Ghost in the Cell (A Ghost in the Cell)

SWISS PREMIERE

‘A high-security prison under the thumb of a tyrannical warden is shaken by a series of gruesome murders. The bodies are artfully and macabrely arranged. Who is the culprit? Who will be the next victim? Helplessly at the mercy of their fate, the prisoners take refuge in spontaneous dance-offs, unexpected prayers, frenzied fistfights and invocation of Kierkegaard. They put aside their gang rivalries to jointly unravel the motive behind the murders and appease the invisible enemy, who seems not of this world. Indonesia’s genre wizard Joko Anwar directs Ghost in the Cell as a cheerfully grotesque horror comedy that is disarming in more ways than one, teeming with eccentric characters on the verge of a nervous breakdown. A sophisticated balancing act between light-heartedness and brutal violence, in which laughter can sometimes get stuck in your throat. Through the vigorous use of primary colours, Anwar lends his twelfth feature film the power of a painting. With its irreverent political edge, thanks to allusions to exploitation and corruption, Ghost in the Cell is nonetheless not ‘highbrow horror’, but pure, unbridled delight in the genre. A real firework display!’ (Berlinale 2026)