Sophon Sakdaphisit (The Promise, Laddaland), known for delivering spine-chilling Thai horror films, returns with another blood-curdling film, Home for Rent. It stars some big names in Thai cinema – Nittha Jirayungyurn, Penpak Sirikul, and Sukollawat Kanarot, among others. The movie is about a woman named Ning, whose life changes after two women move into her house as tenants. When Ning’s neighbor begins to suspect that the new tenants might practice black magic and weird things start happening at her own home, Ning is compelled to get to the bottom of whatever horror has come into her life.
Home for Rent (2023) Plot Overview:
In Home for Rent, the story centers on Ning and her family’s unexpected run-in with a cult. Ning who’s powerless when she sees that her apartment has been left in a terrible state by the previous tenants. She had a consistent living from renting out the apartment, but now she needs money to restore it. The real estate agent advises her to rent out her home and utilize the proceeds to renovate the condo. It is terrible to consider that cults may exist in our urban jungles and influence individuals to carry out their will. When Ning realizes her daughter is in terrible danger, she valiantly attempts to save her life. Her greatest dread is realized tragically when her own self seems to be working against her at this crucial moment. Home for Rent is a terrifying story in and of itself despite its vain attempts to be anything else.
Despite being a horror movie, it fails to maintain the suspense or even deliver any truly terrifying scenes that would leave you horrified and on the edge of your seat. The ramifications are awful, The circumstance is very relatable, and what individuals will do to acquire what they want is where the Real Horror resides. It also shows what sadness can do to someone who is otherwise intelligent and kind. Quinn’s past infuses the plot with a lot of emotion, and even while it doesn’t justify what he does, it can’t help but feel some sympathy for him. In addition to the three members of Ning’s family, there is also a cult tree that portrays the cult leader with the unsettling eye deftly weasels her way into Kwin’s life for an illegitimate purpose— a phenomenon that has been seen in several cults. Home for Rent falls short when it tries to be a generic horror movie. I believe it would have been far better as a drama thriller that only focused on Kwin and his family as they struggle to deal with his grief and its effects.
Home for Rent (2023) Movie Synopsis & Plot Summary:
In the story of the movie, the Ning, Kwin, and Ink families move into the unit. Ning began to observe a change in her husband’s attitude. He carried a crimson book everywhere he went and was too connected to it. He responded that it was the factory handbook when Ning questioned him about it; he also just got a tattoo of a symbol on his chest which he attributed to a dare he played with his co-workers. She understood that he was lying but was unable to discern why. She returned to the house to gather a few things. Ning’s unexpected presence plainly irked Dr. Nuch, who urged her to leave the property right now. Ning entered the residence uninvited and sensed that someone was keeping an eye on her from behind the curtains. The similarities between Nuch’s tattoo and the sign she had noticed on her husband’s chest puzzled Ning.
A neighbor texted her, begging her to meet up before they left. A group of crows hanging outside the door was the first thing she observed while keeping a watchful eye on her new neighbors. Additionally, she heard chanting coming from Ink’s previous bedroom, and one night, she saw a lot of crows swooping into the home. She discovered her dog outside her house the following day lying dead. She thought that the cruel slaying of her favorite dog involved Nuch and her mother. When Ning got home and checked the internet, she discovered that Ratree was not a licensed physician. She gave her ex-partner a call and asked him to get details about her renters. She began to progressively lose faith in Kwin as a result of Kwin’s oddly guarded attitude toward Ratree and Nuch. When Ning awoke that evening, she discovered him sitting up straight.
The door was left ajar, and she thought someone had come in. When Ning stood up to shut the door, she saw crows soaring around the area. She recalled what Aunt Foreign had talked about that morning. She was even more shocked to see Kwin enter the condo again with the red book. Ning lacked any solutions. That evening Aunt Foreign sent in another note which had a video of a ritual Ratree was carrying out. Aunt Foreign had left for her rural estate. Ning did not take anything Nuch said seriously. A Gary doll that Kwin had recently given their daughter terrified Ning. When she discovered the doll lying next door, she attempted to toss it away. Soon after, it is attacked while sleeping by a bad ghost. When she switched on the light, the ghost was gone.
The next morning she saw the identical triangle sign written on Ing’s chest that she had previously seen on Nuch and Kwin. She made the decision to investigate since she was confident that her spouse belonged to the cult. The following evening she accompanied Kwin to the Terrace, where she observed him chanting while holding the red book. Crows were everywhere, and Ning saw the ghost of a little girl being assaulted by a group of crows. We are informed about an occurrence that occurred 11 years ago and dramatically altered Kwin’s life in order to comprehend why he joined the cult.
Why Did Kwin Join The Cult?
Penpak Sirikul in Home for Rent (2023)To understand why Kwin joined the cult, we are told about an incident that changed his life completely eleven years ago. Kwin lived with his daughter, Jaa, and they were quite satisfied with their lives. Kwin’s partner left soon after giving birth, and from then on, he was Jaa’s sole guardian. He had no complaints; he enjoyed living with his daughter and tried to provide her with the best life possible. He gifted Jaa a Guri doll, something she had been asking for. This was the same Guri doll that, eleven years later, Kwin gifted to his second daughter, Ing. Life was going perfectly well for Kwin and Jaa until an accident occurred. Jaa was electrocuted while taking a shower. Kwin had recently fixed the geyser, but it needed more work. Days passed, but Kwin could not get over Jaa’s death. He treated the Guri doll as his daughter and replayed the audio that Jaa had recorded over and over again.
