I want you readers to pay attention to the plot outline describing this film: 'A team of Malaysian footballers struggle and rise through all odds to qualify for the 1980 Moscow Olympics.' The keyword here is struggle. Readers and audiences who know their history will realize that Malaysia boycotted the Moscow Olympics following the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan. Although that knowledge looms with dread over the suspecting audience member throughout the film, I had not imagined what actual feelings went through the minds of the football team the moment they realize they were competing for a Pyrrhic victory. This film, and the obligatory "inspirational speech" that comes with all sports movies, captures that moment quite beautifully.
Chiu Keng Guan's "Ola Bola" is a film that won't just be described as very good solely in Malaysian cinema terms, but also very good, period. This pleasantly surprising underdog soccer/football story by born filmmaker Chiu is blockbuster filmmaking of superlative calibre; about as viable and inspiring as other major Hollywood sports films such as "Hoosiers" and "Rudy", and even better than some entries. This perhaps is the first mainstream local film of our generation to be proud of, proudly showcasing just what our country has to offer alongside the big boys in the global cinema arena.
Yes, it does tick off the sports genre tropes; that speech at the end is a must; but dial it back a notch and think for a while. Those American sports films focused on ragtag underdogs defying all odds and ultimately winning the grand championship. That qualifying match between us and South Korea was the only chance we got in entering a major football/soccer arena, and was sadly blown to hell due to a political boycott. A quick glance at Wikipedia shows that the Malaysian football team had not once qualify for the FIFA World Cup. So the odds are pretty much stacked against us there.
For Malaysian cinema, this is an important film – it comes at a time when there is clear political strife within the country (and it would be a bald-faced lie to ever think otherwise), and racial tensions feared simmering to a boil. It would not be a mistake for the cynical and jaded to proclaim this film a callback to the "good- ol-days", a nostalgia for the days of old where racial unity was prevalent but never paraded. But it is also false not to call this a rally cry for hope – for us to come together as a nation again; it is an unabashedly patriotic film – that wonderfully – does not condescend its audience with saccharine overtones. When things get tough – they really get tough. But the rally cry in the film stands tall and true – "we win together, or we lose together".
Truly - without the slightest ounce of sarcasm and cynicism - Malaysia Boleh.
