The Womb

Now now, before the bawang army attack me.. I am Malaysian kay. The movie is okay. A little jump scare here and there, but it was on point and well executed. What I love about this is the myth and mysteries throughout the movie, it keep you guessing. Some scene are depicting real life situations for single mothers. What comes after the reveal is what I don't like about the movie. The movie can be dragging with unnecessary scenes that contribute to no point to the ending. The ending is predictable including the mid-credit scene. The Wekasan Wednesday is interesting, I didnt know what it's about until I googled it. That's all I guess. Its a good horror flick and room for improvement. At least better than most Malaysian's horror movie.

I think that overall this was a successful film. I think it could have benefited greatly from being condensed a bit. The almost two hour run time felt drawn out and like they didn't have quite enough to fill it. The pacing was just a tad too slow but what they did have was interesting and spooky. I wish they had leaned into the creepy folk lore they were working with opposed to relying on quite a few jump scares. Also the special effects weren't the best but can for sure be looked past. The acting over all was decent across the board with two really great, high intensity high emotion scenes from the son towards the end. I am partial to foreign folk horror so I am giving this a six, but for most it would probably land around a 5. Would still recommend.

If you're looking for suspense then look elsewhere. Poor editing. It would seem that (as of 2022) misogyny is very much alive and well in Indonesia. Misogyny is defined as: the hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. A rather dim-witted, unremarkable woman gets impregnated and, rather than do the smart thing and get the abortion that the sperm donor offered to pay for, decides to have the child and give it to a couple of people that she doesn't even know. Oh, she's also going to move in with them. It would seem that (as of 2022) there is no government oversight in Indonesia concerning the adoption of human beings. Not sure what the significance of the rat cutaways was. Somebody wanted them, apparently. Also not sure why the view of the backyard was accompanied by a spooky sound effect. Somebody wanted it, apparently. I guess it makes sense: if you're going to dig up a bunny rabbit from your backyard at night then why not wear pajamas? Oh, and dig with hedge clippers, not a shovel. It would seem that (as of 2022) killing animals is permitted in Indonesia. As long as it's for a movie. The scene of the shoe in a bread basket made for some riveting cinema, right? At the 40 minute mark my wife said that she'd had enough and left me to slog through the rest of this "cinematic masterpiece" alone.

Not that I despise horror films about cults and myths, The Womb definitely had a convincing premise. A poor girl who is pregnant out of wedlock, struggling to meet ends, finds an old couple via a facebook group meet and trusts them enough to adopt her newborn. She will have to move in with them till the child is born but she starts having visions, that make her doubt the intentions of the elderly couple. Are they really as nice as they portray to be and if those visions are true, will she escape her fate, forms rest of the story. The problem is not just the runtime but the tone of the movie which largely narrated in a slow pace. In addition, it is less of a horror film and more of a drama, the doesn't truly pay off. The initial few minutes succeed in establishing her plight as well as her financial struggles which justifies her decision to trust total strangers. But the second act is super slow. Once the important character that of the son is introduced, the film should've taken off but the writer and director falter in presenting this character. From hereon, the film becomes extremely predictable. Though the reveal is actually good which again proves the premise was indeed an interesting one, it comes way too late to save the film.