beautiful pontianak

A few of my friends have been telling me that I should watch Pontianak HSM II (No. 2), but I had to refrain myself because I hadn't watch the first one. I didn't want to be clueless. Btw, I found out from minamona's blog that HSM is a flower. Oh wow! That's new to me.

Yesterday, I finally found a copy of PHSM (No. 1) among the dusty vcds kept in the drawer. Three quarter into the first cd, suddenly there was a blackout. I wouldn't go into details of this problem, but obviously I got a little bit frustrated. I had to wait until today before I finished the whole movie, and by that I time, I was due to meet PS and Aces at Midvalley for the second installment.

I am impressed with No. 1. Not many Malay films offer interesting outlook in a new dimension and elaborate the depth to such details. I am sure there are flaws but I hardly noticed any (I'm bias when I like something).

In No. 2, a lot of the flashbacks may be a little bit confusing to those who tried to recall No. 1, but lucky me, they're still fresh in my memory. Everything looks very promising until halfway into the movie. The plot is, in my opinion, weak and a little bit off. Too much information to digest. As I watched more, I feel that there is no need for the producer/director to explain the scenes i.e. Meriam's Revenge, The Awakening. To me, it looks like as if they doubt the intelligence of the audience by trying to explain things in writing. If you get it, you get it. If you don't, tough!

I especially like the kuda kepang dances. Beautifully done. It does look real and in fact, I was told that these actually happened during performances. Kena rasuk they say.

All in all, hats off to the director. It's unfair to compare with other movies because different directors have their own ways and interpretation, yet I have to say that PHSM (No 1) has all the right ingredients for best film, even better than Sepet. No 2, however, is slightly behind.

These are good Malay films that I enjoy. I, as always, found that my cheeks are wet from the very beginning. Sad what... I kesian the pontianak. I would seek for revenge too if I were in her position. No way I'm gonna let them loose. I dendam sampai mati. Anyone violate my trust, hurt and betray me, you have been warned!