this movie perfectly encapsulates my own relationship with jakarta and just present day indonesia in general, this very complex love-hate relationship.
i want to leave, tapi kangen sama rumah. i hate what it has become, tapi kenangan-kenangan gw semuanya disini. i feel alone because there's no place for me here, tapi semua orang yang gw peduliin disini. the city is literally killing itself, tapi gw masih gabisa banyangin diri sendiri tinggal di tempat lain. like ever. unfortunately and fortunately, jakarta is home.
this movie shows that kind of feeling perfectly, with each of the 3 characters having to deal with jakartas flaws, but later finding solutions/closure to their problems in one of jakartas strengths. like gia missing new york and struggling with culture shock at jakartas extremely superficial culture and people in an increasingly digital era, and eventually finding peace with it after spending time with the woman she loves and also reliving their past memories together by using jakartas nightlife. indri, after spending so much time and effort in appearing rich, ends up appreciating the simple things again (kerak telor) and finding love with someone she actually has a connection to, beyond just money, sex, and status. and ci surya making use of jakartas prostitution industry to get back at her late husband and his mistress, while also gaining more prespective on sex workers and finding her bravery and confidence back in the process.
and i think that the themes this movie tries to tackle about jakarta at the time, are still relevant/happening today. whether that be our society's obsession with anything western and luxury, over-reliance on our digital devices, the harsh reality of being a working class citizen here, the irony of so many "sinful/morally wrong" industries thriving despite indonesias conservative appearance, and just the disgusting behavior of indonesian men.
the performances here are just phenomenal and absolutely help in carrying the movies emotional core. the cinematography and editing also perfectly capture the vibe and enhances the atmosphere of jakarta at night. the movie itself is just a really accurate representation of jakarta. jakarta is hectic, but also relaxed sometimes. the rich people are fake as fuck, but the working class majority are down to earth and have heart. its so classist, elitist and generally unwelcoming in some places, but totally the opposite in others. you can tell the cast and crew really care about this city and the movie shows that.
sidenote, ci suryas whole arc basically mops the floor with ipar adalah maut and all of its shitty clones in terms of stories about infidelity.
also obviously the elephant in the room, gia and naomis love story which is just so tragic but realistic. this movie definitely deserves the reputation it has, because it is quite literally one of the very few indonesian movies to properly represent a queer couple in a way that isn't downright harmful or exploitative. while their arc in this movie is sad, it still has its cute and tender moments and ends on a bittersweet note.
also im not sure if it was just my website bajakan but the ADR in this movie was not very good. it's noticeable but it doesn't really ruin the experience for me.
this movie perfectly encapsulates my own relationship with jakarta and just present day indonesia in general, this very complex love-hate relationship.
i want to leave, tapi kangen sama rumah. i hate what it has become, tapi kenangan-kenangan gw semuanya disini. i feel alone because there's no place for me here, tapi semua orang yang gw peduliin disini. the city is literally killing itself, tapi gw masih gabisa banyangin diri sendiri tinggal di tempat lain. like ever. unfortunately and fortunately, jakarta is home.
this movie shows that kind of feeling perfectly, with each of the 3 characters having to deal with jakartas flaws, but later finding solutions/closure to their problems in one of jakartas strengths. like gia missing new york and struggling with culture shock at jakartas extremely superficial culture and people in an increasingly digital era, and eventually finding peace with it after spending time with the woman she loves and also reliving their past memories together by using jakartas nightlife. indri, after spending so much time and effort in appearing rich, ends up appreciating the simple things again (kerak telor) and finding love with someone she actually has a connection to, beyond just money, sex, and status. and ci surya making use of jakartas prostitution industry to get back at her late husband and his mistress, while also gaining more prespective on sex workers and finding her bravery and confidence back in the process.
and i think that the themes this movie tries to tackle about jakarta at the time, are still relevant/happening today. whether that be our society's obsession with anything western and luxury, over-reliance on our digital devices, the harsh reality of being a working class citizen here, the irony of so many "sinful/morally wrong" industries thriving despite indonesias conservative appearance, and just the disgusting behavior of indonesian men.
the performances here are just phenomenal and absolutely help in carrying the movies emotional core. the cinematography and editing also perfectly capture the vibe and enhances the atmosphere of jakarta at night. the movie itself is just a really accurate representation of jakarta. jakarta is hectic, but also relaxed sometimes. the rich people are fake as fuck, but the working class majority are down to earth and have heart. its so classist, elitist and generally unwelcoming in some places, but totally the opposite in others. you can tell the cast and crew really care about this city and the movie shows that.
sidenote, ci suryas whole arc basically mops the floor with ipar adalah maut and all of its shitty clones in terms of stories about infidelity.
also obviously the elephant in the room, gia and naomis love story which is just so tragic but realistic. this movie definitely deserves the reputation it has, because it is quite literally one of the very few indonesian movies to properly represent a queer couple in a way that isn't downright harmful or exploitative. while their arc in this movie is sad, it still has its cute and tender moments and ends on a bittersweet note.
also im not sure if it was just my website bajakan but the ADR in this movie was not very good. it's noticeable but it doesn't really ruin the experience for me.
