The Big Durian (film)
The Big Durian | |
---|---|
Directed by | Amir Muhammad |
Produced by | James Lee Sylvia Tan |
Cinematography | Woo Ming Jin |
Edited by | Terence Raj |
Music by | Hardesh Singh |
Running time | 74 minutes |
Country | Malaysia |
Languages | English Malay |
The Big Durian is a 2003 Malaysian film by Amir Muhammad that combined documentary with fiction. It created history by being the first (and only) Malaysian film to screen at the Sundance Film Festival.[1]
Synopsis[]
On the night of 18 October 1987, a soldier, Prebet Adam ran amok with an M16 in the area of Chow Kit, Kuala Lumpur. Due to the thorny circumstances of the time and place, his amok triggered a citywide panic and rumours of racial riots.
Cast[]
The Big Durian features 23 people: some are actors, while others are expressing their personal opinions. The first group includes Patrick Teoh, Low Ngai Yuen, Jo Kukathas and Rashid Salleh; while the latter include Farish A. Noor, Nam Ron, Anne James and Chacko Vadaketh.
Release[]
The Big Durian screened in over 30 film festivals, including the Singapore International Film Festival and Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival in 2003 (the former being a world premiere) to the Sundance Film Festival, the Hong Kong International Film Festival and the Vancouver International Film Festival in the following year.
Critical response[]
Variety magazine said: "Ambitious, sleek-looking docu examines wide array of ethnic, religious and political divisions in modern Malaysia."[2] The Village Voice said that it is an "impertinent love-letter to the citizens of Kuala Lumpur that does not let them off the hook for their apathy."[3]
See also[]
- Operation Lalang - Prebet Adam amok incident
References[]
- ^ Andrea LeVasseur (2012). "Movie Reviews". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2012-10-21. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
- ^ Review in Variety
- ^ Review in The Village Voice by Dennis Lim
External links[]
- 2003 films
- Malaysian films
- Malaysian documentary films
- Films about freedom of expression
- Films directed by Amir Muhammad
- Malaysian independent films
- 2003 independent films
- Films with screenplays by Amir Muhammad
- 2003 documentary films
- Malaysian film stubs