The Siege at Thorn High (Original title: Pengepungan di Bukit Duri, 2025) is a compelling Indonesian action-thriller. The film is set against the backdrop of Jakarta, Indonesia, and draws its inspiration from the real-life racial riots of 1998, which saw widespread violence targeting Chinese Indonesians. The story follows Edwin, a Chinese Indonesian man who becomes a substitute teacher at a high school notorious for its delinquent students. The riots deeply scarred Edwin’s past, as he lost his sister Silvi and is on a mission to find her son.
The film meticulously builds tension as Edwin navigates the volatile environment of Thorn High, where simmering racial tensions are palpable. Edwin clashes with Jefri, a student leader who harbors a deep-seated hatred for Chinese Indonesians. As a new wave of riots erupts, Edwin and a small group of students, along with Jefri and his goon friends, find themselves trapped inside the school. The siege forces them to confront not only the external threat of the rioters but also the internal conflicts and prejudices that divide them. The narrative masterfully explores themes of revenge, identity, and the cycle of violence. The film’s ending provides a full-circle moment, bringing the characters’ journeys to a poignant and tragic close.
This article contains spoilers.
The Siege at Thorn High (Pengepungan di Bukit Duri, 2025) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
The film opens with a context that explains what inspired it. In 1998, racial riots broke out in several cities in Indonesia, triggered by corruption and economic problems. The main target was Chinese Indonesians, as they were perceived to be wealthy. The story begins in a school in 2009. A boy named Edwin is drawing by a tree during break. Another boy, Panca, asks Edwin to give a letter to his sister Silvi. However, Silvi arrives, so she urges Panca to speak openly, but Silvi can’t promise that she will accept Panca’s proposal. Suddenly, the students are called in and asked to get home safely as riots have broken out. The threat is for Chinese Indonesians. On the way home, Panca joins Silvi and Edwin on the bus. Unfortunately, rioters spot Silvi and Edwin and drag them out of the bus. So, Panca also runs behind them.
Why did Edwin join Thorn High as a teacher?
In an alleyway, Panca tries to stop the rioters from harming the siblings, but they cut Panca’s hand and ask him to flee. Then, they strip Silvi to rape her. When Edwin tries to stop, they knock him out. When Edwin wakes up, he looks for Silvi and rushes home, only to find the building burning. Cut to 2027, hate against the Chinese Indonesians has not gotten any better. Now, Edwin has worked as a substitute teacher in 5 schools before getting a job at a delinquent school in Jakarta, Thorn High. The principal warns Edwin of the dangers, as Edwin is a Chinese Indonesian. On the first day, Edwin gets under Jefri’s skin by correctly assessing the fact that Jefri gets beaten up by his father. After school, Edwin gets acquainted with Diana, another staff member at school.
Meanwhile, Jefri and his goon friends hunt down Chinese Indonesians whom they call pigs to harm. Now, Edwin is in a bar where other Chinese people always hang out. The rule in the bar is always to be cheerful. The bartender, Vera, gives drinks on the house for Edwin, seeing that he is upset about something. During this time, a boy named Khristo is getting beaten up by some boys in the subway. Just then, Edwin enters the subway and saves Khristo, who also goes to the delinquent school. On the way home, Edwin remembers a promise he made to Silvi. The goal was to find Silvi’s son, and the only clue was that the boy attends school in Jakarta’s Thorn High area. That is why Edwin joined as a teacher at Thorn High. The next day, Jefri and others vowed to harm those who had hurt Khristo.
Why was Jefri expelled from school?
During Edwin’s class, Jefri refuses to cooperate by drawing. Furthermore, Jefri tries to hit Edwin. Once again, Edwin provokes Jefri by saying he will get expelled and will never have a promising future. After that, Jefri calms down, but after the class ends, he warns Edwin. After school, Jefri and the gang beat up a boy as the boy’s friends tried to hurt Khristo. In the library, Edwin and Diana learn about each other. Turns out Diana is a counsellor at school. Later, Diana asks Edwin to take her to the Chinese bar. There, Vera is disappointed to see Edwin with another woman. After hanging out, they go their separate ways.
On the way, Jefri hides in a mask and attacks Edwin. During the fight, Edwin uses Jefri’s knife to stab him in his leg. From afar, Jefri’s friends see him in trouble, so they rescue Jefri. At school, Jefri is asked to show the wound. Once it is confirmed that it was indeed Jefri who attacked Edwin, Jefri is expelled from school. None of Jefri’s friends attended Edwin’s class that day. After class, Edwin asks Khristo to come to school the next day to help put up drawings. Since the school will be closed, it will be easier. However, Khristo agrees to go only after Edwin decides to let Rangga join. At school, even Diana joins the group. Unfortunately, riots have started in Jakarta as well.
What happens to Rangga’s father?
