Nur Kasih The Movie

The whole family went to watch the much anticipated Nur Kasih the movie on 20th May 2011. For those interested, check out the trailer below.

I have separated the review into pros and cons. Read below: [SPOILER ALERT]:

Pros

1. Excellent cinematography. Some scenes, like the one at the cemetery, had a superb angle. We were gobsmacked!
2. Superb acting
3. Location of certain scenes was brilliant, especially the ones shot overseas (the one in Petra, Jordan)
4. Well defined plot with sub-plots that gave the whole movie an enjoyable depth
5. All characters had depth and were colourful characters (I guess that was inherited from the TV series, I am comparing this to the recently released Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa where the characters and plot were too simple)
6. Brilliant Islamic messaging that highlights modern stereotypes.
   • This is the scene where Adam invited an Ustaz to the rehab center that he owns for talk on a certain religious topic. The Ustaz refused to proceed with the talk as he said the audience (the boys and girls in the rehab) were not dressed appropriately and lack manners. Adam said there’s no point if we enforced manners and Islamic dressing if we do not help them with their inner understanding on the religion, rather than focusing on the facade. The Ustaz did not agree and he left.
   • Another is when the boss of a certain firm wanted to engage Nur Amina to design a night club (she’s an architect). Amina refused to accept the job offer as she said it’s against her principles to be involved in something that is not permitted in Islam (haram activities). The boss lashed back at her saying she sounded ridiculous, like somebody from a village, and with this mindset she could never progress in this modern world. He also said she is not being thankful as he said he could have given the job to anybody.

Cons

1. I know it’s a love story, but towards the end, when there was a small fighting scene involving Aidil and some gangsters. I was half hoping that Aidil would have some fighting skills, silat or anything of the sort.
2. Some of the scenes might be a bit overly dramatic, especially about how Adam had dreams of terrorist attacks in the Middle East. A stereotype, perhaps?
3. Towards the ending, where they showed Aidil and Adam growing old by using pictures of their future achievements, it was too short and it doesn’t give the audience a full grasp of how successful they became. Furthermore, the scene of the “old” Adam and Aidil with their kids showed their kampung house unchanged. To show that the timeline is now 30+ years in the future, they should have made the kampung house look older and the surroundings change (perhaps more buildings around it?)

Nur Kasih at Petra

All in all, I have to admit that this is by far the finest Malay (Islamic themed) love story that I’ve seen in the local scene. Good job to the director and the crew. The director, Khabir Bhatia, definitely has his own magical touch when it comes to cinematography. He previously worked on the TV series for Nur Kasih and that was a piece of art as well. I hope to see more brilliant movies from him in the future.

Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa

Finally, the long awaited Malaysian movie of the year was released a few days ago. For those who haven’t heard of this movie, check out the trailer below. Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa is based loosely on the actual Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa that written in the 16th Century (historians are still unsure exactly when it was written).

I went to see it with my family a few days ago and this is by far the best action-epic movie that a Malaysian producer has ever made. It was amazing. The cast, the fighting scenes and the special effects.

Anyway, here are my reviews [SPOILER ALERT]:

• Very good action scene. Fast paced, realistic fighting choreography and impressive show of epic battles
• Interesting plot with sub-stories, although they could improve by providing more depth on other characters
• Excellent casting. They got the perfect hero, and the heroin
• Brilliant display of culture and dressing of the time (~2nd Century CE)
• Beautifully written classic Malay language, especially the poems, absolute classic
• Not so brilliant choice of music, they should have created a proper theme song
• The ending was a bit rush, you would agree if you had watched it. They could use a few more scenes to show what happened after the battle. For example, they could use a scene to show Merong’s body brought back to his village and Embok crying over his body, while putting her hand on her tummy (she was pregnant), saying “zuriat-zuriat mu akan berlansung dari kandunganku and jadilah mereka raja-raja yang teragung di tanah ini” (English: your descendants would live on from my womb and they would be great kings of this land). Yes, that was my modest attempt at classic Malay.

All in all, it was a great effort by KRU Studios. I felt really proud watching it. Malaysian production has come a long way, and this movie is definitely gonna make it internationally. They have room for improvement, and I hope from here onwards we’ll be creating even bigger and better epic movies!

1. You need to call Unifi (1300881222) to inform them you want to sign up. They’ll ask you which plan and all other details. They’ll then schedule a time for the Unifi guys to come to your house to set up
2. You need to close your Streamyx account. From a user point of view, this is plain stupid. A user simply doesn’t care if Unifi and Streamyx are 2 different business units in TM, because a user simply sees TM as 1 company.  Anyway, I had to go a nearby TM Point to fill in a form to close my account. Thank god the whole closing down experience was fast and smooth.
3. A few days later the Unifi guys came to my house. They arrived on-the-dot as promised at 9:30AM and they were very friendly. The agreed SLA from TM is that the installation would take less than 6 hours (my guess is that they’re playing it safe), but turns out the actual installation took about 2 hours+. The Unifi guys had to pull another cable from the TM post outside my house and wire it directly to where I want to set up the Unifi box.

