Think “Ip Man”, “Braveheart”, or even “Top Gun“: movies that contained nationalistic or patriotic themes with a message that was occasionally delivered with the subtlety of a freight train – but good films, nonetheless.
“Mat Kilau: Kebangkitan Pahlawan” is Malaysia’s latest contribution to this genre. Despite its message being very much on the nose, it must have struck a chord with local audiences, given how it has raked in RM11 million in three days post-release.
Set in 1890s Pahang, where the British colonial administration has tightened its grip over the land and its people, the titular Mat Kilau (Adi Putra) and his band of freedom fighters bravely rise up and take arms against the villainous Captain Syers (Geoff Andre Feyaerts).
“Mat Kilau” was directed by Syamsul Yusof, who previously worked on the “KL Gangster” franchise, making this his first foray into the historical genre.
Now, the thing about period films is that it’s common for storytellers to stray away from accuracy to spice up the narrative. This is certainly the case here – indeed, “Mat Kilau” opens with a disclaimer that, while based on a historical figure, it depicts fictionalised events.
This, of course, is hardly unprecedented. “Ip Man” took creative liberties with its main character’s life story, with its iconic brawl involving 10 karate practitioners being purely fictitious.
“Mat Kilau” is certainly no biopic aiming to inform audiences of the life of its eponymous character – the entirety of the film builds up and charges towards the climactic clash between him and the British.
In fact, it feels too fast-paced at times, with little breathing room between scenes that transition rather abruptly, with little to no cohesiveness.
The pacing being what it is, little time is given for character development; and, as a result, the audience does not get to know the players all that much.
Even Mat Kilau, the main guy, ends up coming off as a shallow dude driven by nothing but patriotism. This is a shame given that Adi Putra has shown in previous works that he is a capable performer, although he certainly does his best with what little he has to work with.
The fight scenes are the highlight of the film, and while the choreography is certainly interesting, the cinematography is less satisfying.
With the camera leaping all over the place, it is hard to tell what on earth is going on, and who is doing what during each conflict.
This issue is particularly exacerbated during a night-time scene when visibility is already low, and yet the camera rushes about like a spooked cat. Perhaps Syamsul could have done his actors a service by pulling it back and letting the audience see where each punch is landing.
Not helping matters is the fact that the British and their allies behave like over-the-top villains, blowing up villages with artillery, murdering pregnant women, and shooting civilians at random.
There’s no mistaking that the British colonised Malaysia for their own selfish reasons, but the film depicts them as moustache-twirling baddies.
Even their lines are so comically evil that they come off as a parody. “All of you will be our slaves!” one barks. “Do you know how many Malays I have killed with this gun?” another harrumphs.
These caricatures are a symptom of the biggest problem with “Mat Kilau”: that of the script. The characters don’t talk like human beings and behave more like robots.
And given that the events unfold in the late 19th century, it is very jarring when some of them speak in a 21st-century fashion – oftentimes operatically loud.
Furthermore, the movie gets heavy-handed, with characters dropping lines about patriotism, honour and sacrifice every few minutes. Dear “Mat Kilau”, your audience gets it – you don’t have to keep smacking them on the head to get your message across.
All in all, this film may have captured the hearts of some Malaysians, but having a script doctor at hand would certainly have helped cement it as a decent piece of cinema.
‘Mat Kilau: Kebangkitan Pahlawan’ is playing in cinemas nationwide.
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