Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams Episodes Ranked.
From the mad mind that brought us Satan’s Slaves and its equally good sequel…Joko Anwar’s anthology series has landed on Netflix. The series consists of seven surprisingly connected stories that take place in Jakarta over several decades.
Anwar takes the director’s chair for two of the episodes. He has a hand in writing five of them. There are no “bad” episodes of Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams…but there are a couple of real standouts. How the episodes end up connected is surprising…and completely wild. Whether you consider the series horror, sci-fi, mystery or drama…it’s appropriately dark for a Joko Anwar production.
Rankings are subjective. If you watched the anthology and see your favorite episode ranked at the bottom…don’t take it personally. No episode of the series is any less than pretty good. The level of quality on display here is impressive.
There will be no spoilers in the episode descriptions.
Now…onto our ranking of Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams. From worst to first…as we do.
7. Encounter (Episode 4)
While no episode of this anthology is “bad” …there is one that can be labeled “boring”. Anwar wrote Encounter. It was directed by Ray Pakpahan, his first of two episodes. The story centers around a fisherman attempting to save the money needed to find his mother in Saudia Arabia. She left him when he was 7 years old. The belief that he will find her drives him to outwork everyone. His wife’s support is waning as they reach the amount of savings necessary.
When the fisherman (Wahyu) sees something impossible one night…he becomes the talk of the village. He has photographic proof of an angel. It makes him the talk of the village. He is seen as a savior who will protect the town from forced eviction. Meanwhile, Wahyu’s life goes to absolute Hell. Again, no episode of Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams is bad. They’re all well made with strong performances. Encounter is just too slow and depressing to rank anywhere but here.
6. Hypnotized (Episode 6)
Unfortunately for director Ray Pakpahan…Hypnotized is the other episode he directed. The good news is that his second episode is a lot more interesting. It involves a colorblind electrician who learns the ways of hypnotism. When he uses it to rob a woman (who we will know from a previous episode) …it effects his family in some dire ways.
The story is buoyed by a twisty script that leaves you uncertain about where things are going to go next. It also features a major revelation at the end that will pay off in the finale of Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams. Some interesting visuals keep things interesting enough to keep Hypnotized out of the bottom spot. But the show has better episodes.
5. The Other Side (Episode 5)
The Other Side has, perhaps, the most interesting set-up of any episode in the series. A man stops by the decrepit movie theater he used to work at to find it teaming with life on this inside. He returns home to find that two years have passed. Before you get to thinking that this concept will be used for fun…The Other Side is the story of the sad destruction of a loving family.
This is Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams at its most Twilight Zone. The theater has Shining vibes. The performances are top notch. It’s also another depressing installment. There are a lot of downers in this anthology. Rest assured it’s leading to a much happier place in the end. Anwar, again, writes the episode. Randolph Zani directs.
4. The Orphan (Episode 2)
Tommy Dewo directs The Orphan. Another Twilight Zone like story. This one involves an orphan who brings great wealth to whoever adopts him. The catch is they will be dead seven days later. You may wonder why anyone who already knows this catch would choose to adopt this particular child. The Orphan does a great job exploring that question.
A grieving couple struggling for money decides to take the risk. The husband has a dark plan to avoid the result. His wife reluctantly agrees…but immediately begins to care for the child. The seven-day ticking clock adds a sense of urgency to every move the family makes. The ending will stick with you. One of the darker stories in Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams is also one of its best.
3. Old House (Episode 1)
Joko Anwar writes and directs the first episode of his anthology, The Old House. A taxi driver receives an invitation from a posh nursing home to take care of his ailing mother. He doesn’t want to do it…but a near tragedy forces his hand. It weighs on him to the point where he can’t get through one night without changing his mind. Getting her out, however, isn’t as easy as getting her in.
The Old House sets the tone for what Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams is going to be. Well-made short stories that contain dark secrets. What’s going on inside (or under) the nursing home is the stuff of nightmares. Like all episodes to come…The Old House is steeped in sadness. It’s a strong opening that will let you know right off the bat if this anthology is for you.
2. P.O. Box (Episode 7)
From the first episode to the last. Anwar, fittingly, directs (and co-writes) the series finale of his namesake anthology. The story centers around a woman who will not give up looking for her missing sister. She discovers a clue to her five-year disappearance in the form of a P.O. Box attached to an old job listing. When the listing reappears…she jumps at the chance to follow in her sister’s footsteps. She finds that all the accepted applicants have specialties that involve enhanced body parts…and the nightmarish reason that’s a pre-requisite.
The story here is an engaging one…but the thing you’re most apt to remember after watching this episode is how it ends. After hints of a larger, connected world between episodes…the stories crash together in a wild and unexpected way. P.O. Box is Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams at (nearly) its best. A mystery that becomes pure horror that becomes something else altogether.
1. Poems and Pain (Episode 3)
The best episode of Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams was an easy one to pick out. A once successful writer falls on hard times when her follow-up bombs. She agrees to write the sequel to her best-known work…even though it causes her physical harm to do so. She goes into a trance like state and awakens with new pages and equally new bruises. She experiences what her protagonist does…and discovers she can control her.
The investigation that follows is terrific. Convinced the woman in her novel is real, the writer sets out to find her. She uncovers surprising connections, a vast conspiracy, and that the world of this anthology is much larger than we initially suspected. It ends with a bang. The kind that makes you wish there was a full episode dedicated to the next part of this story. We will see more of the writer before the end of this anthology. A full feature length film adaptation of Poems and Pain wouldn’t go unappreciated, however.
Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams Link
Streaming on Netflix
