"Cinta" - A Malaysian Movie Masterpiece

I was one of the fortunate bloggers that came by the opportunity to have a private screening for the media, of Alternate Studio's latest Malaysian film, "Cinta", at 1 Utama yesterday.

This is the 2nd production by Alternate Studio - the first being the film, "Salon". I kept my expectations realistic after that attempt for fear of being disappointed. (Although to be fair, "Salon" did uncover a star in the lovely Chelsia Ng - who now stars in the weekly drama "Realiti")

But comments from some friends and loved ones (who are not typically avid Malay movie aficionados like me)who had seen "Cinta" were definitely positive - which made me look forward to it even more.

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First, let me state that I've always been a supporter of Malay movies and Malay songs. I've never given up on it (despite the challenging years of Yusof Haslam's movies) and I've always believed that if we support the local film industry - eventually, you will see it improve over time.

And before I proceed to my review, let me state this without qualification:

"Cinta" is the BEST Malay movie that I have seen since 1990, at least (and I've seen a LOT of Malay movies).

It is an intelligent movie on so many levels and casting-wise, has the most talented ensemble of actors and actresses assembled, probably not witnessed since the days of the original "Abang" perhaps.

And from a quality, technical, soundtrack, movie-making and entertainment-value perspective - it is far superior to anything you've ever seen from Malaysian movies. It will make you proud of our local movie talent pool.

It is head and shoulders above any of the local fare, I've ever seen - and if any movie is likely to bring back the urban Malay crowds to the cinema - this is THE MOVIE.

It confirms what I've thought all along - that Malaysian moviemakers do have what it takes to make great movies - it's just a matter of putting the right ingredients together.

I repeat, folks - this is the BEST Malaysian movie that I have seen since 1990, at least.

Please make time to go and watch it, tell your friends to go watch it and do justice to the Malaysians who obviously have worked very hard on this beauitful production.

This is MUST-SEE, folks - even if you're typically the sort of Malaysian that would not pay to watch Malaysian movies and would rather wait for it to appear on TV over Raya holidays.

I kid you not - because I don't joke about Malaysian movies. I'm dead serious about the state of our Malaysian moviedom.

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10 stars, 5 love stories inter-linked in 1 story.

At first glance, "Cinta" is very much likened to the runaway British hit "Love Actually". But that's where the similarities stop - "Cinta" is very much in the Malaysian mould.

I'm not going to take the fun away from you by telling you what the stories are all about. I think a part of enjoying "Cinta" will be discovering what the stories are, for yourselves. It'll add to your appreciation of the emotional depth of the movie.


But what makes this movie great, you may ask?

For one, it's got a very strong cast.

The talented Fatimah Abu Bakar makes a welcome comeback to big screen, showing that she's still got the stuff that once made her Malaysia's best actress. Her acting was entirely convincing and effortless, although they could have given her better dialogue.

I've always considered Nanu Baharuddin a strong actress, even in supporting roles like in "Pontianak Harum Sundal Malam".

It's fitting that she's been given the lead role in one of the 5 stories and she played the role of a protective big sister and a woman involved in an affair with a married man, to perfection.

It's not just the script - Nanu's facial and silent expressions show depth of conflicting emotions with an economy of words - which is the true measure of acting talent.

Shidee (Rashidi Ishak) also popularly known to most men as the lucky bloke who married the lovely Vanidah Imran - shows that he's come a long way since his early days in "Mimpi Moon".

I used to think that Shidee was quite stiff in his acting in his earlier days - but over time, he's come into his own now, with a very strong performance as a loving, hopeless romantic but heartbroken husband, whose marriage had disintegrated, due to his wife's affair with another man.

He displayed the range of emotions very well and some of the scenes with his daughter, were truly touching and will reduce some of you, to tears. Especially for those who understand the pain of divorce and the confusion it causes to both adults and children.

Though, I would have liked him to have the chance to express a wider variety of emotions attached to break-ups and divorce - perhaps, anger, resentment and bitterness mixed with a great mixture of eternal love and compassion.

The most promising actor in this movie has to be Que Haidar, who plays Nanu's character's younger brother.

There's a raw and honest intensity to his acting which pulls you in and holds you there - the way strong young drama actors like Christian Bale and Leonardo Di Caprio do. Watch out for this one - given meatier and juicier roles in the future - I think he'll be a star, one day.

As for the other actors - Rahim Razali played to his usual strength, though it's not his most memorable performance - but his screen chemistry with Fatimah Abu Bakar, was heartwarming.

Eizlan Yusuff to me, has always been one of the more underrated actors in Malaysia - I've always liked him since "Perempuan Melayu Terakhir", even though intelligent movies like that would hardly be a success at the box-office.

However, in this movie, I felt that Eizlan was not given the scope to show what he's truly capable of - but it was sufficiently good and entertaining.

Fasha Sandha, to me, has always been better in the Penang-type "Anak Mami" genre movies.

The girl has impeccable comic timing and she always seems comfortable executing lines in loghat utara. I've always found her a bit wanting and mechanical in her range of expressions since her earlier drama attempts like "Berlari Ke Langit" all the way down to her portrayal in "Gong".

But in this movie, Fasha's emotional range in every scene shone through far better than she's ever done, in drama-type movies.

Again, she could have done better if the script, storyline and character development had allowed her to do more - but this is a promising new start for the talented young starlet. Keep it up, Fasha!

