For months, the spectators in Indonesia have been discussing a film: the norm, the story of a seemingly happy marriage, destroyed by the clandestine adventure of the husband with his mother -in -law. It is the kind of intrigue that will always attract fans of melodrams. But what made the norm a national obsession is the fact that it is based on a true story, which has gone viral on Tiktok, reports the BBC.
What differentiates the film the norm is the involvement of the protagonist in the creative process. Photo: Netflix
In 2022, Norma Risma, a woman in the city of Serang on the island of Java in Indonesia, revealed the adventure between her husband and mother in a video on Tiktok.
Her story rapidly gathered millions of views, reached the newspapers and finally brought a contract for a movie that conquered South-East Asia.
Norm, which reached Indonesian cinemas in March and Netflix in August, quickly became one of the most watched films, not only in Indonesia, but also in Malaysia and Singapore, where there are numerous populations of Malay-Muslims.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4ojstdb-ao
The taste for the scandal
Vero, a 42 -year -old household in Jakarta, watched the story of the norm since he went viral on Tiktok. This was “Furious on the husband and mother”she says for BBC Indonesia.
“When I learned that this story would be screened, I wanted to see how cruel these two people were“She says.
At the cinema, he cried at the culminating moment of the film, when the norm slipped through the crowd gathered in front of his house and found his husband and mother naked in the room.
The tender scenes in which the husband’s husband and mother oppose and then realize their idyll have shocked and captivated the spectators.
“Certainly, after filming this, they will feel bad“, Commented a user on Tiktok about a scene in which the two kissed. In the film, a friend who discovers the illicit relationship of the two vomiting when he catches them flagrantly.
Mrs. Gietty warns that these narratives have a dangerous tendency to blame women, and not unfaithful men. In these conflicts between the legitimate husband and the illicit lover, “The man tends to receive no punishment”she says.
But what differentiates the film the norm is the involvement of the protagonist in the creative process, says the movie screenwriter, Oka Aurora, for BBC Indonesia. She is also the author of the scenario for Iphar Adalah Maut and Layangan Putus, the other two productions inspired by Tiktok.
After intense discussions on the norm of her feelings and her mother’s story, “The basic story of the film remains largely consistent”says Oka, though he added that “There are certainly certain parts that have been dramatized to play with public emotions. ”
“This film is also a way in which people can free their emotions and have fun. Thus, when they leave the cinema, they have things they feel and talk about.”
The life of the norm
Today, the real norm works in Serang, her hometown.
Her mother, Rihanah, returned home to live with her family after atoning an eight -month prison for adultery. Rozy, the ex -husband of the norm, was sentenced to nine months in prison.
During a film conference for the film, in February, the norm said it was encouraged by the messages he received from other victims of the unfaithful spouses.
“When I lived (adventure), I thought:” Why am I deceived by the person closest to me? I am the only one who goes through this? ” It turned out that, when I spoke openly, many people lived the same experience ”, said Norma.
Oka, the screenwriter, supports the feminist message behind the film. This is “A small step for women to speak openly about the infidelity and violence they face,” she says.
Gietty says movies like Norma, based on real stories about domestic issues, can serve as “An emancipation space for women” in a patriarchal society and can give them “The courage to speak openly.”
The norm refused the interview requests of BBC Indonesia, although he continues to share news from his life on his public media account, receiving the enthusiastic support of Indonesian fellow citizens.
Successful Formula of Indonesian films
The film follows a successful formula discovered by Indonesian filmmakers: adapting viral scandals on social networks.
By June this year, the movie with the largest In Indonesia was “Kkn di Desa penari”a 2022 horror story about the harassment of six university students, who came from a popular subject on X. In 2023 appeared “Sewu Dino”, Another horror movie adapted from a story distributed on the same X account.
Equally popular are stories with a more spicy content: “IPAR Adalah Maut”a 2024 Indonesian film about an adventure between a man and his sister-in-law, was promoted as a true story adapted from a video on Tiktok. The dramatic series “Layangan Putus” From 2022, about a family disappeared by an unfaithful husband, he also inspired from a viral clip on Tiktok.
Such themes are extremely taboo in Indonesia, where adultery is punished with imprisonment. The new Criminal Code of the country, which will enter into force at national level next year, prohibits sexual relations outside the marriage, and in the most conservative province, couples are already publicly punished with the whipping for the maintenance of sexual relations before marriage.
But in this culture of religious conservatism, experts say, voyeuristic interest in family scandals is flourishing.
“With the films about these scandals, people have the opportunity to take a look at the family problems of others.” Says SM Gietty Tambunan, a member of the Jakarta Art Council Film Committee for BBC Indonesia. “Especially because of this conservatism, people become even more curious.”
