The Act of Killing (2012)

In this chilling and groundbreaking documentary, former Indonesian death squad leaders reenact their real-life mass killings in the style of various film genres, from gangster epics to musicals. As they recreate their past atrocities, the line between reality and performance blurs, exposing the lingering impact of Indonesia’s 1965-66 anti-communist purge and the unsettling psychology of its perpetrators.

Released Nov. 1, 2012 117 min 14+

Genres: Biography, Crime, Documentary

Keywords: tmdb.corruption, tmdb.indonesia, tmdb.genocide, tmdb.indonesian-genocide, tmdb.political-documentary, tmdb.social-cultural-documentary, mdblist.has-trailer + 43 more, mdblist.certified-fresh, mdblist.metacritic-must-see, mdblist.ext.2k-blu-ray, imdb.executioner, imdb.biographical-documentary, imdb.death-squad, imdb.mass-killing, imdb.surrealism, imdb.retching, imdb.self-justification, imdb.political-rally, imdb.gangster, imdb.torture, imdb.giant-fish, imdb.man-in-drag, imdb.corruption, imdb.paramilitary, imdb.indonesian-history, imdb.genocide, imdb.reenactment, imdb.indonesia, imdb.crime-documentary, imdb.postmodern, imdb.musical-number, imdb.reference-to-guantanamo-bay, imdb.ethnography, imdb.anthropology, imdb.visual-sociology, imdb.visual-anthropology, imdb.visual-ethnography, imdb.popular-culture, imdb.sociology, imdb.cinema, imdb.international-law, imdb.reference-to-john-wayne, imdb.reference-to-al-pacino, imdb.reference-to-marlon-brando, imdb.filmmaking, imdb.reference-to-voltaire, imdb.title-directed-by-female, awards.oscar-nominated, soundmix.dolby-digital, aspectratio.1-85-1