pemuda UMNO reviewes sepet

Syed Zulkifli of Pemuda Umno decides to give a try on reviewing movies, this time honing his skills on the acclaimed SePet by Yasmin Ahmad.

Although the review starts off promisingly, it soon digresses into the dreaded tone of race and religion. Apparently, this reviewer is more concerned about how the "Malay race" is being portrayed in the movie, rather than taking in the story and characterization from the actors.

In one passage from the review:

Sesungguhnya, sesebuah filem memang kuat pengaruhnya dan teramat halus penghantaran maknanya.

Cuma pemaparan jenama Melayu versi Sepet amat menyedihkan penulis. Ia seolah-olah mengia dan menguatkan apa yang pernah dikatakan oleh penulis dan pengkaji barat tentang Melayu dahulukala.

Translation:

Ultimately, this is a film that is very influential and subtle in conveying its meaning.

Only, the depiction of the Malay brand ala Sepet saddens the writer. It is as if condescending and strengthens the earlier analysis from Western writers and researches regarding the Malay race.

Please read the entire review (in Malay language) to gain better context.

The point here is... political parties (and race based ones at that) should not be criticizing movies from a racial standpoint, because that was not the intention of the film at all. All the story teller wants to say is written in the story line, and there should not be any "racial analysis" on which race is superior, which race was portrayed wrongly, which race was not given enough air time, or if the audience had to rely on subtitles for half of the movie.

Pray tell, Pemuda Umno, where would you find a chinese family that speaks malay 24/7?

The clincher in the review comes in the form of this statement.

Penulis bertambah sedih apabila tidak ada satu watak Melayu pun yang boleh penulis banggakan di dalam filem ini. Apakah agaknya persepsi masyarakat antarabangsa terhadap bangsa Melayu setelah menonton filem ini?

Translation:

The writer is further saddened when there is not even one Malay character that he can be proud of in this film. What would be the international community's perception toward the Malay race after watching this film?

If Pemuda Umno is in fact so concerned about this point, then maybe they have forgotten or chose to ignore the fact that the film was indeed penned and directed by a Malay director, Yasmin Ahmad. Furthermore, the main character in the movie is Orked, the feisty Malay girl who so happened managed to fall in love with a Chinese boy, albeit him being an illegal VCD peddler who impregnated a gang leader's sister.

Suka seks, berfoya-foya, keistimewaan tidak adil dan malas adalah jenama Melayu versi Sepet yang diketengahkan ke mata dunia. Bilakah kali terakhir anda menonton filem Melayu dan berbangga menjadi orang Melayu?

Translation:

Free sex, flirtation, and the unfairness and laziness of the Malay brand is the version that Sepet portrays to the world. When was the last time you saw a Malay film and was proud to be a Malay?

I believe that in the end, the reviewer has lost the plot. A story is a story, nothing more. It is not compulsary to make a film that merely praises a particular so-called superior race. In fact, gauging from audience reactions, this film has managed to strengthen National Unity instead of weakening it.

Or maybe, sensing that true unity is about to happen, Pemuda Umno has to step in to stir the racial broth again, fanning flames within the Malay community, urging them to forget about the happy family and start thinking about Ketuanan Melayu, ultimately reducing Malaysia into a single-race community of Malays?