Love for Sale

Andibachtiar Yusuf's 2018 Indonesian film follows Richard, living alone in his forties. A bet with friends leaves him needing a companion for a wedding, and he does not notice that the application he uses comes with a forty-five day contract. The film turns that setup into a narrative of loneliness rather than a comedy. Richard has not lived with anyone for years; someone entering his home both eases and frightens him, and the contract's end date becomes the real tension. Gading Marten and Della Dartyan lead. The narrative is calm and the joke density low; a film in this register was uncommon in Indonesian popular cinema at the time. The final section ends without explanation. Who it's for: those who like quiet romantic drama and Indonesian independent cinema. Who it's not for: viewers expecting a light romantic comedy; the film goes somewhere sad.