Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash (film)

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Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash
IndonesianSeperti Dendam, Rindu Harus Dibayar Tuntas
Directed byEdwin
Screenplay byEdwin
Eka Kurniawan
Based onVengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash by Eka Kurniawan
Produced byMeiske Taurisia
Muhammad Zaidy
StarringMarthino Lio
Ladya Cheryl

Reza Rahadian
Ratu Felisha
CinematographyAkiko Ashizawa
Edited byLee Chatametikool
Music byDave Lumenta
Production
companies
Palari Films
Phoenix Films
E&W Films
Match Factory Productions
Bombero International
Kaninga Pictures
Release date
Running time
114 minutes[1]
CountryIndonesia
LanguageIndonesian

Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash (Indonesian: Seperti Dendam, Rindu Harus Dibayar Tuntas) is a 2021 Indonesian black comedy action drama film directed by Edwin who also co-wrote the screenplay with Eka Kurniawan based on Kurniawan's best-selling book of the same name.[2] The film had its world premiere in August 2021 at the 74th Locarno Film Festival, where it won the top prize of Golden Leopard for Best Film.[3]

Plot[]

Set in the 1980s in a society ruled by machismo, a hibernating "bird" becomes a serious matter. In a life of brutality, the sleeping bird is an allegory for a peaceful and serene life, even when the whole world tries desperately to rouse it.[2][4]

Cast[]

These are the cast members of the film as announced by Palari Films in July 2021:[5]

Production[]

Development[]

In May 2016, Palari Films announced that they had secured the rights to adapt Eka Kurniawan's third novel Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash with Edwin on board to direct alongside collaborators Muhammad Zaidy and Meiske Taurisia as producers.[6] However, as the efforts to adapt the novelproved to be more challenging than expected, Edwin proposed to Palari Films that they pursue another project together while working on the adaptation,[2][7] which turned out to be Laksmi Pamuntjak's 2014 novel The Birdwoman's Palate, leading to Edwin's 2018 feature Aruna & Her Palate.[7]

To raise funds for the film, the film script was submitted to compete in international grant competitions as the production team believed it has an international appeal.[8] In 2016, the script won a US$15,000 grant for winning the Most Promising Project Award at the Asian Project Market held during the 2016 Busan International Film Festival in South Korea.[8][9] In 2018, it received a post-production grant from the post-production lab White Light Post at the Hong Kong Asian Film Financing Forum as well as a co-production grant from the Singapore Film Commission.[10][9] It also received another production grant from Bangkok-based Purin Pictures.[4]

Casting[]

The film marks the return of Edwin's frequent collaborator Ladya Cheryl to the big screen since her last appearance in a feature film in 2012's Postcards from the Zoo, also directed by Edwin. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Edwin said that Cheryl's portrayal of Iteung is inspired by 80's action star Cynthia Rothrock.[11] Singer-songwriter Sal Priadi makes his feature film debut alongside Ratu Felisha and Citra Award winner Reza Rahadian in supporting roles.[12]

Release[]

In July 2021, Variety reported that art house agency The Match Factory has acquired the film's distribution rights and will premiere it at the 74th Locarno Film Festival on August 8, 2021.[13] Palari Films also announced that the film will be screened in September 2021 at the Contemporary World Cinema section of the 46th Toronto International Film Festival.[14]

Reception[]

Writing for Variety, Jay Weissberg wrote that the film "delivers a withering critique of masculinity" while managing to be "enjoyable".[15] However, Weissberg was critical of the screenplay, noting that Edwin and co-writer Kurniawan "cram rather too many meandering plot lines".[15] Also for Variety, Diego Cepeda and Calin Boto called the film "a genre-bending portrayal of an angry impotent young man stuck in the middle of the macho Indonesian Eighties", referring to the film's main character Ajo Kawir and heavy influence of 80's pop culture.[16] Marta Balaga of Cineuropa praised the film's "central romance" between Ajo Kawir and Iteung as "the most fun to watch", singling out Cheryl’s portrayal as Iteung as a stand-out.[17] Similar to Weissberg, Balaga also criticized the film's editing, calling it "very uneven, going from funny to dark to just weird, as if the editing couldn’t keep up with the ongoing brainstorming session".[17]

Awards and nominations[]

Year Award Category Recipient Result Ref.
2021 Locarno Film Festival Golden Leopard for Best Film Edwin Won [18]

References[]

  1. ^ https://tiff.net/events/vengeance-is-mine-all-others-pay-cash
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c JawaPos.com (5 November 2020). "Film 'Seperti Dendam, Rindu Harus Dibayar Tuntas' Siap Tayang 2021". JawaPos.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  3. ^ Kiang, Jessica (14 August 2021). "Golden Leopard Winner 'Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash' Heads Impressive Slate Of Locarno Awards". Variety. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b "Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash —". www.purinpictures.org. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  5. ^ "Palari Films on Twitter". Twitter (in Indonesian). 30 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  6. ^ Maullana, Irfan (10 May 2016). "Seperti Dendam, Rindu Harus Dibayar Tuntas" Diangkat ke Layar Lebar". Kompas.com. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b "Menyatukan perbedaan Indonesia dengan makanan". 28 September 2018. Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b "Usaha Memfilkan Novel Eka Kurniawan". beritagar.id. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b Efendi, Ali Satri (20 February 2020). "Kabar Terbaru Film "Seperti Dendam, Rindu Harus Dibayar Tuntas"". Infoscreening. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  10. ^ "White Light Post". White Light Post.
  11. ^ Roxborough, Scott (6 August 2021). "Indonesian Director Edwin Talks Sex, Violence and Dictatorship in 'Vengeance Is Mine'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  12. ^ "Palari Films on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  13. ^ Barraclough, Leo (1 July 2021). "The Match Factory Acquires Locarno Competition Title 'Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
  14. ^ "Palari Films on Twitter". Twitter (in Indonesian). 30 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  15. ^ Jump up to: a b Weissberg, Jay (10 August 2021). "'Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash' Review: Retro '80s Action Homage Uses Sexual impotence as Social Critique". Variety. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  16. ^ Boto, Diego Cepeda,Calin; Cepeda, Diego; Boto, Calin (11 August 2021). "Edwin Calls for a Revival of Sensitivity With Locarno's 'Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash'". Variety. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  17. ^ Jump up to: a b "Crítica: Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash". Cineuropa - lo mejor del cine europeo (in Spanish). Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  18. ^ Kiang, Jessica (14 August 2021). "Golden Leopard Winner 'Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash' Heads Impressive Slate Of Locarno Award". Variety. Retrieved 14 August 2021.

External links[]

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