The movie Sepet directed by Yasmin Ahmad was quite some time ago, i missed it on the big screen, and i realized no DVD or VCD stalls actually sell locally produced movies no matter how hard i try to find. until last night i tried my luck on youtube, i finally got to watch a movie i had been waiting for 3 years. though it was only on a 4 inch screen, i can still feel the show.
here’s a synopsis of the movie, with Spoiler ahead.
frankly speaking, i never fancy locally made movies. low budget, bad cinematography, expressionless actors and actresses, bad photography, mediocre acting, badly made sets. that’s how i usually rate them. only until recently, the tide changes, though the acting hasn’t improved much, there’re some pretty good directors who made really good films, like Sepet, Gubra, Mukhsin, Puteri Gunung Ledang, etc
To be really honest, it’s a very simply and very bland love story, so simple and so bland you will fell asleep if it was some hollywood production. however, what made it different and stands out of the crowd is its simplicity and it’s a show only Malaysian can truly feel it and understand it. the sets, the mixed languages, the lifestyle as shown in the movie, the settings the director had put. and to my surprise, Ng Choo Seng potrayed the character Ah Loong superbly. though without much facial expression, that was what struck me, it is that kind of expression you don’t always see in local actors, it was true, it was himself, it was as though he is ah loong himself. the languages used, on the other hand, excellent. it made the audience feel as though they’re actually in the movie instead of watching a movie because it wasn’t the usual one movie, one language kinda concept.
the one and most important thing that really made me feel great about this movie and give full credit to Yasmin is that she threw away all racial and religion differences and stress only about unity, as well as her courage of putting the real and ugly social facts on the big screen, which not many people have the guts to do it. there’s this conversation between Kak Yam and Mak Inom in the movie that really strikes me:
KakYam: Orked dapat 5A dah pun boleh study kat England.
MakInom: Insyallah
KakYam: AhLoong dapat 9A pulak.
MakInom: *shocked expression*
we see the struggle between the Chinese boy and the Malay girl, we see the unfair policies, we see the truth, we see the social difference, and of course, we hear what we’ve been grumbling on the screen. it is these kind of scenes that really touch us even we know that there’s nothing we can do about it.
unfortunately, the only thing that i can’t really agree with is the movie’s open-ending. to me, i guess open endedness is not quite neccessary for simple movies like this. however, i guess what Yasmin Ahmad wanted her audience to do is to formulate their own endings, an ending which will make you, as an audience satisfied.
i might sound a little bias because i’ve always like Yasmin Ahmad’s production. her art direction has been pretty sharp all along and she could just make the overall experience of watching her movie a pleasant one. on a bigger scale, it’s a simple, touching, down to earth local production, with great cinematography. it’s a show you really shouldn’t miss because it’ll change your view on local production. afterall, we should support our own people isn’t it?
You go, Yasmin, can’t wait for your next production.
Now listening: Nina Simone - Ne Ma Quitte Pass
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