“Host” (2025) is a chilling Thai psychological horror film set on a remote island where a strict reform school promises redemption, but harbours deep, unsettling secrets. The story follows Ing, a troubled girl sent to Pinithkun Reformatory School, a place designed to discipline young girls who have committed crimes. Upon arrival, Ing discovers that this isolated institution is full of rigid rules, harsh punishments, and a ruthless hierarchy led by both the Mother, the school’s authoritarian head, and Aim, its feared student leader.
What begins as a tale of bullying and survival soon unravels into something far more sinister, as strange occurrences and unexplained supernatural phenomena plague the school. The story hints at an ancient belief in a protective ghostly guardian that may be tied to Ing’s mysterious past. “Host” expertly combines psychological tension with folklore-driven horror, exploring themes of oppression and the haunting cost of protection. It’s not just a ghost story—it’s a reflection of real-world power structures where only the strongest, or the most cunning, survive.
This article contains spoilers.
Host (2025) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
The film opens on a remote island, Rampa, where the Pinithkun Reformatory School is located. A boy named Pin brings a girl named Ing to the reformatory school. This school is for girls who have committed crimes. They are sent here to be disciplined and to have another chance at life. On the island, the leader, Aim, greets Pin and Ing. By now, Pin and Aim are close, so Aim shares the good news that she will be released from the school soon. The one in charge of the school is Pritsana, who is known as the Mother.
The Mother asks Ing to introduce herself. As soon as Ing says her name, the girls mock her because she is from Northern Thailand. Later, Pin is unable to leave on his boat because of a storm. The Mother lets Pin stay in the lighthouse. After that, Mother tells Ing that she does not care about Ing’s previous crimes as long as she follows the rules in this school.
That night, Ing visits the washroom. Suddenly, she hears the door banging and the roof creaking. When Ing calls out, a pile of faeces is thrown at her from outside. This was done by Aim, Maprang, Nuch, and Ploy. Usually, Ploy was the one to shovel human excrement, but now the girls have assigned the job to Ing. However, Ploy does not like the way the girls treat Ing. The next day, as Ing fills the bucket with water from a well, her hand is cut. Seeing this, Pin wraps Ing’s hand with a piece of his shirt. Later, Aim notices the cloth on Ing’s hand. When everyone is sleeping, Aim takes a knife and cuts the fabric wrapped around Ing’s hands. As soon as Aim does that, she feels a presence around her. A clucking noise is heard outside the dorm.
What is Northern Thailand’s folklore?
When Aim gets out, she sees a figure, and the next thing you know, she is pushed down the stairs. When Aim wakes up, a voice says, “Next time you are finished.” The next day, Aim and the group force Ing to confess that she is behind the attack. When Ing does not confess, Maprang uses a knife to hurt Ing. In the process, Maprang cuts herself purposely to show everyone that Ing harmed her. However, Ploy takes Ing’s side. So, Aim says the Northerners are sticking to each other. Later, Ploy chats with Ing and says that Aim and others always bully the newcomers. The only reason nobody retaliates is that they don’t have anywhere else to go. During the shower, Ing recalls being bullied by some girls before.
A while later, Aim and others hold Ing tight and chop off a bit of her hair. That night, Aim combs her hair when she notices her hair falling out. Suddenly, a masked woman appears and pulls Aim’s hair. Hearing Aim scream, the others wake up. However, Aim’s hair is fine, but there are scratch marks on her shoulder. Later, the girls’ trouble Ploy to reveal any information she has about what is going on.
So, Ploy tells a myth or folk tale that northerners believe in. It is believed that when a child is born, they are guarded by a ghost who acts like another mother. So the parents perform a ritual to appease the ghost and keep the child safe. A tiny black figurine is made, and the head is cut off. The head is given to the parents and should remain on the child until the baby reaches puberty. Any child who has not been in this ritual will have a ghost guardian. Aim does not buy this story.
Where is Ing?
The next day, Aim and others try to choke Ing, and Aim wipes her shoes on Ing’s hands and face. Before leaving Ing alone, Aim asks Ing not to tell anyone about the incident. Unable to take this any longer, that night, Ing rushes to Pin to ask for his help to take her away from the island. Since there is a storm, Pin cannot help Ing. When Ing returns, Aim realises to whom she was talking. The next morning, Ing is beaten with a cane by Mother for behaving like a whore, trying to meet with Pin at night. When Mother is in her office, she hears clucking, so she follows the noise. In the corridor, footsteps approach Mother. From behind, the masked lady bites Mother, who screams her lungs out. Immediately, Aim and others help Mother. They notice the scratches on Mother’s neck.
Later, Ploy takes Ing out for a walk while the girls look for the tiny black figurine in Ing’s belongings. The girls find the whole black figurine, not just the head. On the walk, Ploy tells Ing that the girls forced her to reveal the story of the godmother ghost. The next morning, Ploy tells Aim and the group that Ing is missing. The girls start looking for Ing. Thankfully, Aim and Maprang find Ing.
However, when Ing asks to be left alone, they chase her in the field until Ing is facing her back to the well. As the girls walk towards Ing, she takes a step back and falls into the well. Once that happens, Maprang closes the well. When the duo reaches the school door, Mother comes out. So, Aim says the girls are looking for Ing as she ran away. The Mother thinks Pin has helped Ing, but soon realises Pin knows nothing. Everyone goes looking for Ing but gives up when they can’t find her.
What happens to Maprang?