And yes, she and Eizlan looked good together - it's a believable pair. Quite sweet, although they would have done better, if the script told us why they fell for each other. One more additional scene, would have done it.

Rita Rudaini exceeded herself too, in her role as Shidee's character's wife. Her expressions of guilt and conflict, were particularly convincing - although they could have given her a bit more to work on.

I personally, would have liked to see more interaction between them as husband and wife and how she relates to her child, in such painful situations, like a divorce.

Sharifah Amani is a strong young actress - but she needs to be given the right roles to excel. People like Yasmin Ahmad knows perfectly what suits her and what doesn't.

Casting-wise, perhaps, there could have been better actresses to hold the role that she played of a naive young girl who came to town, looking for her boyfriend.

She seems too intelligent to play naive - I felt this role was meant for someone whose a bit more raw, "street" and hardened. She also lacked screen chemistry with Pierre Andre - it seemed awkward and not quite believable.

Pierre Andre has improved substantially since his days in "Salon", I feel. I still have a problem with a way he intonates his words - but his strong points are his his emotional depth and wide range of expressions and he's born to play the good guy underdog.

Of the supporting cast, Ngasrizal Ngasri deserves honourable mention. Even with the limited script and number of scenes that had, he was entirely convincing as Amin, Cikgu Elyas's grandson. He's also another underrated drama heavyweight, I feel - those who had seen many of his earlier work and most notably, in "Kaki Bakar" would agree with me.

I saw many of my friends doing cameos in there - Mat Jeb being one of them (although that scene was straight "cut and paste" from "When Harry Met Sally"). Vanida Imran's cameo was welcome too - she's a sight for sore eyes and has a great way of letting her eyes and her smile, do the talking for her.

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Story-wise - of the 5 stories, I felt that "Tulus" or the light drama played by Sharifah and Pierre, is the weakest (which is still pretty strong, considering the quality of this movie). But as a formula in a movie, the story will appeal to the younger set of viewers - who will probably be able to identify with the issues raised.

"Cinta" would have done better with a "more is less" formula, to the stories.

If it only had 4 stories with deeper plot and character development (with the interplay of more characters within it, instead of having more stories), it would have done even better - given the quality of the cast and the acting.

I felt that the directing by Kabir Bhatia was superb - although a few scenes, should have been reshot, to make it more realistic. The editing was mostly smooth and gave a good flow to the story - keeping you anticipating to know what happens next.

The camera,set and lighting angles were brilliant, fresh and diverse - it makes a very big difference to how we perceive a Malaysian movie - where technical elements have always been weak.

For most parts, the music accompaniment in the background behind the dialogue worked in keeping the "effect" fresh and shaping the audience's response to the scene, but there were 1 or 2 scenes where the background music did not suit the scene (probably because it has lyrics and seemed to interfere with the audience's appreciation of the dialogue)

Personally, I felt that Kabir could have squeezed a bit more "substance" from his actors and actresses (as they're a talented lot and capable of a lot more) but overall, the man did a fantastic job.

The script by Mira Mustaffa and Ara was certainly way above average, but there is space for improvement.

For one, the "moral" of each story should be more subtle and interspersed within the dialogue and not recited as a "line" at the end of every shot. (An example of good interspersing is when Fatimah's character, Rubi, told off the bystanders in KL, in a scene involving Cikgu Elyas)

Give the Malaysian audience the space to think and digest for themselves - don't push them what the writer's interpretation is. This is not a fairy tale book.

There were moments when the script fell victim to Hollywood and Malaysian cliches - like romantic dinners, as an expression of love. (Or flowers and diamond rings, for that matter)

It was done twice in the movie - and I felt that it was bit much. It was suitable for the scene involving Eizlan and Fasha, as it was their first date - but for the scene involving Shidee and Rita - one would expect that married couples would have other meaningful ways of expressing love and devotion, other than over a romantic dinner.

And the scene where Eizlan's character held the press conference to me, was unconvincing on its basis and portrayal. That could have been done better - in a story where most of the script, was way above water.

But there were dialogue gems, too - the poignant scene between Shidee and his child, the argument and affectionate scenes between Nanu and Que, the courting scenes between Eizlan and Fasha, the brief but meaningful exchange between Eizlan and Shidee, the few earthy scenes between Ngasrizal and Fatimah Abu Bakar and the scenes which depicted the routine of Cikgu Elyas and the kindness of fellow human beings.

And the music and soundtrack to this movie are amazing - easily rivalling the best of songs, in good Indonesian movies.

It is certainly one element that has long been underestimated in Malaysian movies, one which the Indonesians have long understood before us - the impact of good music in influencing how the audience feels about the movie.


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But overall, minor points and patchiness aside - this is an AMAZING production by Ahmad Puad Onah, Dhojee (I'm proud of you, my friend) and Ara and Alternate Studio.
On a Malaysian movie scale - I'd give this a 8.5 out of 10.

Kudos and well done to all three of you - all of you have raised the benchmark for Malaysian movies. The movie is wholesome, wide-ranging, thought-provoking and very, very "now".

If the rest of the Malaysian moviemakers follow your example - we may yet see the day Malaysian urban audiences, return to the cinemas to watch to Malaysian movies.

To all of you reading this - it's time to revive your faith in Malaysian movies. Yes, especially you urbanites that have long ago given up on Malaysian movies, because of the trauma of Yusof Haslam movies.

"Cinta" opens on 30th November - go with your friends and family, folks!