The unifi package came with 4 devices (photo below)

The tall grey device on the left is the TV Set Up box. It gives you 21 IPTV channels and TV-On-Demand (TVOD).  The small white box with 2 antennas is the wireless router, and the white box on the right is the modem. A cordless phone (black) comes with the package too. All these 4 devices and the installation process were free-of-charge from TM. Awesome.

The Unifi guys did everything. The wireless network was set up with all the appropriate security settings. They even helped me perform a speed test which the results was more than pleasing:

Yup, that’s right, I signed up for the 5Mbps plan but my actual speed is 6.4Mbps! Now my internet at home is faster than what I have at work! Youtube videos loading the point the page loads, and I was able to download a 1GB file for around 1 hour! That’s how fast it is! TM definitely got it right this time around. Well done TM!

Yes, you’re seeing it right. It’s a stuffed soft toy of faeces, human excrement, or to be blunt, shit.

I cannot see how could such a disgusting object be portrayed as ‘cute’ and ‘cuddly’. It’s absolutely disgusting.

KUALA KANGSAR: The Sultan of Perak Sultan Azlan Shah expressed regret at the actions of certain individuals and groups who disgraced their own country at international forums.

This, he said, gave an opportunity to outside powers to interfere in the internal affairs of the country.

“I call on the people to use their wisdom for the sake of the nation and not to be influenced by their emotion based on desire which would eventually be to the detriment of the country,” he said at the investiture and pledging of loyalty ceremony in conjunction with his 82nd birthday at Istana Iskandariah here yesterday.

Sultan Azlan Shah noted that all members, be it in Parliament or the state assembly, should respect the sanctity of the august House.

“Those who are called the Yang Berhormat should show exemplary behaviour,” he said.

“It is embarrassing that proceedings in the august House are done in an environment filled with shouts and abuses,” said Sultan Azlan Shah.

“It is also an insult to the assembly if members bring placards with degrading words and hurl abuse at each other,” he added.

At the same event, Raja Muda of Perak Raja Dr Nazrin Shah said elements of ill-mannered behaviour by people in high positions and professions were not happening on the streets or in markets but in places that should be regarded highly and respected.

Dr Nazrin said courtesy was the key factor that determines the rise and fall of a country and its leaders.

“Politeness plays an important role in shaping a society let alone a prosperous and steady country,” he said.

Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir said that the Barisan Nasional government would do its best to maintain peace and harmony in the state while continuing with its development.

Dr Zambry noted that he had during the March 31 state assembly, called on Pakatan Rakyat state assemblymen not to jeopardise the people’s welfare with their never-ending politicking.

At the investiture ceremony Sul­tan of Johor Sultan Ibrahim Ismail Almarhum Sultan Iskandar headed the list of 912 people conferred with awards and medals in conjunction with Sultan Azlan Shah’s birthday.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was conferred the Darjah Kebesaran Seri Paduka Sultan Azlan Shah Perak Yang Teramat Dimulia (SPSA) which carries the title Datuk Seri Diraja.

No Pakatan state assemblymen were present during the ceremony.

When contacted, state DAP chairman and Sitiawan assemblyman Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham said the Pakatan state assemblymen did not receive any invitations to the ceremony.

“We have been waiting for the invitations but none of us received any,” he said.

State secretary Datuk Seri Dr Abdul Rahman Hashim could not be reached to verify Ngeh’s claim.

P1's Potong Advert

Apparently a group of people are not happy with P1′s new “potong” advert and have lodge a complaint with the Communications and Multimedia Content Forum of Malaysia (CMCF). Below is the news article from New Straits Times.

PUTRAJAYA: The popular potong advertisement by P1 Wimax may land the advertiser in trouble.
Communications and Multimedia Content Forum of Malaysia (CMCF) said it was scrutinising the advertisement aired on television and radio.

“We are looking into it,” said CMCF executive director Mohd Mustaffa Fazil Mohd Abdan.

While refusing to reveal the number of complaints received, he said CMCF would act against such an advertisement, including action like “taking it down”.

“Under our Content Code, if there is a breach and the advertisement is found to be offensive, we can remove it,” he said.

CMCF is empowered to issue a written reprimand and impose a fine of not more than RM50,000 for offensive advertisements.

CMCF can also refer the offending party to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) as the umbrella regulatory body for further action.

The P1 Wimax broadband advertisement created an uproar over its liberal use of the word potong (cut).

Although the advertisement could be a tongue-in-cheek suggestion for viewers and listeners to “cut the wires” and “cut the hidden charges”, members of parliament are calling for the Information, Communications and Culture Ministry to pull the plug on it.

Datuk Mohamad Aziz (BN-Sri Gading) had previously said in Parliament that potong somehow brings a vulgar connotation for some people because it is a colloquial way of referring to circumcision.

Meanwhile, Deputy Information, Communications and Culture Minister Senator Heng Seai Kie said the advertisement had been reviewed by the National Censorship Board even before it was aired. She said it had passed the strict censorship code imposed by the board.