Two Malaysian/Malay movies: Lelaki Harapan Dunia and Terbaik Dari Langit

Two months ago, I wrote about two Malaysian/Malay movies the trailer to which came out around the same time. The trailers looked rather hopeful so I made a point to catch both at the cinema.

I'm going to start this review with the one that came out earlier, and also the disappointing one of the two; Lelaki Harapan Dunia, written and directed by Seng Tat Liew. Yep, I said it outright. It's disappointing.

The movie tells the story of a group of villagers who want to relocate an abandoned house mainly due to the wish of Pak Awang who wants the house for his daughter's wedding, when a number of peculiar incidents take place which they attribute to supernatural reasons due to them moving the house. Unbeknownst to them, an African man who's a fugitive from the law has taken refuge in the house.

Sounds like a horror movie right? Or is it a comedy? Or is it drama? Therein lies the problem with Lelaki Harapan Dunia, or its English title Men Who Save the World. The movie tries to be all, without really succeeding to be any. Plot-wise there are also so many threads in it, but most of them are not really resolved by the end of the movie. They are merely teased and repeatedly brought to the fore, but no further explanation is given.

What's with the village idiot/druggie? Why is Pak Awang so insistent on refurbishing the house for his daughter's wedding? And what does he mean by his wistful remark on her getting married out of love? What about the subplot with the price of the camel intended for slaughter? By the end of the movie, these are all not solved. Even the main story is left kind of hanging.

Now that's out of the way, let's talk about the better one, Terbaik Dari Langit which I just watched two days ago. The movie, titled Nova in English, tells the story of Berg (Bront Palarae), a movie director whose obsession with the extraterrestrial and UFO impels him to ask his former school friends to come make an experimental road movie. His friends are up and coming movie star and soon-to-be-married, driver and production technician Ali, and socially-awkward school teacher Toyu. Also in tow is actress Sofea Jane (no, not the real-life actress). His plan involves travelling in a van to shoot the earlier scenes, culminating in shooting the finale at a place where Berg is confident an UFO landing is going to take place. Along the way, they reminisce about their school days and bicker about old grudges, form romance, and criticise Berg's dodgy directing.

Unlike Men, Nova handles multiple subplots better. They don't distract from the main story, and it explains the dynamics of the four school buddies in a non-intrusive way. Furthermore, Langit benefits from a steadier pair of hands in the director's chair, so even if it is funny at times, it never loses track of things.

Another aspect I enjoy about Langit, all the actors AND their characters are used well. The acting is good although nothing to shout about, but most importantly all the characters are well-rounded. Even the comic-reliefs have depth to them. The perpetually nervous Toyu hides a story behind his anxiety at being around them, Sofea is a more significant role than just a pretty face and romantic interest to one of them, the movie star doesn't feel like just another asshole, and Berg's eccentric nature and single-minded obsession is also explained. Furthermore, the young actors portraying the younger version of the leads also look rather similar to their older counterparts, and can act too in the flashback scenes. There are also cameo roles by the late Jalan Ampas era legend Aziz Sattar, and Sharifah Amani.

And in addition to this, this movie is very self-aware and when it comes to the nature of movie-making in Malaysia, taking potshots at Islamic-themed movies that are quite popular at the moment, and the average Malay (Malaysian) audience's reception to movies.

My only gripe about it is the music by the band Pitahati, which is very good, but I think somewhat under-utilised. I wanted more.

I give Lelaki Harapan Dunia 5.5/10 and Terbaik Dari Langit 7/10.

Upcoming Malay comedies

I'm quite excited about the coming two remaining months of 2014. I stumbled upon two trailers for two comedies that are going to come out in November and December, respectively. They look rather irreverent and feature quite a few stars in the local movie scene.

The first is Lelaki Harapan Dunia (English title: Men Who Save the World) which tells the story of a group of villagers who encounter an abandoned house in the village which is occupied by an illegal African immigrant. Of course they think he's a ghost, orang minyak (literally 'fuel man') to be exact.

Now if you're not familiar with the supernatural element in the region, orang minyak is a man who practices black magic in order to rape or molest maidens (or the other way around, I'm not sure, this is the 21st century), and applies oil all over his body while he's out on the prowl. So all the men in the village band together to try to move the house, and hilarity ensues (including cross-dressing).

According to its Facebook page which I've linked above, the movie has Harun Salim Bachik and Jalil Hamid, two renowned comedic actors in this country, and it is written and directed by Liew Seng Tat. According to page, it has international support, so that is rather impressive, I guess? And from the trailer below, it looks quite promising. I wonder if they're gonna come out with two cuts; one for the more conservative local market, and another, more raunchier cut for international viewing and the festival circuit.

Also from the trailer, it has something which to me is one trademark of Malay movies which I enjoy, the portrayal of community life among Malays, which is employed frequently by comedy film maker Mamat Khalid (whose Zombi Kampung Pisang (2007) I consider the best modern Malay comedy), and U-Wei Shaari (when is he going to release Hanyut?).

