The Forbidden Door‘s protagonist is not a starving artist, but a prosperous one learning that success can be just as torturous. The film opens on him sipping champagne while denying an art collector one of his gallery pieces, as it has already sold. The first few shots inside the art gallery give an initial impression that this may be a visually uninteresting film. This perception is shattered after Gambir and his wife leave the gallery, a crane shot swoops up and away, past a blazing marquee before we’re thrown into one of the coolest opening credit sequences ever (think James Bond meets Roman Polanski) and we see that director Joko Anwar has some flair to share.
I won’t try to summarize the plot which, like so many ambitious horror films, starts out strong, becomes a little convoluted, ultimately leaves the viewer thinking ‘wtf?’. The titular forbidden door that Gambir can’t enter actually has very little to do with the plot, but is just one of several catalysts that contribute to his insanity and paranoia. I will say that the gory moments were squirm-worthy but not gratuitous and evoked cheers from the After Dark audience.
