Sundance Film Festival 2026: ‘Levitating’ is Spiritually Thrilling
Levitating is the kind of movie one hopes to see at a film festival. The type of narrative aims for otherworldly heights of creativity and ambition. In the first twenty minutes, the concept is made clear. The locals engage in trance parties, where dancers willingly let music invoke the spirits of animals to possess them as a spirit channeler using an instrument to hold them in the spiritual realm.
If the description isn’t strange enough already, throw in splashes of a coming-of-age story, mild doses of horror, and banging musical numbers to get the audience feeling overtaken by the deities.
The film centers on Bayu (Angga Yunanda), a young man in the town of Latas who dreams of becoming a spiritual channeler. The film confidently throws the viewer into the trance party environment, assuming the audience will understand the rules without guidance. Bayu plays a flute-like instrument, while Guru Asri (Anggun), a referee of sorts in the intoxicating dance space, maintains the protection of the channeler and the possessed as the spectacle unfolds.
It’s within these opening moments that one can feel a movie with a clear voice. The dance sequences are magnetic, the music is pounding, and Guru Asri’s vocal intensity takes flight. Bayu plays the instrument for the dancers with deep concentration.
As they feel possessed, we are introduced to an Inception-inspired layer in which the possessed participants enter the channeler’s mindful state. But as we quickly learn, if distractions consume the channeler’s mind, the trance-dancing process crumbles. Each spirit channeler uses a different musical instrument, ranging from drums to guitars.
Filmmaker Wregas Bhanuteja’s story of pain, music, and possession
From here, the dance routine communicates details about the character Bayu in each passing section. He tries to maintain the trance by playing with full concentration, but distractions keep intruding on the channeling.
The film continually explores Bayu’s pain as he navigates the competition to become the channeler. However, Bayu’s family struggles interfere strongly with the spiritual trance. His father made mistakes that left them both fighting for their home. And Bayu doesn’t wish to indulge in his father’s redemption business and forge his own path. The problem is that Bayu’s angst impacts his channeling.
A love interest within the story echoes the themes of pain and trauma. Bayu has a heartfelt admiration for Laksmi (Maudy Ayunda), a young girl who uses the trance parties to cope with grief. There is a connection to rain that brings her heartache, and she uses Bayu’s gift to escape memories during a storm.
It’s commonly understood that the best action or dance choreography uses every move or set piece to either build character or advance the story. Filmmaker Wregas Bhanuteja understood the assignment, crafting cosmic, jolting dance numbers that offer new insight into Bayu himself and the willingly possessed and designing dreamlike layers where the spiritually hypnotized reap the benefits of the channeler’s tune.
One sequence demonstrates the stakes of the trance, with the individual dancing as if possessed by a turtle’s spirit. The volunteers are hit aggressively on their backs with bamboo sticks, but in the possessed realm, they are being massaged. If the trance breaks, the trance partier would feel the weight of the stick.
Levitating at Sundance is extraordinary
It’s the combination of all these flavors that builds to something wildly fresh: the musical language of Indonesia, the character exploration of letting go of grudges and trauma, and the inventive blend of genre styles. As mentioned, Wregas Bhanuteja surprisingly shifts gears throughout the experience, even showing the dark side of the trance party lifestyle and incorporating a pinch of horror through the spiritual possession subplot.
After watching the film, I discovered that Levitating is one of the few movies to receive a standing ovation at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. And it makes sense, because the film feels like it exists in a class of its own.
Overall, Levitating is extraordinary, pushing narrative boundaries in both style and story. The music will take you over, and the narrative experimentation will often leave the viewer breathless. Furthermore, it has one of the most charismatically charged performances seen from the festival so far from actress Anggun. The sound of her spiritual vibrato is worth four stars on its own.
We often say, “originality is dead.” Well, with Levitation, the Indonesian spirit came crashing through the screen to prove that wrong.
Also check out Sundance Film Festival 2026: Joybubbles Movie Review
