Songlap (2011)

Five minutes before I begin writing this review, I’ve just finished watching what is unarguably the best modern Malaysian movie I have ever had the pleasure of watching. The fact that I am writing this so soon after watching it speaks volumes of the movie; Songlap. Good god, I don’t know where to begin. The pinpoint casting? The screenplay? The acting? The colourful characters, lead and supporting alike? I’ve been simply blown away. And to think that I’ve waited this long to get the DVD, and then to have waited a little more to crack open the DVD case to actually watch it. Do you remember how I gushed at ‘Chow Kit’? This review is gush of the year, I’m telling you.

Let us start with the plot. The movie tells the story of two brothers; Am (Shaheizy Sam), a runner for a black market baby syndicate whose penchant for gambling throws away what little money he and his younger brother; Ad (Syafie Naswip) make. However, it is evident that Ad does not have the stomach for their line of work, and he has a bigger heart than his brother does, being young, naive and yet to be corrupted by years of slumming in the job. And when Ad’s best friend dies from a drug overdose, he starts thinking of escaping from the decadence and greed that he grew up in. Salvation comes knocking in the form of Hawa (Sara Ali), a pregnant teenager whose unborn baby is earmarked to be sold off by the syndicate the two brothers are working for. As usual, I’m not gonna reveal too much about the plot so as to not give it away. And because I WANT YOU TO GO BUY THE ORIGINAL DVD AND WATCH IT YOURSELF! Go on, stop reading this review and head to the local Speedy to get an original copy. This review’ll still be here when you get back and finish watching the movie. Alright, if you’re not convinced, let me elaborate just a little bit more. The plot is more complicated and layered than I let on, and this is one of the very few Malaysian movies whereby the characters’ motivations and actions are believable, instead of simply executed to advance the plot. More on this later.

Next let’s look at the cast and the characters. I want to begin with the star; Shaheizy Sam. Before Songlap, I knew him from Adnan Sempit and some other forgettable comedies. Never thought much of him. I mean, Bront Palare has more acting chops than him and Aaron Aziz is definitely miles ahead of him in the looks department. But boy was I blown away by Shahiezy’s performance in this movie or what? Guy explodes in the audience’s faces in a very visceral manner. He embodies his character perfectly, a smarmy, unscrupulous man who has to rely on his wits since he’s constantly on the lookout for easy money. The thing is, he is neither charming nor quick on the uptake, so he often finds himself at the receiving end of his bosses and associates’ blows when he fails to con them, which also makes for a genuinely amusing character who is also sympathetic to a certain extent. I don’t know whether he received coaching from the directors during filming or whether he was this good to begin with, but his solid performance carried this movie through to the very end. I wish he’d stop wasting his talents on Adnan Sempit and the likes and concentrate on more movies like this instead, but I guess he’s got to eat.

It is with great pride that I say that this is the first time that I’ve seen a Malaysian movie that pays as much attention to the supporting cast and characters as it does to the lead. Syafie Naswip (I admit I never heard of him before) who plays Ad, holds his own against his on-screen brother’s stellar performance, letting him do much of the talking, while he broods and plays the tortured teenager and conflicted crook. The directors of the movie Effendee Mazlan and Fariza Azlina Isahak, show that they were not simply content on relying on the stellar leads, by also peopling the movie with superb and colourful supporting characters who steal every scene they are in, either with their performance or simply their odd looks. Fauzi Nawawi who plays Chipun; a pimp, provides that very rare breed of nuanced comic relief which would easily be portrayed as an out-and-out funny man in the hands of a less capable director. He explains in ‘The Making of’ section of the DVD (now that’s why I buy original) that he essentially plays the same character that he’s played before, only this one is harder and more layered. Omar Abdullah, a veteran of TV3 primetime melodramas could have easily played his staple father figure characters, but in Songlap he turns in a slightly edgy performance as the taxi driver father of the pregnant Hawa who is seemingly dedicated to returning her safely home, with a dark, big reveal at the end. Also worth mentioning are Am’s best friend; Toyol who is played by Ayam Fared who I think got cast simply because the directors couldn’t resist hiring such an odd-looking actor with an even odder stage name; and a crook by the name of Man Ramos who, in the midst of beating Am up in one scene, gets infuriated at Am for making him have to get his namesake, his well-coiffed hair, tousled, and beats Am up some more.

