SANG PENARI (THE DANCER)

Directed by: Ifa Isfansyah
Run Time: 111 Min

As a film trying to portray one of Indonesia's turmoil years, where the Indonesian Communist Party is having it's peak in the 60s and the subsequent event that everybody (unless some people who have no interest in history) in Indonesia knows what it is, it is a very good one. Not trying to be pretentious or even preachy, it even had a good production value.

Sadly, for foreign viewers they will be left confused to the what and why in this film since even the name of the Indonesian Communist Party didn't even mentioned at all and there is no title card that explain the socio political background of the historical events that become the background of this film.

Not even any visual symbol depicts the peak of communist influence in Indonesia at that time, not even the logo of hammer and sickle appeared at all. As for me this is important since this film has big potential to be sent into foreign film festivals.

But for Indonesians, we already know what and why without us needed to be invaded by the extreme visual of communist logos.

However instead of trying to portray the historical event in a generic way, this one explore the how and why this situation could flourish in Indonesia by stating that poverty, prejudice and people's innocence come at play.

Inspired from the novel Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk by Ahmad Tohari (which I haven't read), it tells the story of  Srintil (Prisia Nasution) a young woman who lived in the village of Dukuh Paruk in Central Java. She wanted to be a ronggeng dancer, a profession regarded as prestigious in the village. Not only that it could elevate  the village's prestige but it could bring a lot of money too.

The thing is, as a traditional ronggeng dancer, it is obliged for her to have sex with the highest bidder and that hurts Rasus (Oka Antara) deeply since he had a soft spot for Srintil. But who is he anyway to take  Srintil into his arms? He is just a poor guy happens to be in love with a woman impossible to reach.

As time goes by Rasus enter the Army from the bottom and become a soldier. Meanwhile the ronggeng dance troupe were infiltrated by the Communist Party cadre, capitalizing on high illiteracy level and low education among the villagers. 

In the end everybody knows, communist purge take it's toll to the common people and Rasus and Srintil are at different ends of the relation between power and the powerless. Like it or not, Rasus and Srintil cannot escape history's mighty force in determining people's fate.

The ronggeng procession were depicted very nicely and Prisia can act as a dancer convincingly. Oka himself is a good choice, his voice and mannerism is a perfect choice to act as Rasus a naive villager transformed into a soldier. The pacing is tight and even for those who haven't read the book, the whole story is understandable.

Some people complained about Pia's use of Javanese language and accent but me being a Sundanese who cannot speak any Javanese language at all cannot tell if there is a problem at all. Overall, this one is an important film not to be missed.

MIDNIGHT IN PARIS

Directed by: Woody Allen
Run Time: 94 minutes

"Nostalgia is denial - denial of the painful present... the name for this denial is golden age thinking - the erroneous notion that a different time period is better than the one ones living in - its a flaw in the romantic imagination of those people who find it difficult to cope with the present. "

The grass is greener on the other side. That is the simple premise of this newest Woody Allen film. As for me I always enjoy his films, although haven't seen all of his works. I like Annie Hall, Match Point, Scoops, heck I even like Cassandra's Dream.

Just like the title, it is set in Paris and the main protagonist is Gil (Owen Wilson) a successful screenwriter apparently unhappy with the present time. He is in Paris accompanied by his fiancée, Inez (Rachel McAdams), on vacation together with her conservative parents. One night, after saying that he would rather live in a 1920 Paris (he worshiped the aura and ambiance of Paris even wanted to live there to the dismay of the upper class Inez), he stroll the Parisian street and voila, 'transported' into that period in Paris.

He encounter many famous people like F . Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston), Ernest Hemmingway (Carey Stoll), Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates), and Adriana (Marion Cotillard). He even met Luis Buñuel and on a party apparently giving an inspiration for Buñuel's famous work; The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeois. If you read, then you will know who they are in history.

Coming back and forth between present time and the 1920's changes Gil into an enthusiastic person. He even let his novel being read by Gertrude Stein. But is it just a dream or the time travel really does happen? What sort of influence does these famous people give to Gil and his views of life?

