The soundtrack features artists such as Anohni and collaborators from independent labels, contributing to the film’s atmosphere at festivals like Sundance Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival, and Toronto International Film Festival.
The events addressed stem from the chaotic aftermath of the 30 September Movement in 1965, when alleged Indonesian Communist Party members were blamed for an attempted coup, precipitating a violent anti-communist purge that ushered in the New Order regime under Suharto. The killings affected hundreds of thousands and involved actors from paramilitary groups, death squads, local militia, and elements of state apparatus. International dimensions include the role of United States foreign policy, intelligence exchanges with agencies such as the Central Intelligence Agency, and Cold War alignments with United Kingdom and Australia diplomatic circles. Scholarly debate engages historians like John Roosa, Brad Simpson, Geoffrey Robinson, and institutions such as the International Center for Transitional Justice and human rights NGOs including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.
Oppenheimer and collaborators shot in Indonesia over several years, negotiating risks posed by continued impunity under legal frameworks shaped by New Order-era statutes and local political networks. The production involved actors, cinematographers Rein Kotov and Lars Skree, and editors whose techniques recall the reflexive methods of Chris Marker and the performative interviews of D.A. Pennebaker. The film’s formal strategy—encouraging perpetrators to produce genre films including musical numbers, noir scenes, and melodrama—draws upon cinematic traditions from Hollywood to Bollywood and Indonesian popular culture like wayang and dangdut. Funding and distribution passed through European producers and festivals, intersecting with distributors such as Drafthouse Films and institutions like the British Film Institute and the Danish Film Institute.
The film juxtaposes staged reenactments with candid testimony to interrogate themes of memory, masculinity, impunity, and the construction of historical narrative. It examines how perpetrators craft identities through celebrity, business networks, and political patronage connected to local powerbrokers and parties such as Golkar and figures associated with the New Order elite. The documentary provokes ethical questions about representation raised in debates involving filmmakers like Errol Morris and theorists influenced by Michel Foucault and debates in transitional justice scholarship mirrored in work by Rita Kitsing, Mark Selden, and institutions like the International Criminal Court. The film’s aesthetics comment on spectacle, the routinization of violence, and the interplay between confession and theatricality, resonating with other works addressing mass atrocity such as Shoah, books and studies by scholars of genocide and memory.
Critics, festival programmers, and human rights organizations largely praised the film, awarding it prizes from institutions including the European Film Awards, the BAFTA Awards, and nominations at the Academy Awards. It also generated controversy in Indonesia, prompting responses from Indonesian officials, veterans’ groups, and media outlets such as Kompas and The Jakarta Post. Debates centered on ethics of giving perpetrators a platform, risks to participants and witnesses, and implications for ongoing struggles over recognition, reparations, and legal accountability involving actors like Suharto's supporters, contemporary politicians, and security sector figures. Academic critics linked the film to discussions in journals that reference scholars such as Benedict Anderson, David Marr, and EvelynNie on postcolonial narrative and historiography.
The film catalyzed renewed international attention to the 1965–66 killings, influencing scholarship, public memory projects, and advocacy by organizations such as Trials of the Century-style campaigns and local truth-seeking initiatives. It spurred screenings, panels at universities including Harvard University, Oxford University, and University of Indonesia, and exhibitions in museums associated with memory work like the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience. Filmmakers and artists citing the film include Joshua Oppenheimer’s contemporaries and successors in documentary practice, and its methods inspired debates in film studies programs at institutions such as the London Film School and NYU Tisch School of the Arts. The film’s awards and high-profile critical attention helped push public discourse toward conversations about historical responsibility, legal redress, and cultural reckoning in post-New Order Indonesia.
Category:Documentary films about Indonesia