One morning, Ning mistakenly rang his doorbell. She used to sell insurance, and he needed company. They eventually got married and had Ing. While he had healed from the pain, Jaa was always on his mind. He was taken aback one morning when he saw Ing talking to Jaa’s spirit while she danced in front of the mirror. She never admitted to knowing Jaa, but Kwin realized that Jaa’s spirit continued to linger in the house. He noticed how Ing said and did things that Jaa used to do, clearly suggesting that she was close to the spirit of his elder daughter. Kwin’s questions were answered when he met Ratree and Nuch. He was spellbound when he realized that Ratree could see the spirit of his daughter as well. Kwin desperately wanted to see Jaa’s spirit, and he agreed to perform the ritual in the hopes of meeting his daughter. Ratree advised Kwin to allow the spirit of his daughter to depart since that was what the mighty power wanted. He was desperate to bring Jaa back, and he begged Ratree to help him.
Jaa’s spirit needed a vessel to return to, and she believed Ing was the perfect fit since she was about the same age and could communicate with spirits. Ratree stated that she would conduct a ritual after which both Jaa and Ing’s spirits would live together in Ing’s body. She promised that the ritual was safe and would not affect Ing in any way. Kwin discussed with Ing the entire truth. She readily agreed to perform the ritual, knowing how important it was to her father, and she also could not imagine her life without Jaa. While Kwin and Ratree were preparing for the ritual, Ning decided to leave the condo and check into a hotel with Ing. When Ning stepped out of the room, Ing called her father and asked him to take her home. Kwin took her to the house where Ratree had been preparing for the ritual.
What Was Ratree’s Actual Plan?
At the ritual, Kwin spotted a silhouette approaching him and was relieved to realize it was Mrs. Phorn, but it wasn’t her after all. Phorn had been possessed by some unholy spirit, and it stabbed Kwin in the stomach and held him down as Ratree’s real plan began. She’d never wanted to help Kwin but sought Ing’s body as a vessel to bring back the cursed spirit of her own daughter, who’d drowned to death. Everything that Kwin did unknowingly only helped that evil spirit get stronger, and now it had come to possess Ing’s body. While Jaa’s spirit stayed inside the beautiful doll, Ratree’s daughter lived inside a sinister-looking doll, and now Ratree would do the final ritual to make the transfer. Ratree told Ing that the old woman’s body she was inhabiting had been murdered so that Ratree could live there. Realizing this stank to high heavens, Ing tried fleeing, but Nuch captured her. Kwin tried to protect his daughter, but Nuch pressed on his wound until he bled to death.
The ritual was nearing completion when Ning rushed to Ing’s rescue. She’d stabbed Tom in the chest with a pair of garden shears and took his car to drive to the location, asking Nuch for the location from Tom’s phone. By the time Ning arrived, the evil spirit was slowly taking over Ning’s body. She tried smashing the doll, but the rotting ghoul she’d seen on the roof grabbed her throat from inside the sinister doll and began strangling her until she used the hammer to smash the main symbol made on its forehead. The doll vanished, and Ning tried fleeing with her daughter, only to be stopped by Ratree and Nuch. Ratree said that the girl in Ning’s arms wasn’t Ing anymore and chased after Ning as the entire roof collapsed on them.
Home for Rent (2023) Movie Ending Explained:
Suddenly the roof falls, and everyone falls under the rubble. Ing or Ing’s body opened their eyes and held a sharp object in their hand. She walked towards Nuch and punched him in the skull. She speared Ratree again and walked away. Well, as it turned out, the spirit living in Ing’s body was not that of Prae but Jaa, thanks to Kwin for bringing the Guri doll home. When things start to go bad at the end of Home for Rent, Kwin marks the doll’s forehead with his own blood. He heard Jaa cry and knew that her daughter was trapped inside the doll. After Kwin drew the blood amulet on his forehead, his spirit was free, ready to be sent into the body. Jaa slowly enters Ing’s body while Ning takes care of Prae’s soul. We can assume that this is not something Jaa did voluntarily, the chants and the symbols led to this. That’s why when she wakes up, all she thinks about is revenge.
It is possible that Prae’s spirit was destroyed because the wooden doll was shattered, and she had no other vessel to reside in. Ing’s spirit was sacrificed in the process, and all that remained was her body. That night, Kwin bled to death. At the hospital, Jaa confided the truth to Ning. Ning was devastated, but at the same time, she was accepting of Jaa. During Home for Rent‘s ending, Ning treated Jaa just like her own daughter; after all, the body was that of Ing. It must have been traumatizing for her to lose her daughter, but she never blamed Jaa for it. Jaa probably knew that if it happened to Kwin, he wouldn’t be able to move forward. He was gone when he hugged his father. Even though both Ning and Jaa had suffered immensely, at the end of the film, they became each other’s support system. Ning felt closer to Ing when she was with Jaa, while Jaa cherished having a caring maternal figure in her life.
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Trailer:
Home for Rent (2023) Movie Links: IMDb
Home for Rent (2023) Movie Cast: Nittha Jirayungyurn, Sukollawat Kanarot, Penpak Sirikul
Home for Rent (2023) Movie Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller | Runtime: 2h 4m
Where to watch Home for Rent
