Directed by: Ifa Isfansyah
Starring: Ihsan Tarore, Alex Komang, Dewi Irawan.
From rags to riches, a very generic but interesting template. Each country has its own rags to riches story. This time it is Iwan Setyawan's turn who told his story from the city of apple (Malang) to the big apple (New York). Iwan wrote a book (with the same title) about his own experience; born in a poor family but struggle to study and finally able to work in New York.
His family might be poor but his parents are the one that makes Iwan like this today. The good and the bad, ups and down of the family is the centerpiece of the story. The film told the story of Iwan since his childhood until adult time. He had a modest childhood but a smart brain. His brain is the one that makes him successful.
At first I am afraid that the point of this film is about materialism or being cool since New York is the embodiment of success and glamor, but it turns out that it is about family and the values within, something which resonate to Indonesians.
Kudos to production value of this film, from depicting tiny tidbits like Indonesia's money in the 80s, drive in theater that shows a classic Indonesian film of the 90s, into Times Square in 2001 that you can tell that the running text in one of the building tells about President Bush. I like those tiny attention to details. However one minor mistake is quite annoying, a Lord of the Rings: Return of the King poster in a subway on a scene set in 2001. It feels out of time.
Another clever thing is how establishing shot of New York (I suspect the production team only had less than a week to shoot in the big apple. Thus maximizing using famous landmarks in New York) with adult Iwan walking from here to there, helps to make the film look grand.
Overall the story is nice and family friendly, it tells the viewers that family is above money. This one proves that Ifa Isfansyah is a good director since I enjoy Sang Penari.
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