Written by Charmaine Shaharin
It was not long ago that Parasite, a Non-English film made history at the Oscars 2020 when they literally sapu four awards that night which includes Best Picture, International Feature Film, Directing and Original Screenplay. From that moment on, you could feel the hearts of not just every Korean but South-East Asian person as well, with a little a warm feeling of pride in their hearts for their win and being the pride of Asia. Therefore, that got me thinking about how there are so many other well-produced but under-appreciated movies in South East Asia, especially in Malaysia that deserve to be in the limelight as well. With that, here’s a list of acclaimed Malaysian movies that deserve to win an International award.
Pulang
If you had grandparents or knew other elderly people who had live in the time during the Japanese invasion in Malaysia, you would have then probably heard tales of how their lives had been and no doubt, their stories might be interesting but of course, the feelings between us and them would hit differently due to how we are born in different times Thus, if you’ve ever wondered how life was like back then, Pulang gives us not just a perfect representation but also a beautifully crafted movie of love, loss, loyalty and sacrifice between two lovers, Othman ( Remy Ishak) and Thom ( Puteri Aishah) who had it all but lost it all to time.
What makes this movie interesting, was the fact that it was set in various timelines which features the past and the present. It definitely gives us a glimpse on how life might have been simple but also difficult back then to make a living and have a family, compared to how everything is so much easier now.
That being said, what makes it beautifully crafted here would definitely be the cinematography which pictures the lovely locations that the characters are set in which gives you that “ kampung life” feel and vibe to it along with the gloomy and suspenseful surroundings in the forest in hopes of not getting discovered by Japanese soldiers. At the same time, the casting of the movie was really well done. Trust no other than Remy Ishak to play the perfect “ Zaman Melayu” male character along with Puteri Aishah who plays a real beauty for that age and time. With that, the acting between the two characters resonated well especially with the audience, keeping everyone on their toes on what their fate would be next.
The movie directed by Kabir Bhatia, who is famously known for his other distinguished work such as Sepi ( 2008) and Nur Kasih ( 2011) definitely gave it all to make this movie into a 10/10 tearjerker with its amazing narrative and storyline of star crossed lovers as well. The action of “ Loyalty” is immense over here along with the spark of friendship between two races just also gives you a warm feeling in your heart. Pulang the movie is now available in Netflix, although it has earned its place to have a worldwide debut, with all things considered it truly deserves more than that in this riveting story of finding love that’s always so close but yet so far.
Pekak
The poster design for this movie is intriguing enough, therefore Pekak is a film that should be added to your watch list . If you’ve missed Sharifah Amani’s award winning portrayal as Orked in Sepet, her role as a naive teenager is relived again as this story follows the life of Uda portrayed by Zahril Adzim, a hearing-impaired drug dealer who catches feelings with a troubled high-schooler.
Written and directed by Khairul Azri, the movie definitely uncovers the hardships and gives a bigger picture to the audience about the “hustling life” in our community and how sometimes people do unimaginable things that we know is harmful to our life in order to survive. At the same time, it also sheds a light on the influence of friendships and how picking the right friends really matters for an individual, especially for the long run. Truly, the storyline is an honest real take about how sometimes life isn’t fair, but you make the best out of it. The romance part of the movie is quite flattering too, as it shows two people from different backgrounds coming together getting to know each other a little bit more through different forms of communication.
Clearly, this is a movie about survival of the fittest in society, as it shows us a more bleaker idea and a taste of what goes on behind closed doors in the patchy areas of Kuala Lumpur which in reality are even more bleaker with run down living conditions and people with grimful backstories. Apart from that, the colour grading of the movie has a really nice take to it, as it plays with many bright hues of colours that become saturated and highly contrasted when it comes to certain scenes with full suspense.
Adiwiraku
Now, this is a movie that will bring back real high school memories of you and your friends together, maybe even making you wish you could go back and do it all over again despite having to sit for SPM. Therefore, if you do feel a bit nostalgic about your high school life again, Adiwiraku is definitely the movie for you as it follows the heartfelt and inspiring story of English teacher, Cheryl Ann Fernando and companion, Constant Wong going out of their way in teaching English to a class of students in order to be enlisted for a Choral Speaking Competition.
Directed by Eric Ong, Adiwiraku unravels life in the countryside and how the level of education and lifestyle definitely differs from how it would be like in the city, as it takes place in SMK Pinang Tunggal, Sungai Petani, Kedah. The film definitely sheds a light on poverty, conflicts within families and low self-esteem amongst students which causes them to drop out.
The human interest and connection within the storyline of this movie is strong too. In the movie, although there are several scenes of Ms.Cheryl passing out homework and marking papers, you know, just ordinary cikgu stuff. However behind the scenes, it does show the real colours in the passion of teaching as a teacher which takes a lot of determination and hard work especially in motivating students and being a real superhero without a cape. What’s also more amazing about this film is that it is actually from a true story, inspired by Two Teach for Malaysia teachers stationed in the same school location as the film.
KIL
This is a film that exhibits something offbeat than your normal everyday Malay film with the typical Dato and Datin couple or the timid Kampung girl character who comes to Kuala Lumpur and finds herself in a hurdle of challenges. Made in 2013, this movie tackles one of the biggest taboo topics that our society had face which is depression and suicide. Back then, there wasn’t much awareness going on for this, but now times have changed and it is now taken into more consideration. Nonetheless, everyone knows that this is a sensitive issue to talk about, and making it into a movie is a big step as well for the Malaysian industry and society.
This movie follows the story of Akil also known as Kil played by Redza Minhat your normal average looking guy that you would pass by in the streets but deep down has given up on living and contemplates about suicide which leads him to discover a company that specializes in voluntary enthusia, which he then signs up for but to only realise that life gets better and that dying is never the solution to solve your problems when he meets the mysterious and alluring Zara portrayed by Christina Stockstill.
For a movie that was made eight years ago and directed by Nik Amir Mustapha, the cinematography was amazing, with clear cut angles and a music score that kept the audience in suspense and wanting to know more on what’s going to happen next .All the more reasons to watch back old Malaysian films because you would find gems like this one. Therefore, although this movie has an Indie vibe to it, the purpose of the storyline holds a deeper meaning and connection to society, telling us that life does get better after all and trust in time.
Guang
Calling Guang a “ Good movie” is an understatement, what it should be labelled as is a breath of fresh air for the movie industry in Malaysia. Everything about this movie is top-notch and you know what, it actually has picked up a few international awards from the 13th Chinese Youth Generation Film Forum in Wuhan in 2016 and just recently for the Best feature film at the 59th Asia Pacific Film Festival in Macau. What makes this movie so compelling is mostly the storyline, as it follows the life of a young autistic man with a secret passion for music but struggles to find a job to support his family and a brother who loves and takes care of him unconditionally despite the struggles that he faces too.
This movie is directed by Quek Shio Chuan and the inspiration behind it solely from his autistic brother and how growing up for him was not easy. At the same time, the cast of the movie was a bit of switch up as well, the actors in the movie Kyo Chen, 30 who plays Wen Guang and Ernest Chong as the younger brother were completely new in the industry but absolutely killed their role.We cried when they cried, we laughed when they laughed. Apart from that, the cinematography in the movie was stunning with amazing visuals and that shows the downtown part of Kuala Lumpur and a well depicted and different vision of sibling love.
It’s an absolute tearjerker of a film and touching one too that also highlights the awareness of autism as well. At this point, let’s be real here because Guang is a masterpiece truly deserves an academy award passed down to the team for Best Picture.
