Malaysian director Amanda Nell Eu’s debut about a young girl discovering the truth behind her rebellious nature bristles with supernatural energy thanks to a tremendous young cast
here are some arresting images and bright performances in this bristling debut feature from Malaysian film-maker Amanda Nell Eu, who heads off into a jungle of the mind for a supernatural-realist drama and coming-of-age chiller about the female body and sexuality, with hints of Brian De Palma, David Cronenberg and Apichatpong Weerasethakul.
The scene is a Muslim school for girls in Malaysia whose pupils are required to submit to conservative dress and attitudes; in the English language class, they are presented with sentences such as: “The father goes to work. The mother cooks at home.
The crisis arrives, of course, in a tense moment as Zaffan realises that her body is changing ahead of everyone else. They register her differentness at first as a kind of privilege; she is excused prayers, a development which gradually turns into ostracisation and bullying from her former mate Farah. But wait. Something is indeed happening to Zaffan’s body — an unexpected kind of otherness, rage, cunning and strength.
This movie’s strength could also be its weakness: the relationship between the metaphorical and the literal. The first time we see Zaffan’s eyes ablaze, the first time we see her body unambiguously and scarily turn into something monstrous, there is a kind of thrill – we have apparently moved into a new dimension of anxiety and even horror. But in the next scene, she is back to normal and there appears to be no narrative consequence to what we have just seen.
After all, no matter how reactionary and misogyny-complicit the authorities are in their approach to Zaffan, they are not being irrational exactly; she is, after all, becoming am actual monster. Still, the performances the director gets from her young cast are tremendous and it is terrifically shot.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
St George Illawarra coach Anthony Griffin sacked in 7am meetingThe NRL_Dragons have sacked coach Anthony Griffin, effective immediately. NRL 7NEWS
Read more »
Tories preach baby-making and the facts of life – why does it always come back to sex with these oddballs? | John CraceWelcome to the National Conservativism conference, a coming together of ideologies for the ideologically challenged
Read more »
Vice is going bankrupt, BuzzFeed News is dead. What does it mean? | Margaret SullivanWhen it comes to news in the digital age, which journalism model will work?
Read more »
'Breaks your heart': PM's emotional message over school bus crashPrime Minister Anthony Albanese has issued a heartfelt message to the primary school children injured in a horror crash between a bus and truck in Victoria.
Read more »
The long and short of investing in lithiumAfter a horror five months, lithium prices are beginning to recover. But experts warn investors to think twice about rushing in.
Read more »
Safety issues raised at Forrest’s $3b wind farmSquadron Energy, Andrew Forrest’s private investment company, will look into safety issues as part of a project review at the $3 billion Clarke Creek wind farm in central Queensland.
Read more »