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Inside the well, the godmother ghost asks Ing to let her kill anyone who has hurt her child (Ing). The next morning, Pin finds Ing inside the well and brings her to the assembly. There, Maprang slaps Ing for running away. However, Ing retaliates, saying the girls pushed her inside the well. Immediately, Ploy takes Ing inside to help clean up. In the dormitory, Ing confronts Ploy about working with Aim and others against Ing. Now, Ploy does not lie but says this is the only way weaklings like them can survive.
In a flashback, we learn that Ing’s parents did have a ritual. One day in a forest, a young Ing finds many tiny black figurines. So, Ing takes a head and places it on the body of a figurine she has. At that moment, Ing becomes the godmother ghost’s child. A couple tries to kidnap Ing, but the godmother ghost kills them. Soon, Ing’s birth parents come and witness Ing between corpses with a tiny black doll.
Currently, Ing kills Maprang as everyone sleeps. The next morning, the contorted, dead body of Maprang is found near the well where Maprang tried to kill Ing. The girls are afraid of Ing. Now, Aim confronts Ing, who isn’t scared. When Aim tries to hit Ing, Ing challenges her. So, Aim backs away. Later, Mother asks Pin to get Ing away as soon as the storm stops.
Finally, Mother asks Ing about what happened in the orphanage where Ing was. It is revealed that once Ing’s parents died, she was sent to the orphanage. At first, Ing was happy, but soon, without Ing’s desire, the massacre happened. Meanwhile, Aim and others find a newspaper article where in Ing’s orphanage, everyone was brutally murdered, and only Ing survived. Now, Ing tells Mother that she considers this school to be much worse. Finally, Ing asks Mother if she isn’t happy that her worst students are finally dead.
Why is everyone running away from Ing?
Elsewhere, Pin is angry with Aim for bullying Ing and others. In a flashback, we see that Aim was punished for attempting to murder someone. This someone Aim refers to as “not my father”. The only excuse Aim has is that she does not like to be oppressed by anyone. So, Mother strikes a deal with Aim. If Aim helps Mother keep everyone disciplined, then Mother will help Aim get freedom soon.
After that, Aim became a bully. That night, Aim dreams of Ing killing everyone just like she did in the orphanage. Late in the night, Mother takes a knife and stabs Ing repeatedly. However, when Mother enters her office, Ing is waiting. Ing tricked the Mother by keeping pillows under the blanket. Before attacking the Mother, Ing burns the file that contains her details. Using the godmother ghost, Ing makes the Mother stab herself in the face.
A while later, Aim and others find the Mother dead. Additionally, Aim finds a document stating that many of the girls can be released from the reformatory school. Sadly, the Mother kept them there as she was obsessed with the school. Meanwhile, Ing visits Pin to ask for help with her wounds. Now, Ing lies, saying the girls attacked her. As Pin looks for medicines, he sees a reflection of Ing, and behind her, Pin sees the masked godmother ghost.
During this time, the girls try to destroy the tiny black doll but fail miserably. Soon, Pin finds the girls and tells Aim that he locked Ing in the lighthouse. Soon after, Ing arrives angry with Pin. So, Pin tries to convince Ing to stop killing and start fresh. Just then, a girl throws something at Ing, making her angry. Now, Ing kills the girl while the others run for their life. Pin leaves Aim in his room and fixes the lighthouse lights so the boats/ships can see the call for help.
Host (2025) Movie Ending Explained:
Inside the room, Ploy waits, saying she is afraid and that the others are dead. Just then, Ing arrives, so Ploy reminds Ing that she was always on Ing’s side. Now, Ing and Aim start to fight. Just then, Pin arrives and stands in front of Aim, trying to protect her. Seeing this, Ing is saddened and says they should all die together. With that, Ing makes a move, but Pin comes in between and is killed. Angered, Ing pushes Aim, and they both fall. They fall on the beach and wake up a while later.
This time, the knife has gone through Ing’s stomach. Taking the chance, Aim tries to kill Ing with a broken glass, but stops herself as she hears a ship horn. Before Aim leaves, Ing says she tried so hard to stop the godmother ghost from killing everyone. Saying that Ing stabs herself in the neck, sacrificing herself. The godmother ghost pulls Ing into the earth. What remains is the black doll.
When Aim wakes up, she holds Pin and a knife in one hand. Cops search the area and find all the girls and Ploy inside the building. The cops suspect Aim of being a murderer, but Aim tells them about Ing. Now, Aim asks Ploy for help. However, Ploy says there was no one called Ing, and Aim is the one who killed. The cops arrest Aim. None of the other girls defends Aim either. In the final scene, Ploy stamps the black doll. Ploy addresses Ing, saying there are rules for the school and world, but it exists only to protect the powerful.
The film’s final twist reveals that Ploy had been playing both Ing and Aim all along, a desperate strategy to survive within the brutal hierarchy of the school. This revelation reframes the entire narrative as an allegory of the real world, where systems are rigged in favour of the powerful. The Mother permits bullying and manipulation, mirroring societal politics and a deep-rooted power structure.
The introduction of the godmother ghost adds a compelling supernatural layer, transforming the film into a psychological horror that explores the darker side of faith and protection. While guardian spirits are often seen as benevolent, here the godmother’s presence is deeply unsettling, suggesting that every blessing must be repaid.
When the ghost ultimately consumes Ing, it reinforces the idea that no one escapes debt, not even in death. Ing relied on the ghost to stay alive; her soul is probably the price. Aim’s fate similarly underscores the film’s moral logic. Though she craved liberation, she is condemned to a life behind bars, a punishment she cannot escape. Ing never kills Aim, but ensures she will suffer the consequences of her actions. The film closes not with resolution but with questions for the audience to reflect on.
