The Act of Killing (2012)

The Act of Killing (2012) is a chilling documentary that invites former Indonesian death squad leaders to recreate their real-life atrocities in various cinematic styles, ranging from classic Hollywood crime dramas to extravagant musical numbers. Anwar Congo and his associates have been seen dancing through musical sequences, enacting film noir gangster scenes, and riding across prairies as yodelling cowboys. Their cinematic endeavors are celebrated in the media and debated on television, despite the fact that Anwar and his friends are notorious mass murderers. In Medan, Indonesia, the 1965 overthrow of the Indonesian government by the military elevated Anwar and his friends from small-time ticket scalpers to leaders of death squads. They assisted the army in killing over one million alleged communists, ethnic Chinese, and intellectuals in less than a year. As the executioner for the most infamous death squad in his city, Anwar personally killed hundreds of people. Today, Anwar is hailed as a founding father of a right-wing paramilitary organization that emerged from the death squads, with leaders including government ministers who openly discuss corruption, election rigging, and acts of genocide. The documentary delves into the minds of mass killers who have not been held accountable for their crimes, offering a disturbing glimpse into a culture of impunity where killers can joke about atrocities on television and celebrate moral disasters with ease. Anwar and his friends, inspired by their love for cinema, modeled their methods of murder after Hollywood idols like James Dean and John Wayne. In The Act of Killing (2012), they agree to recreate their experiences, not as documentary testimony, but as stars in their favorite film genres. This unique approach allows the filmmakers to expose how a regime founded on crimes against humanity would project itself into history. As the filmmaking process unfolds, tensions rise, and some of Anwar's friends begin to question the morality of their actions. Anwar himself undergoes a profound emotional journey, moving from arrogance to regret as he confronts the full implications of his deeds. The documentary presents a gripping conflict between moral imagination and moral catastrophe, as Anwar's fragile conscience is threatened by the pressure to remain a hero.