I think whether it is a time travel or just an imagination is not the case. The core of the film is being dissatisfied with present time and wanting to go to a golden age which the person think, suit best for them. But in it lies the seed of discontent that the person cannot accept life as it is in their present time, thus finding escapes in the so called 'golden' past. But we have all been in that position, daydreaming what if we lived in a different time. Would we be more content? or not?

What comes as a surprise is that the message is not hidden in some sophisticated symbol, it is in plain view. This is not Allen's best but surely fun to watch. Wilson is the appeal of this film, together with Adrien Brody and Kathy Bates's performance that steal the spotlight.

SUPER 8

Directed by: J.J. Abrams
Run Time: 112 min

How do you keep secrets in the age of internet? Apparantly J.J can do that and he has been successful in keeping so many mouth shut on his projects (Star Trek and Cloverfield). The teaser trailer can make you think that this is some sort of prequel to Cloverfield and it will be a full action alien movie.

But not keeping any expectation or even trying to peek what Super 8 is all about really pays off, at least for me. I didn't even want to know anything about this film. Set in the 70s (hence the Super 8 film stock as the reference and it is a nice reference since Spielberg and Abrams were both raised in this era, although Abrams is younger. So the film format itself is sort of a nostalgic road trip for both of them) the main protagonist is not some 20 year something spy but a 12 year old kid named Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney). Lamb helps his friend, Charley (Riley Griffiths) to make a cheap 8mm zombie movie for a local film festival. They were helped by their friends and there is always be a love interest for the protagonist in the form of 14 year old Alice (Elle Fanning). From the beginning of the film, it is being told that Lamb's mother died in an accident and his father Jackson Lamb (Kyle Chandler, I know him from Early Edition TV series), is drowning his grief in his job as a sheriff deputy.

As the kids try to film a scene on an empty train station something tragic happened, a pickup is making the train derailed, leaving so many explosions. The camera accidentally capture a disturbing image.

Soon the kids learn that their small town is being swarmed by military men and they suspect it has something to do with the cargo of the train. Will they be able to solve the mystery? Make the film on time and survive the test of friendship and first crush?

It is interesting to point out that everything is from the point of view of the kids and whatever inside the cargo is actually a fringe story. The core of the story is about friendship and ability to let go.

Does this remind you to E.T.? Not a surprise since Steven Spielberg is the producer. As a director Abrams managed to deliver a convincing drama about small town kids accompanied by a very good special effect plus the artistic lens flare. I think this is not a ripoff of E.T. but a nostalgia on movies based on friendship like Stand by Me or E.T. itself where a big thing affecting the lives of many ordinary people manage to change their perspective on their life and in the end we care about the characters and doesn't care about the effects at all.

MELANCHOLIA

Directed by: Lars von Trier
Run Time: 136 min

A disaster/sci-fi movie by Lars von Trier? Don't get your expectation too high since this is not your typical summer movie about disaster. Actually it is still a disaster but a psychological one. Melancholia is the name of a planet which has been hiding behind the sun and about to crash the earth.

The opening sequence in extreme slow motion is stunning and open to many interpretation. A montage of meaningless scenes is teasing us about the nature of the film. Von Trier himself is reported having a state of depression while making this film (not to mention his Hitler controversy at a film festival). Unlike most disaster movies that take on a global scale, this one focuses on Justine's (Kirsten Dunst) wedding, her sister Claire (Charlotte Gainsbourg), and Claire's husband, John (Kiefer Sutherland) and located in a mansion.

Since the wedding Justine has shown the symptomps of being uneasy. She went sad for no reason and do unthinkable stuff. Meanwhile the party goes on as if everything is just okay. Eventually the hidden planet of Melancholia is nearing by. What will these people do?

