In the Malaysian jungle, an American woman and her friends search for the resting-place of her birth parents, who disappeared some twenty-five years ago. The ornery, mismatched group who accompanies her start out enthusiastic enough, but things go awry as they come across a Pontianak -- a Malay female banshee/vampire reputed to be beautiful, but demonic. Legend has it that Pontianaks are women who have died in childbirth, and return from the grave to seek revenge for their premature deaths.