Outside, Jefri and his friends enter the school intending to kill Edwin. From inside the school, Rangga tells his group about Jefri’s arrival. They try to escape, but all the doors are locked. The two groups bump into each other, so Edwin and the group rush into a room and lock themselves in. The problem is that Jefri and the group have come with weapons, so even if Edwin faces them, there is no certainty that Jefri will let the others go. Now, Khristo reveals that once Jefri had confessed to killing someone. For proof, Jefri sent the video to Khristo, but Khristo was afraid to see it. The issue now is that there are jammers in the school, so they can’t contact anyone outside.
A while later, Rangga’s father comes looking for Rangga at school. At first, Jefri and his friends behave, but from inside the room, Rangga asks his father to leave. At that time, Rangga’s father noticed the weapons. The group hurt Rangga’s father by piercing him with a pencil. Inside the room, Rangaa blames Edwin for all this. Now, Edwin makes a deal with Jefri: if Jefri lets the others go out safely, then Edwin will face Jefri alone. As planned, Jefri and the group back off, and Edwin opens the door. They all walk to Rangga’s father, take him, and run inside the room. This annoys Jefri. Inside their room, they realise Rangga’s father needs medical attention. Once again, Edwin convinces Jefri to let the father-son go. Once they are outside, Edwin will fight Jefri.
How does Edwin reach the security room?
Before sending Rangga out, Edwin gives Rangga a key to the back exit, asking him to unlock the door once outside. After sending Rangga and his father out, they wait 15 minutes. Now, Edwin and the group realise that the father-son duo are still in the building. Now, Jefri brings the duo out but sends another boy out to bring gasoline. There, the boy encounters cops who are ready to enter the school but are called for help because of the riots. Inside the school, Jefri burns Rangga’s father. Now, Rangga rushes to the school’s entrance to get help. However, two other boys stop Rangga. In that chaos, one boy, Gerry, kills Rangga. Now, a boy named Sim is annoying Jefri for being a crybaby.
Inside the room, Edwin tells Diana about finding his nephew, and he suspects Khristo is his nephew because everyone in their family draws well, and so does Khristo. In the room, Edwin finds a vent and gets out to break the jammers so they can call for help. At that time, Sim tries to go to the washroom but is followed by Gerri and Jefri. In the bathroom, Edwin is hiding while Jefri kills Sim. Now, Edwin rushes to the security room and tries to break the jammers. After that, Edwin also takes the keys to the emergency exit and makes his way on top through the vent. Near the room, a boy suggests using a blowtorch to break open the door.
The Siege at Thorn High (Pengepungan di Bukit Duri, 2025) Movie Ending Explained:
By the time Jefri and the group open the door, the trio has escaped and reached the washroom. However, Jefri realises how the trio has escaped and asks the group to split and search. As the trio is walking, they hear two boys. So, they enter the biology room and hide. There, Edwin gives Khristo the emergency exit keys, takes Khristo’s phone to contact, and leaves to distract the boys so Diana and Khristo can escape. Now, Diana tells Khristo about what Edwin thinks, but Khristo says he can’t be Edwin’s nephew unless Silvi had twins, as Khristo’s sibling died in an accident. Meanwhile, the boys spot Edwin, and they fight. However, Edwin escapes but bumps into Gerry.
Now, Gerry tries to attack Edwin but falls off the stairs and dies. Next, Edwin and Jefri face each other just as Diana and Khristo escape. A fight ensues, and Jefri’s friends arrive. However, Edwin convinces them to leave because they still have a chance at a promising future, given that they are not murderers. The fight now escalates, and Edwin accidentally kills Jefri. Just then, rioters enter the school, so Edwin hides behind a cap and walks away. On the way, Edwin sees the video Jefri had sent Khristo. In the video, Jefri says his mother was a Chinese Indonesian who was gang raped. Now, Edwin realises Jefri was his nephew, not Khristo. The rioters realise Edwin is a Chinese man, so they chase him. Thankfully, a truck stops at the school to save Edwin. The one riding the van introduces himself as Panca. This man has the same scar on his hand as the young Panca. Seeing Panca, Edwin is shocked.
The hate against Chinese Indonesians didn’t get better, and Edwin found what he came to Jakarta looking for. Unfortunately, Edwin thought Khristo was his nephew, but it was Jefri all along. It is understandable why Jefri became a psychotic killer, as it’s his messed-up childhood and what his mother went through. Sadly, Silvi didn’t live as she died of severe pneumonia. If Edwin had realised his nephew was Jefri, maybe none of this would have happened, as Edwin would have helped Jefri. The ending comes full circle as Panca seems to have dedicated his life to assisting Chinese Indonesians after he lost his love, Silvi, to the rioters, and he couldn’t do much back then. Now, Panca is trying to help all the Chinese Indonesians escape from the rioters.