Sure anyone can go at length criticizing the scientifically aspect of this film (where is the global panic? They didn't watch any TV? How come planet that big cannot be detected at all? What about the gravity of the planet that can affect the earth and so on and so on). I think this is not a sci-fi per se but the whole film is a metaphor for human fear of dying with Melancholia, the planet, as the embodiment of the inevitable fear we all must face. It has a nihilistic and depressing tone, but it is not a surprise considering Von Trier's mental condition at the time he made this film. Dunst and Gainsborg did an awesome job as an actress and surprisingly, I enjoy this one than most of Von Trier's other movie.

WARRIOR

The devil you know, is better than the devil you don't know

Directed by: Gavin O'Connor
Run time: 140 min

So how do you make a movie about fighting that must defy all cliches? Apparently Gavin O'Connor has raised the bar. Although it has a training montage but not accompanied with cheesy songs and the premise is amazing. Usually we root for one main character who has to fight his way (including the disposable two dimensional opponent) but here we root for two main characters who has to fight each other. We don't want them to get hurt but there has to be a winner.

I am familiar with Mixed Martial Arts shows, in fact I used to be a fan of it. This film is not about the quest for a title or rags to riches but it is about the conflict inside human heart that got materialized in a brutal fighting inside the cage.

All three main characters are broken. Estranged brothers Tom and Brendan Conlon (Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton) and their father, Paddy (Nick Nolte) has to cross path after so many years not seeing each other.

Tom visited his father after so many years. Apparently Paddy was a drunk s.o.b back then, his wife moved out with Tom and lost contact with Paddy and Brendan. Tom asked Paddy to train him for the upcoming Mixed Martial Arts, profesionally, putting aside all his hatred but doesn't mean forgiving him. As of this point the viewers doesn't know why Tommy wanted to enter the competition.

Meanwhile Brendan is facing a problem of his own. He is about to save his house from foreclosure, cannot pay for his daughter medical bill and got suspended without pay from the school he used to teach in since he is involved in some illegal fighting scene. Seeing no option, he too wanted to enter the competition.

It takes no genius to figure that in the end it is the brothers who have to face each other literally and figuratively. Nick Nolte is amazing as a regretful father trying to mend his past mistakes. Tom and Edgerton are also believable in conveying their deepest grudges and sadness. Several acting nominations at the Oscar is waiting for this film.

The first half is very effective for building up the tension in the fighting arena and the fighting is near realistic, although there are less blood on the screen due to the PG-13 rating. Slightly better than The Fighter, Warrior is powerful and disturbing but at the same time; very human.

DRIVE

Directed by: Nicolas Winding Refn
Run time: 100 min

That nameless driver is Ryan Gosling, and like numerous nameless characters in a movie (Won' Bin's The Man from Nowhere and Clint Eastwood's Spaghetti Western trilogy has precede it) he is a quiet loner that can burst into violence in matter of seconds.

Drive is not your usual car chase movie filled with sugary hip hop music, instead it has a European feel of things seeping slowly waiting to explode. The driver is a stunt driver in Hollywood who happens to work in a car factory and have an interesting side job. As a driver for robberies that can take the car as fast as possible to hide from the cops.

The driver meet his neighbor, Irene (Carey Mulligan), and her son. Her husband is in prison and soon the driver gladly take the role as boyfriend/father surrogate. Things are getting more complicated as Irene's husband returned and one of his side job ended in tragedy. Now the driver must do whatever it takes to protect himself and the one he loved.

Unlike Fast and Furious franchise or even The Transporter, although it has an eerie and effective action scenes, it doesn't feel like a typical action film. It feels like as if the audience will not know what will happen next and then completely blown away. Refn attention to detail adding a unique edge to this movie, from the Scorpion jacket to toothpick, the nameless driver surely got an attitude no one will forget.

You can feel that this film has the European touch and that is not wrong since Refn is a Danish director famous in art house circles. Refn doesn't even try to outdo Fast and Furious he just present Drive as it is, noir, brutal and honest.

Ultra-violent and ultra-stylish, Drive is clearly one of this year's best not to be missed.