Indonesian director Edwin continues to hide important messages in completely bonkers films, from the Locarno winner Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] – where toxic masculinity met its match in erectile dysfunction, and a whole lotta fighting – to the Berlinale revelation Sleep No More [+leggi anche:
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scheda film], premiering in Berlinale Special Midnight. Ears are mangled and heads roll, but Sleep No More ultimately scares the most not because of the amount of blood spilled, but because of the sad realisation that people will literally die for work.

This is very much the case in a wig factory, where a string of horrific incidents among the overworked employees do nothing to change the existing system. There’s always a dream to chase or a pair of new shoes to buy. Half-asleep and dead-eyed, they pile on the overtime and work themselves into oblivion while listening to soothing messages telling them to “suffer now and live the rest of their life as a champion” – a sentence that’s almost as ironic and cruel as Arbeit macht frei in Auschwitz. In this joint, productivity wins over sleep every time.

Putri (Rachel Amanda) joins the ranks after her mother’s death – she may have committed suicide or, well, been captured by a demon – and starts questioning it. But here’s the truly terrifying part: factory owner Maryati (Didik Nini Thowok), parading around in delightful toreador-like outfits, admits that she once tried to cut overtime and people still wouldn’t leave. When even a close encounter with a board full of nails doesn’t discourage workers from returning to pick up another shift, it’s clear: it will take a while to solve this particular case.

“There’s no such thing as risk-free work,” someone says as the gruesome accidents keep piling up. It’s funny, but some points made here echo loudly after the screening. This writer, for one, kept wondering why the word “workaholic” sounds praiseworthy. Edwin delivers a perfect, surprisingly effective satire, but he’s also a genre master who deserves more recognition. This is just about a perfect chiller, with plenty of heart and mountains of hair, and is a serious contender for the “best severed hand” title alongside Evil Dead II and The Addams Family. The voting starts now.

The hilarious and gory violence alone should guarantee that Sleep No More finds a home at genre festivals around the world, but its quieter, sadder side elevates it above mere entertainment. It’s Ken Loach with demonic possessions and gouged-out eyes. The best genre films always hide something more than ghosts of the past and deliver more than just jump scares. It might be pushing it, but there is a universe where this movie could be shown not at midnight, but alongside more sombre films about toxic workplaces and exploitation, and it would fit right in.

Sleep No More was produced by Palari Films (Indonesia), and co-produced by Beacon Film (Indonesia), Giraffe Pictures (Singapore), Hassaku Lab (Japan), In Good Company (Germany) and Apsara Films (France). It is being sold by Showbox Corp.