Opening Day: 5 November 2009

Synopsis:

In Minangkabau, West Sumatera, Yuda a student of Silat Harimau is in the final preparations to begin his "Merantau" a time honoured tradition that will see him leave the comforts of his village behind to make a name for himself in the bustling city of Jakarta. Arriving in the city alone and homeless within his first night, a chance encounter leads to Yuda defending the orphaned Astri from becoming the latest victim of a European human trafficking ring led by the wildly psychotic Ratger. Forced to go on the run with Astri and her younger brother Adit, Yuda's introduction to the city is a baptism of fire as all the pimps and gangsters that inhabit the night hound the streets chasing their every step.

Movie Review:

If a movie can be judged by its poster, then Merantau would be it. At first glance of the poster, it looks to be the kind that insults the intelligence of serious cineastes but will likely bowl over any Ah Lian date.

I was right.

No doubt, Merantau will continue the winning streak of Asian action flicks and likely attain the cult status bestowed upon predecessors like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Ong Bak. However, it neither matches up to the former in subtlety nor the latter in manic action and dark wit. For an Asian who grew up on films from the halcyon days of Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee, I remain unfazed by what Merantau has to offer.

The movie will likely find crossover success in the West. Like those films mentioned, it has Asian mysticism and exotic locales which have long intrigued and captured the imagination of countless Westerners. The premise here is based on the traditional custom of "Merantau", whereby a rural adolescent male, at the cusp of adulthood, has to journey to the city to seek his path of enlightenment.

Although this is a fascinating premise, the movie's narrative trajectory is awfully simple-minded and its characters are stereotypical. There are the righteous hero who takes it upon himself to save hapless folks, a foreign baddie with a cruel sense of humour and kinky fetish and the requisite damsel-in-distress who is obviously a calculated plot device to milk tears.

Iko Uwais, who plays the naive but righteous country bumpkin, Yuda, is a revelation. He is both likeable and fun, even though he isn't given much emoting to do in a limited script. He is at his best when prancing about, dispensing his unique brand of street justice to the villains. Mads Koudal, who plays the villain Ratger, is horribly miscast and unconvincing. Despite his best attempts at villainy, his goody two-shoes demeanour is at odds with his character. The overall effect of his performance is unnatural and undesirably goofy. This is a waste considering Ratger has some wicked lines. Where Merantau truly falters is its uneven tone. It wavers between high camp and soppy melodrama and never finds a firm footing by the end. As such, I didn't know whether to take it lightly like fizzy soda, or seriously like my MINDEF notifications.

Also, the urban setting in Jakarta isn't fully milked for what it's worth. One wishes the director had incorporated the city's cultural identities or attractions in the movie. This was something that Ong Bak cleverly weaved into its story. Remember the scene involving a tuk-tuk chase in downtown Bangkok? Despite its shortcomings, Merantau has a nice bit of social commentary about the inevitable corruption of the hillbilly that isn't wholly unpredictable. But the movie only truly comes alive during the energetic action sequences, which are sometimes hilarious.

The choreography, as with other Asian martial arts flicks, is top notch and is sure to conjure "oohs" and "aahs" from the audience, especially those who have not had a regular diet of such films. Its stunning set pieces include a bloody showdown in a lift and a motorcycle chase in a back alley that culminates in a hilarious tug-of-war with a face towel. It's little wonder that Merantau caused such a stir when it was shown at the Fantastic Fest at Austin, Texas earlier this year. Even though the action scenes are expertly choreographed, they are familiar and seem to be merely riffs of other action films. The laugh-out-loud moments of altercation we've been accustomed to in Jackie Chan's and Bruce Lee's classic potboilers are few and far here.

Going into Merantau, you shouldn't expect much of originality and a story. Just check your brain at the door and kick back. With that mindset, you're more able to enjoy it.

Movie Rating:



(Despite some laudable action scenes, Merantau is largely a paint-by-numbers affair with weak villains and a banal plot we’ve seen in countless action flicks)

Review by Adrian Sim