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The second trailer I came upon was Terbaik Dari Langit. The literal English title is 'the best from the sky' or something like that, but the formal English (international?) title is Nova. This one is slated for a 25 Dec 2014 release. The official promotional Facebook page bills itself as a road trip movie, and the trailer provides the following synopsis for the plot: 

"Convinced with what he saw 15 years ago was a UFO, Berg sets on a journey with his 4 friends to capture it on film. They begin to realize that the trip is more than what it seems."

From the trailer, it looks like the movie will have one element I enjoy in movies; meta-references to the process of making a movie (or stage production), usually showing an ambitious yet clueless person at the helm. For example like Get Shorty, Adaptation, Tropic Thunder and Topsy Turvy.

It also has Bront Palarae, my favourite local actor whose movies I've never actually watched, and Sharifah Amani (nice to not see her out of a cheesy tv role for a change). It's directed by Nik Amir Mustapha who previously directed KIL.

So I'm very excited to have something to look forward to in the local film scene, for a change. I think the last movie I enjoyed was Songlap (which I enjoyed immensely and have raved about)

That reminds me, I have Bunohan and I STILL haven't watched it. Shame on me.

Geng: Pengembaraan Bermula (2009)

As a movie industry, the Malaysian film industry leaves a lot to be desired, quality-wise. Weak acting, implausible plot, exploitative issues and themes are among many issues that have failed to be addressed by those who call themselves the Malaysian filmmakers. However, it’s not my point in this blog to call attention to shoddily-made films; be it international, foreign or local films. I prefer to highlight movies that are made with the desire to set them apart from the rest of the movies, and with that purpose in mind, today we’re gonna look at a Malaysian-made animation film; ‘Geng: Pengembaraan Bermula’ (‘Geng: The Adventure Begins’) which features characters from the by-now immensely popular and ubiquitous TV animation series; ‘Upin & Ipin’.

I remember watching this movie when it came out in the cinemas. My younger siblings were hankering me to take them to watch it one weekend. ‘Upin & Ipin’ had been a staple of Malaysian TV for almost a year by that time, but despite the quality of the animation and the adorable voice acting, it was just a kiddy’s show to me. So I grudgingly relented to my siblings’ pleading, thinking that I wouldn’t enjoy ‘Geng’. After all, a number of Malaysian animation movies have been made in the last decade and each and every single one was disappointing.

However, was I surprised to find myself hysterically laughing only ten minutes into the movie! I was pleasantly amazed at the thought put into the writing; to make sure that the movie is enjoyable to the parents/adults as much as it is to their children. The production team of the studio Les Copaque proves that they weren’t just half-assing it for a quick buck by cashing in from the already popular ‘Upin & Ipin’. The jokes are sincerely funny, the conflict and mystery interesting, and all these on top of what has already made ‘Upin & Ipin’ popular in the region; the titular characters’ adorable shenanigans, charming animation and character design; and hilarious supporting characters. I was actually enjoying the movie!

Now before I get too carried away gushing, let me just tell you about the movie synopsis. When superstitious goings on disrupt the peace and tranquillity of the village of identical twins Upin and Ipin, they enlist the help of their village gang (hence the title), the grandson of their neighbour and his friend to investigate and uncover a sinister plan by a number of bumbling criminals and a portal to another dimension. If the synopsis doesn’t sound anything like a comedy, don’t be alarmed. It is for all intents and purposes a comedy movie, it just so happens that the plot is essentially a horror story happening to characters that are inherently funny.

As a side note, it is worth mentioning and commending the people who came up with the movie; the Shah Alam-based animation studio Les’ Copaque. With ‘Geng’ they proved that their success with ‘Upin & Ipin’ is no fluke and they are run with a pair of steady hands. I’ll definitely be watching out for their future productions. Hopefully they will take over the mantle as the premiere animation studio of this region, if not as its best movie studio.

The GOOD:

- The animation is fluid and the character design is eye-catching. Way ahead than your run-off-the-mill Malaysian animation. Les’ Copaque is no Pixar, sure, but they’ve shown that they have it in themselves to improve and come up with quality films

- It's sincerely funny to children and the adults alike, and not just in a 'kiddy-funny' way

The BAD:

- There’s this awkward musical number that seems to happen for no reason at the beginning. It feels contrived and forced. It’s a good thing it’s at the beginning where things are just about to pick up, so by the end I’ve more or less forgotten about this minor blight.

My VERDICT for ‘Geng’: 7.5/10

TRIVIA: Apparently, ‘Geng’ was in production long before ‘Upin & Ipin’ was made. They decided to come up with an easy-to-made and cheap TV series during a lull in the ‘Geng’ production period when they were securing and negotiating for funding for the film.