Every living thing has an appointed term when its time arrives. They can neither delay it for a second nor could advance it. It will come when the time is ripe. This saying encompasses the film “Nearing Death” (2024, Original title: Menjelang Ajal) directed by Hadrah Daeng Ratu. The film’s star-studded cast includes the likes of Shareefa Daanish, Daffa Wardhana, Caitlin Halderman, Ruth Marini, and more.
The film begins with a scene where we see an old Shaman performing some ritual with a woman named Sekar. We don’t understand what is happening but get a hint that the woman is asking for something from the unknown. However, she is warned that this is a transaction, and if she breaks her promise, she’ll have to bear the consequences. At first, we don’t pay heed to it, but we get an idea that this will be critical in the film.
Nearing Death (Menjelang Ajal, 2024) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
Who is Sekar?
Sekar is a middle-aged widow who cares for her teenage daughter, Ratna, and son, Dodi. She also has a son named Dani, who is grown up but does not have a shred of responsibility. Seka runs a small restaurant to care for her family and wishes Dani would help her run the restaurant and take care of her siblings. However, Dani likes staying out late and roams the city on his bike.
Sekar cannot remember how often she has begged Dani to get his life on track and go to college. But Dani always ignores her. Feeling overwhelmed, Sekar finally turns to Dani and says, “I can’t do this anymore. You need to leave and figure out what you will do with your life.” This breaks her heart. However, she knows this is the only way to make Dani understand his responsibilities. Unfortunately, Sekar’s restaurant sales have been a major source of stress as of late, in addition to her son, Dani.
Strangely, her restaurant seems spotless on the inside, yet ugly and dull from the outside. This is why her eatery is so infamously avoided. In addition, her customers always seem to find ruined food in her deliveries, regardless of how fresh it is. At first, Sekar thinks it is her staff slacking off. But when it happens often, she decides to see the same Shaman she met years ago. Unfortunately, when Sekar reaches there, she learns that the old woman has died.
Has Sekar’s deal with the Djinn come back to haunt her?
Soon, Sekar’s life starts to spiral out of control. Her son, Dodi, notices his mother’s strange behavior. She always seems to see an evil spirit behind her wherever she goes. In addition, Sekar often gets eerie dreams where she is being strangled and thrown into the air by an evil spirit. This is only just the tip of the iceberg. Sekar starts seeing ghosts everywhere, even in people who eat at her restaurant.
To make sense of what is happening to her, Sekar sees an astrologer who deduces that Sekar’s body is inhabited by a Nyai Wengi, who brings death and destruction everywhere it goes. It is revealed that many years ago, Sekar made a deal with a djinn for her restaurant to flourish so she could take good care of her children. In return, Sekar had promised something, which she failed to deliver. Therefore, the djinn is back to destroy Sekar. The astrologer clarifies that he doesn’t have the power or knowledge to stop the djinn, so Sekar should see someone else.
Can Dani and Kyai Bagja break Djinn’s deadly hold on Sekar?
The djinn is hell-bent on destroying Sekar and her family, and it wants it to be as painful as possible. It possesses Sekar and makes her take a shower with boiling water, burning her skin. The djinn also enters Dodi’s body and incapacitates him. This becomes a daily thing. Once or twice a day, the djinn takes over Sekar completely and makes her hurt herself and her kids. At one point, we even see Sekar continuously hitting her head against the mirror and using the broken shards to cut herself.
The djinn makes sure to fill Sekar’s entire body with scars. Dani and Ratna have to tie Sekar up to stop her from hurting herself or anyone. Dani and everyone try to help Sekar through prayers, but nothing seems to work. The chants only seem to agitate and anger the djinn more. Aunt Rodiah finds a shaman named Kyai Bagja. However, before the aunt can take Dani and Sekar to him, the djinn kills her. Fortunately, Rodiah had the address of the shaman in her pocket when she was found dead, leading Dani to Kyai Bagja.
The group finds Kyai Bagja, but not before losing some of their own, including Dani’s boss and friend, Myang Dyat. Kyai Bagja can help ward the djinn from Sekar’s body, but it needs certain things. This includes a coconut fruit from the tree that only bears one fruit and the soil from the grave of the shaman who carried out the ritual many years ago. Dani faces many hurdles but eventually manages to acquire both objects necessary for the final ritual. Meanwhile, Kyai Bagja tries his best to contain the djinn, but the latter is too powerful to be contained. Dani arrives with the fruit and the soil, and Kyai Bagja is able to break the djinn’s link with Sekar’s body.
Nearing Death (Menjelang Ajal, 2024) Movie Ending Explained:
What happened to Sekar and Ratna?
So, did Sekar survive? Unfortunately, Sekar’s body was riddled with scars and injuries. The only thing that was keeping her alive was the djinn itself. As soon as the link is broken, Sekar succumbs to her injuries. However, before dying, she tells her sons and daughter that she is proud of them and also apologizes for putting them through this torment. Sekar also asked Dani to follow his dreams and care for his siblings.
As the film nears its end, we see Ratna and Dani taking over the restaurant, which, unlike before, is now teeming with clients. However, we can’t help but notice Ratna’s reddish eyes, the same ones Sekar had when she was possessed. So, it is possible that the djinn spirit now lives inside Ratna’s body.
