Yasmin Ahmad is something of an anomaly in
Malaysian cinema where most films seem to fall into two very distinct camps
– crass commercial fare directed primarily by the Malays and arty static
box office poison directed usually by members of the Chinese community. The
trilogy of Orked films directed by Yasmin straddles these two camps with
its slow quiet reflective narratives that are amusing, poignant, romantic
but above all optimistically humanistic in their depiction of the multicultural
Malaysian society. And they do quite well at the box office. At a time when
there is a widening global antagonism and distrust between the Islamic world
and the Western world, Mukhsin is a perfect oasis of needed sanity in which
Islamic culture is given an immensely normal, gentle and humane face. Whether
this was the main intent of the director isn’t clear to me since this is
not so much the gist of the film but what surrounds it, what permeates it,
what gives the film a powerful underlying resonance. Yet I don’t think this
message is primarily meant for outside consumption, but is in fact directed
at her fellow Muslim countrymen. There has been a growing rift between the
Muslim majority in Malaysia and the large Chinese and Indian communities
due to some Muslims pushing for laws and customs that more reflect a conservative
interpretation of the Koran – and Yasmin appears to be quietly crying out
for a return to their liberal tradition of tolerance in which a girl and
her mother can dance together in the rain, women can attend a soccer game
(something which a recent Iranian film pointed out can not happen there)
and a boy and girl can fly a kite together.
This is the third film in the Orked trilogy – the other two being the wonderful
Sepet and Gubra – but this one goes back in time to 1993 when Orked was 10
years old and living in a small village called Kuala Selangor. This is the
story of her first crush. Orked (Sharifah Aryana) is a no nonsense little
tom boy who prefers playing rough with the boys to being with the girls.
Her mom (Sharifah Aleya – real life sister of Aryana) and dad (Irwan Iskandar)
are extremely indulgent of their little girl and the family along with their
maid (Adibah Noor) are as close knit and lovable as a nest of chipmunks.
During a school holiday, the 12-year old Mukhsin (Mohd Syafie Naswip) comes
to the village to stay with his old housekeeper since his parents have split
up. After Orked passes his test of toughness, he allows her to join the boy’s
games and the two become fast friends over the lazy warm days and cicada
filled nights that follow. Scenes slowly melt into one another with poetic
flashes of home life, friendship and faith on display – dancing, riding a
bike, reciting the Koran and flying a kite are lovely moments of harmony
and beauty. Very little of any dramatic purpose takes place in the film –
it is just a nostalgic look back at innocence when somehow the world seemed
so much simpler and kinder. It is a wonderful film that very quietly grabs
hold of your emotions and is only weakened by an unnecessary side story involving
Mukhsin’s older angry brother. When I took this film out at the Viewing Room
in Pusan, a fellow who I had met a few days previously saw what my film choice
was and just said “Mukhsin! God I love that film”. And now so do I.
Written Up Nov 2007
