NOVEMBER 14 — As someone who keeps a close eye on the slate of new releases hitting Malaysian cinemas every single week, I can’t help but notice how strange little patterns or shared themes sometimes emerge out of nowhere.

Some weeks it’s an unexpected wave of low budget horror flicks, other weeks it’s a sudden glut of tear-jerking family dramas.

Last week, however, brought about a coincidence so oddly specific it practically demands to be pointed out.

Not one, not two, but three Malay-language movies found themselves competing against each other in local cineplexes: Baga, Sayang Sayang, and the box-office juggernaut that is Kudrat 1968: High Council.

And the pattern doesn’t stop there. For whatever cosmic reason, Amir Ahnaf appears in all three films, speaking in the Terengganu dialect in every single one of them, with two of those titles, Baga and Sayang Sayang even specifically set in Terengganu!

Now, if that’s not a pattern, then I honestly don’t know what else is.

Even more encouragingly for fans of local cinema, all three films are genuinely worth your time and hard earned ringgit, especially if exploring the breadth of what Malaysian filmmaking has to offer is your thing.

Since Baga and Sayang Sayang are the smaller, more vulnerable releases that tend to get lost in the commercial shuffle, and are already facing severely reduced screening times despite only entering their second week in cinemas, I’ll shine the spotlight on these two first, and save my thoughts on Kudrat (both the series and the movie) for another day.

Baga

Helmed by first time feature director Ariff Zulkarnain (of the series One Cent Thief and Good Boys Go To Heaven fame), Baga, released locally with the subtitle Esok Untuk Siapa, is, while clearly not without its flaws, a pretty solid and confident debut.

At its core, it’s a refreshing slice of rural, small-time crime thriller sprinkled with a generous dash of social realism.

What works best here is how Ariff gives the socio-political realities of his characters’ impoverished coastal lives just enough screen time to breathe, allowing us to understand the quiet desperation pushing them toward bad decisions. And boy, those are truly, truly, bad decisions!

Truth be told, I found myself far more invested in the grounded social realism and the sweet yet tragic romance between young lovers Jani (Amir Ahnaf) and Melur (Amirah Razak, delivering a genuinely eye-catching performance) than in the actual crime drama mechanics.

Why? Because the sheer amount of pure coincidence required to keep the crime plot moving forward might stretch credibility a little too far for some viewers.

Still, there is more than enough raw energy and freshness here, helped immensely by some very strong acting, even from the supporting players (shout out to Cech Adrea’s excellent work as Ajih!), coupled with a keen directorial eye for coastal scenery and framing, to mark Baga as a very promising feature debut from a very promising young Malaysian filmmaker.

It’s not quite Songlap, sure, but it’s gritty, heartfelt, and easily worth your time.

Sayang Sayang

Produced by Jin Ong (the acclaimed director of Abang Adik) and written and directed by Taiwanese filmmaker Tang Hsiang-chu, this Malaysia-Taiwan co-production is a work of magic realism that somehow feels even more quintessentially “Malaysian” than probably 60 or 70 per cent of the local films released this year.

Set in a quiet coastal village in Terengganu, the story revolves around three deaf-mute youths who neatly represent the three major races in Malaysia, the Muay Thai-loving Malay girl Mina (Mhia Firdaus, turning in what is surely a star-making performance), the Chinese girl San San (Sasha Tang), and the graceful, dancing Indian boy Ajay (Nandagopall Mohan), and their relationship with their families.

Together, the film approaches its central, unifying symbol, the majestic whale shark, through the distinct perspectives and lived experiences of these three communities sharing the exact same seaside home.

Gorgeously photographed by acclaimed Indian cinematographer Kartik Vijay, Sayang Sayang is a visual feast that washes over you like a warm ocean tide.

Its decidedly artsy, elliptical approach to storytelling might admittedly leave a few mainstream viewers scratching their heads a bit, especially if they are expecting conventional plot beats.

Personally, though, I thought this was a truly beautiful piece of cinema, and I admired just how brave Tang is in trusting his audience enough to tell his story this way.

Sometimes a filmmaker just needs to show things, build an atmosphere, and let viewers feel their way through the emotion as there’s really no need to hold our hands all the time.

If you want to support bold, heartfelt local storytelling before the blockbuster crowds swallow up every remaining hall, do yourself a favour and catch both of these while you still can.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.