Farishad I. Latjuba’s “Wanita Ahli Neraka” (2025) is yet another addition to the ever-mounting slump of tripe-y Indonesian horror that’s inconsistent, uninspired, and relentlessly done to death. One shouldn’t expect any twinge of logic, plausibility, or emotional conviction in the film; instead, it’s hammering in its insistent dullness. The character threads are loose, scenes dangle without a shred of solid reasoning and circumstances hurtle increasingly towards wild extremes.
There are riffs here on a woman’s duty in the domestic sphere, which gets cushioned for a passage to heaven. Obeisance to her husband is the only way forward. But of course, complications soon arise. The road isn’t as clear-cut. It’s riddled with the ugliest of realizations and the need to affirm one’s agency which gets steamrolled in a patriarchally designed marriage meant more as an exercise of positive public image.
Wanita Ahli Neraka (2025) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
Farah (Febby Rastanty) is a girl beady-eyed with dreams and ambitions. Yes, she does want to finish her studies but she’s also beholden to religious instructions that insist on a good marriage as a way to access heaven. She’s willing to get married to the businessman and politician, Wahab (Oka Antara), who’s looking for a wife. She nudges her teacher, Umi, to set up the match between them, and convince Abi, the principal of the school, to ensure the marriage happens. Umi cautions her against it, that her studies might take a backseat. But Farah is extremely hopeful of continuing with it after getting married. What matters to her the most is doing her religious duty as a woman.
So, Farah and Wahab get married. There’s the initial honeymoon phase of being together, she harbours inklings of his patriarchal tendencies, which aren’t so latent or hidden, if one pushes to notice deeper. Farah immerses herself, though, fully in being the perfect, docile, unquestioning wife, the paragon of virtue, being constantly available to service every need and desire of Wahab.
Wahab is determined to win the local elections. He asks her to be by his side during the campaign, buttressing his credibility. Moreover, there’s only one solid rival, Agung, whose family has been in power for generations. The other candidate is just for show, not wielding any power or influence at all. The game, hence, is between Wahab and Agung.
Is Farah Losing Her Mind or Trapped in a Dark Conspiracy?
Increasingly, Farah is confronted with visions of a woman in a black veil. In fact, this spirit keeps pursuing her. Then there’s also the house help, Mbok, who acts super-weird. In the house, Farah constantly senses peculiar episodes and is frequently disconcerted. But Wahab keeps reassuring her that everything is completely fine, that she’s just imagining it, that it’s all her dreams and hallucinations. She should rest. That would do her good and lift her spirits. Yet the visions and bizarre experiences persist.
The situation reaches a terrifying, morbid height when Farah spots Wahab and Mbok in a dark ritual, invoking Iblis. She, too, gets possessed. The next morning, she wakes up with no memory of what exactly transpired at night. Suddenly news comes that Agung has passed. Wahab’s road to victory is completely clear. There’s no opposition. His triumph is now guaranteed. Farah would be used as the sacrifice, by which Wahab plans to take in himself demonic power and sanction.
Can Farah Escape Wahab’s Grasp Before It’s Too Late?
Wahab and Mbok sneak into a secret underground chamber, where they busy themselves with the satanic ritual. They take clippings of Farah’s hair and nails. Through them, the devil could take charge of her body and plot Wahab’s passage to power, trampling any hurdles. Farah realizes this but is suppressed. When she behaves strangely in public, it draws the attention of Umi and Dina, who grow concerned and distressed that something terrible must be going on in Wahab’s house, and that Farah is not at all safe.
Abi does try to intervene but Wahab resists it. He exercises complete ownership of Farah, insisting he knows best what should be done about Farah. Others mustn’t concern themselves with Farah. They shouldn’t try to intrude. It wouldn’t do them well at all, he warns implicitly. Subsequently, Abi backs off but an increasingly anguished Dina, along with Umi, decides to pursue the investigation. Further incidents only heighten their doubts and fears regarding Farah’s situation and her well-being.
Wahab brings Farah back to the house. He beats her up and keeps thrashing her as she registers her defiance and tells him that she sees pure evil in him. His violence only gets more and more crushing, ruthless, and unsparing. He has just one goal, an agenda that will bear no hurdle or opposing force like Farah. She’s critical to his mission’s success. Mbok tries to help Farah escape but the attempt gets foiled. Both are nabbed in the midst of it. Wahab violently brings her to the underground chamber, where the film’s climax occurs in a blur of thrashing and coercion.
Wanita Ahli Neraka (2025) Movie Ending Explained:
Does Farah manage to escape?
The stage is set for a bloodbath, for the satanic invocation plotted by Wahab to reach its long-desired apex. He puts her on a table and starts his ritual, an intense, consuming process. But Dina reaches the spot, interrupting the ritual. Like in every other film’s climax, there’s a scuffle, one trying to up-end the other and assert their dominance. Here, the stakes are higher. It’s a fight between God and Iblis.
The clash is bloody, frenzied, and full of nervous, hyper-charged energy. Dina tries her best to help Farah but ultimately it’s she who gets killed in the fight. A heartbroken, enraged Farah stabs Wahab. The ritual is broken, and the invocation of Iblis halted at last. The film ends with Farah, the only one surviving the scuffle, straggling out of the chamber, all bloodied and bruised. But one can’t help wondering if she did manage to fully strike out the demonic influence. Could the devil be back? For now, we have to be content with her making it out alive of an abusive, gaslighting marriage.
