Kuntilanak (film)
| Kuntilanak | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Rizal Mantovani |
| Produced by | Raam Punjabi |
| Written by | Ve Handojo Rizal Mantovani |
| Starring |
Julie Estelle Evan Sanders Ratu Felisha |
| Distributed by | MVP Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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95 minutes |
| Country | Indonesia |
| Language | Indonesian |
Kuntilanak is a 2006 Indonesian horror film directed by Rizal Mantovani. The English title is "The Chanting", although this is not a direct translation as Kuntilanak or Pontianak is a type of ghost in Indonesian (and wider Malay) folklore. In this movie, a student whose step-father molested her moves to a boarding house in a haunted area, this is followed by a series of killings.
Samantha "Sam" is an orphaned young woman who moves to an isolated boarding house in North Jakarta, trying to avoid the advances of her pervert stepfather. The landlady of the house, Yanti, tells her that the house was previously a batik factory of Mangkoedjiwo family, with its current leader, Raden Ayu Sri Sukmarahimi Mangkoedjiwo having lent the house under a condition that the second floor is locked up with no one allowed inside. While listing other restrictions, including about a chair in front of a Javanese mirror in Sam's room, Yanti chants durmo, a Javanese poem said to be able to summon Kuntilanak, a female ghost with half the body of a horse rumored to be living in a weeping fig in front of the house. Meanwhile, Sam mentions her recurring nightmares of a woman in a fire with a Kuntilanak to her boyfriend, Agung. Agung learns from his eccentric friend, Iwank, and his mother that the Mangkoedjiwo is long rumored to be a black magic sect maintaining a Kuntilanak, itself can only be summoned by antique objects. At the house, Sam befriends Dinda, who tells her that there are actually three other mirrors identical to the one in Sam's room: two of which are in herself and Ratih's rooms.
One day, Sam breaks the rule about the mirror, glimpsing a Kuntilanak in the process. Her neighbor, Mawar, who is with her boyfriend (when males are forbidden to step on the third floor), threatens to kill Sam, but Sam suddenly enters a trance and chants durmo, making her puke maggots and materialize a strange scar as well as causing Mawar to have nosebleed. At a motel, Mawar is killed when an electric fan drops on her neck. The next night, Sam tries to peek on the second floor, but is harassed by a neighbor, Alfon. She enters into a trance and chants durmo again. Haunted by terrifying apparitions, Alfon tries to escape but is killed in a car accident. In the light of recent events, Sri Sukma pays visit to the house. Yanti apologizes for her foolish act in introducing durmo to Sam, although Sri Sukma says that it is her destiny to keep it. While reading a book about Mangkoedjiwo factory in Iwank's house, Sam spots the sentence Sing kuat sing melihara ("the strong one is the one that masters [Kuntilanak]"). During a conflict with Agung, Sam chants durmo; the next day, she learns Agung has disappeared. She hears Agung's faint cries from the second floor. Sam discusses Agung's disappearance with Dinda, but misunderstands Dinda's comfort as her being attracted to Agung. Chanting durmo, Sam passes out when Dinda goes out to take shower where she is killed by Kuntilanak.
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