Home For Rent Review: Directed by Sophon Sakdaphisit and written by Sakdaphisit and Tanida Hantaweewatana, this Thai horror-thriller-mystery film (บ้านเช่า..บูชายัญ) stars Nittha Jirayungyurn, Sukollawat Kanarot, Thanyaphat Mayuraleela, Penpak Sirikul, Namfon Pakdee, Natniphaporm Ingamornrat and others. The film has a runtime of 124 minutes.
Home For Rent Plot
When Ning decides to rent her home out to two women with presumably no red flags, her small family starts to get in harm’s way. As her husband slowly becomes distant, she slowly realises that something horrible is afoot and must save her daughter from what turns out to be a cult out to take everything from her.
Home For Rent Review
The thought of cults residing within our urban jungles and manipulating people into doing their bidding is a horrifying thought. Now put a child within that bess, and you will be left with a mess that has the capacity to push you to do desperate things. Ning’s biggest fear comes true when she realises that her daughter is in horrible danger, and she desperately tries to save her life. Heartbreakingly enough, even her own seems to be working against her in this time of need.
Home For Rent is a horrifying tale in its own right, although it suffers from trying to be something else desperately. In spite of being a horror film, it does nothing to hold on to the tension or even dish out some horrifying moments to leave you shocked and at the edge of your seat. The implications are terrible, and the situation itself will caution you about what true horror can be. The situation, truly, is relatable, and the true horror lies in what people are capable of doing in order to get what they want.
It is also a testament to what grief can do to an otherwise educated and compassionate person. Kwin’s backstory adds a lot of emotion to the narrative, and although it doesn’t make what he does right, it still makes you feel for him somewhat. The movie delivers its emotions quite well, and you will feel the different beats of the characters as they feel them.
Apart from the three characters of Ning’s family, there is also the cult – Ratree, who plays the cult leader with the creepy eye, expertly weasels her way into a grief-stricken Kwin’s life for some ulterior motive, a phenomenon we have seen happening in cults of different kinds. You almost feel bad for Kwin and are left a bit fearful of Penpak Sirikul’s Ratree as she harms poor Kwin and, by extension, Ing.
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However, sadly, Home For Rent falters when it tries to be a horror film of the cliched kind. I think it would really have excelled as just a drama-thriller, focusing on Kwin and his family as they try to cope with his grief and its aftermath. Unfortunately, the film cranks up the horror elements and adds in a bunch of cliched jumpscares that are simply unnecessary. The latter part of Home For Rent, thus, is more interesting and gripping because it caters more to the immediate danger to Ing’s life, Kwin’s blindness due to grief, Ning’s desperation to save her daughter’s life and Ratree’s diabolism.
These perspectives are the only ones that are relatable and horrifying as things just go off the rails, with the second half of the runtime really amping up the thrilling elements that make the film shine. The blending of genres is done well, and you are constantly left wondering what the next step is. Thankfully the creators didn’t dig into their heels about pushing the jump scare narrative, and the twist towards the end, although expected, is done well.
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The atmosphere in the film looks up towards this time too. Although you will feel sort of bored at first, the latter half is both interesting and tight-paced. The special effects are also quite good and never really take you out of the experience. Although I can’t say the same for the ghost girl – that doesn’t hit the right notes in any way.
Nittha Jirayungyurn and Sukollawat Kanarot, playing Ing’s parents, are really good. Kanarot, especially, as Kwin, is both relatable and makes you feel bad for him at some point. The way the storyline jumps from past to present and then back again is quite effective and fills in the gaps in the story well. Although it’s not going to make you cry out of fear, it’s creepy enough to leave an impression.
Home For Rent Review: Final Thoughts
Home For Rent is a creepy one-time watch. Its second half, with a ton of stuff happening, is better than its first. There are some emotional moments that will ground you in the characters and some thrilling ones that will keep you watching till the end. However, none is enough for this horror-thriller to reach anyone’s number 1 list.
Home For Rent is streaming on Netflix.