I mentioned earlier about the plot, which I think is the tightest that I’ve seen in a Malaysian movie. The screenplay is written by Fariza, and I have to also praise this aspect of the movie. All the things that happen in the movie happen for a reason, and when they happen, they affect someone, and you bet someone is going to have to pay. No moments are wasted for the sake of slapping on a heart warming, tear-jerking scene, a big heroic speech, or comic relief. Everything is punctuated subtly and expertly, which puts Songlap miles ahead of even other Malaysian movies that I consider to be good. The characters’ motivation is very realistic and believable. You can see how Ad’s desire to escape his surroundings is not borne out of some tacky selfless ideal, but out of his need to make amends for one particular mistake he makes at the beginning of the movie. Am’s flippant attitude towards the pregnant mothers-for-hire and prostitutes are also explained towards the end of the movie; and it cleverly shows why he is who he is. And the dialogues, they are oh so delicious. From the casual insults hurled by Am at his crook buddies, to the chilling threats made by a key assassin character, to the many jokes cracked by Am (with one making a pot shot at national laughing stock ‘Dr’ Rozmey), they flow smoothly throughout the movie, making you laugh and keeping you focused on the plot at the precise moments. That and the brilliant delivery by the actors, which leads me to believe that the directors had taken it upon themselves to extensively coach the cast to deliver their brilliant vision. Clearly, the directors had already thought of how they wanted to film every single second of ‘Songlap’ before production, leaving nothing to chance. And for that, I congratulate AND thank them.

I also want to say is how excited I am for the near future of Malaysian movie industry. It seems that quite a few movies have broken new grounds, pushed the envelope and raised the standards in the last year. ‘Chow Kit’ with its in-your-face realism and frank portrayal of coarseness, ‘Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa’ with its ambitious epic scale and technical achievements, flawed it may be, ‘Songlap’ which I’ve been raving about, and just recently, ‘Bunohan’ which has garnered international acclaim (also another DVD I’ve bought but yet to watch myself). Next to come is U-Wei Shaari’s ‘Hanyut’, an adaptation of Joseph Conrad’s first novel ‘Almayer’s Folly’ which currently is in post-production, from what I’ve read. Looking forward to the original Malaysian auteur’s next work. 

Also worth noting is that I’ve noticed a sort of formula for these successful new Malaysian movies. Like ‘Chow Kit’, ‘Songlap’ is to a certain extent bilingual, has a number of Chinese supporting characters who speak their native language in the dialogue, and is made by a production team comprising a sizeable number of Chinese Malaysian members. I think this is the way forward for Malaysian movies, and even if they are made for a mostly Malay market, like ‘Songlap’ with its Malay leads and main characters, the Malaysian movie industry can not shy away from being more inclusive in their production stage and in their aesthetics anymore. A movie, by nature, should be relevant, and Malaysian movies can achieve relevance and cultural significance by more realistically reflecting on inter-racial Malaysian interaction and sensibilities. Notice how I’ve avoided calling ‘Songlap’ a Malay movie? This is of course to be more inclusive, but also because I think calling it so doesn’t accurately describe the scope of the movie and its production stage.

That’s it from me on ‘Songlap’ or I’m gonna start sounding like a fanboy. Believe me when I say you should really watch it if you love Malaysian movies and movies in general. Shaheizy Sam is a revelation in it, and the performance of his supporting cast members is top notch. I also want to personally thank a friend of mine, Faiz ‘Kehek’ Fadzil for persistently convincing me to watch it, after he read my ‘Chow Kit’ review.

The GOOD: ALMOST ALL OF THE MOVIE. I mean when talking about most good Malaysian movies, there’s always an “It’s good, but...”, but ‘Songlap’ is almost perfect in every sense.

The BAD: I did say almost. The character of Hawa is a little underdeveloped and underutilised as compared to Am and Ad. She’s written to be a bit too passive for my liking.

My VERDICT: 9/10. It’s not a Malaysian movie nine either, it’s the standard nine I give to international movies.

TRIVIA: the opening scene signifies the transition for the audience from more conventional Malay movies to another kind of movie. The cameos by Lisdawati and Eizlan Yusof hint at this. But I won’t explain much on this as I read it in another Malaysian reviewer’s blog. Go read it here.