Currently, ‘Andai Ibu Tidak Menikah Dengan Ayah’ is the #1 movie in Indonesia on Netflix. This family drama explores unmet expectations and questions the choices we make in life. It’s fair to say this movie carries moral lessons that relevant, whether your family is messy or perfectly harmonious.
Mom chooses the wrong path?
The story follows a mom, played by Ine Febriyanti, with four kids and a seriously problematic husband. Her husband always in debt, dodges his responsibilities, and can be aggressive and careless toward the family. In the end, she steps up, runs the household, starts a small laundry business, and raises her kids into adulthood all on her own.
Yeah, the core story might feel familiar, but this film dives into how people choose their own paths, no matter the risks. Especially the mother, she could have had a peaceful life if she stayed with her ex, who’s now a doctor. But the choices she made? Not once did she regret them, even as her skin wrinkles and her body grows frail.
”The family lives in a house that’s barely fit to call a home. When it rains, the roof leaks and they have to patch it up with whatever they can find. And it’s not just the house that’s fragile, everyone living in it feels it too.”
The kids keep their feelings buried
Having parents like that, you’d think the one we’d pity most is the mother. But actually, it’s the childs who suffer the most. Not because they live simply or have problematic parents, but because they don’t have the courage to express what’s in their hearts.
This becomes a central conflict in the story, as the oldest and second child see their parents very differently. The eldest blames everything on her father and fiercely protects her mom. Meanwhile, the second child tends to stay neutral, and at some point even blames her mom for something.
The eldest sees the harshest reality of their family. They’re job hunting and sometimes cornered by their father. Meanwhile, the second one seems naive, studying medicine on a scholarship and with a partner who could potentially change her future.
”Small differences like these shape how each of them views their family in completely different ways. All that while sharing the same home, same air, also same buried struggles.”
This family drama by Kuntz Agus is worth your two hours. It captures just how complicated family life can be. All real-life lessons wrapped on: from making choices, living with their consequences, to the difficulty of being honest with one another.
Watch ‘Andai Ibu Tidak Menikah Dengan Ayah’ now, only on Netflix!
Read more: ‘Can This Love Be Translated?’ Coming on January 16
