Review: The Terror from “Asih” Beats Out Danur Series
“Danur”, as one of the highest grossing horror film franchise in Indonesia, might see some competition from its own spin-off, “Asih”. When we first saw Danur on the cinema, we clearly said that the sub-plot starring the character “Asih” is much more interesting than the main plot, so we found it interesting that they decided to do a separate film for this character. Asih who is played by actress Shareefa Danish was portrayed as a ghost who haunts children and their parents. Through the film which was directed by Awi Suryadi, we got to see the origin of this ghost. It reminds us a lot with “The Nun” from Conjuring franchise, so you might want to compare the two on your own. In the beginning, there was a little scene featuring Risa Saraswati (Prilli Latuconsina) and her ghost friends in the present time before the viewers were taken to a time where Asih was still alive. Getting impregnated out of wedlock, Asih’s conservative family put a lot of pressure on her that led her decision to kill the baby after it was born. She then buried her baby under a huge tree, then decided to hang herself there.
During the 80’s, Asih restless spirit haunted families who were waiting for the arrival of a baby. A family that consisted of a mother (Citra Kirana), a father who was a civil-worker (Darius Sinathrya) and mother-in-law who suffered dementia was on its last trimester pregnancy. The mother was warned to bring metal things with her anytime, to avoid her unborn baby getting stolen by Asih. After successfully delivered the baby into the world, this family didn’t get any rest because Asih still terrorized them with the goal to take the baby to the afterlife. This movie presented unexpected jumpscares that would really raise your goosebumps. We inevitably closed our eyes during some jumpscares moments, because the make-up, music, and Shareefa Danish’s acting were so on-point. The scary level definitely surpassed the Danur series and we enjoyed it a lot more. Although better than Danur 1 or 2, “Asih” still got a major problem which was its pace. For those who loved slow burning, or mid-tempo pace, you will likely find this movie a tad too fast. Other than that, “Asih” managed to prevent you from a peaceful sleep. The movie has reportedly broken a million viewers mark on its first week of screening. Watch it on cinemas near you!
Reviewer: Hanif Ardhika/Editor: Novita Widia
