the much talked about, highly anticipated and most awaited Malay film of the year, Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa (HMM) has finally been released. I don't normally watch Malay movies in the cinemas for I feel that it's a waste of money. It's not that I don't support the local movie scene but some movies for example Kembar Siang (tengok trailer pun rasa benci, ok?), Senario chain of movies, Cuti-cuti Cinta, Ratu The Movie and the like just failed to grab my attention. However, there are a few movies that are exceptional like Puteri Gunung Ledang, Cinta, Cicak Man, and a few others that I don't mind paying to watch.
Since HMM has just been released, I thought that it's gonna be very difficult to get tickets, especially on a Saturday. The thing about watching movies is that, sometimes after you read the review(s) in the newspaper or online, you tend to get misled or influenced by the review, be it good or bad. There was a review on HMM in Saturday's The Star newspaper and after reading it, hubby and I thought that the movie is just so so. We have nothing to do on Saturday night so we decided to go out for a movie anyway. We left the house at almost 9pm and I suggested to go to Pavilion since it's near and in the event that there are no available tickets, at least we can hang around the area and have a leisurely walk at Bukit Bintang.
When we arrived, the queue was very long, no surprise there. It was, after all, Saturday night. We were contemplating on a few movies like World Invasion: Battle Los Angeles, HMM and Rango. At one point, hubby even suggested that we watch Mars Needs Moms. I say, we buy the dvd for that movie. But of course, HMM is on our top priority list. There was one show at 10.15pm and by the time we got to the counter, it was already 10.05pm. We thought nowhere in hell we're gonna get tickets and even if we do, it'll be the front row but luck was on our side as we managed to get seats in the middle row, row G. These must be the ones who reserved but failed to collect their tickets. So whaddaya know, good seats and a movie that's on top of our list.
So what do I think about HMM? The movie and the effort is commendable and I must say that the KRU brothers deserve some credit for producing such a movie. So the CGI bit may not make your eyes pop or go in awe with amazement (as I think some parts are blurry and some part do look unreal) but I think it is a great effort. Heck, it took them 2 years+ to complete the movie! As for the casts, it made me wonder, why Stephen Rahman-Hughes? Where are the real Malay actors? I guess none of our actors fit the criteria, huh? Not that Stephen Rahman-Hughes is not good (though his Malay sounds like a Mat Salleh!) but it would be nice to see a pure Malay actor to play the part. As for Ummi Nazeera, she's ok I guess but there's just something about her that makes it look like it's so hard for her to open her mouth. Remember back in school when our teachers used to ask us, "ada emas ke dalam mulut? tak boleh nak buka mulut ke?" I wish I could ask her that! hahaha.
Overall, to say the movie is great may be overrating it but I can safely say that it's good. Coming from young, local producers and director, this movie definitely deserves credit. I believe the KRU brothers can go really far and I wish to see more good and interesting (and worth watching and paying) Malay films. I say give them a chance and at least I am doing my bit by supporting the local movie industry, right? Don't listen to what others say, don't really believe what you read unless and until you have watched it yourself and be your own judge.
Since HMM has just been released, I thought that it's gonna be very difficult to get tickets, especially on a Saturday. The thing about watching movies is that, sometimes after you read the review(s) in the newspaper or online, you tend to get misled or influenced by the review, be it good or bad. There was a review on HMM in Saturday's The Star newspaper and after reading it, hubby and I thought that the movie is just so so. We have nothing to do on Saturday night so we decided to go out for a movie anyway. We left the house at almost 9pm and I suggested to go to Pavilion since it's near and in the event that there are no available tickets, at least we can hang around the area and have a leisurely walk at Bukit Bintang.
When we arrived, the queue was very long, no surprise there. It was, after all, Saturday night. We were contemplating on a few movies like World Invasion: Battle Los Angeles, HMM and Rango. At one point, hubby even suggested that we watch Mars Needs Moms. I say, we buy the dvd for that movie. But of course, HMM is on our top priority list. There was one show at 10.15pm and by the time we got to the counter, it was already 10.05pm. We thought nowhere in hell we're gonna get tickets and even if we do, it'll be the front row but luck was on our side as we managed to get seats in the middle row, row G. These must be the ones who reserved but failed to collect their tickets. So whaddaya know, good seats and a movie that's on top of our list.
So what do I think about HMM? The movie and the effort is commendable and I must say that the KRU brothers deserve some credit for producing such a movie. So the CGI bit may not make your eyes pop or go in awe with amazement (as I think some parts are blurry and some part do look unreal) but I think it is a great effort. Heck, it took them 2 years+ to complete the movie! As for the casts, it made me wonder, why Stephen Rahman-Hughes? Where are the real Malay actors? I guess none of our actors fit the criteria, huh? Not that Stephen Rahman-Hughes is not good (though his Malay sounds like a Mat Salleh!) but it would be nice to see a pure Malay actor to play the part. As for Ummi Nazeera, she's ok I guess but there's just something about her that makes it look like it's so hard for her to open her mouth. Remember back in school when our teachers used to ask us, "ada emas ke dalam mulut? tak boleh nak buka mulut ke?" I wish I could ask her that! hahaha.
Overall, to say the movie is great may be overrating it but I can safely say that it's good. Coming from young, local producers and director, this movie definitely deserves credit. I believe the KRU brothers can go really far and I wish to see more good and interesting (and worth watching and paying) Malay films. I say give them a chance and at least I am doing my bit by supporting the local movie industry, right? Don't listen to what others say, don't really believe what you read unless and until you have watched it yourself and be your own judge.
2 comments:
oho..izyan!
i pon nak pegi tgk HMM tu!
tapi tak berkesempatan n takde geng! ;p
when i read ur comment ni..i should watch sendirik laa..
yes, sila tengok sendiri and judge. ada kawan i di facebook, status dia cakap HMM x best langsung, jalan cerita dia x faham, sampai dia half way, kuar panggung ok. tu i fikir, that bad ke? maka jangan terpengaruh sangat dengan komen atau review orang lain. ;)
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