For those of you who are not in Malaysia, it is important to give you a background of what the local film scene is like. This is written from a regular audience/citizen's point of view, so I could be wrong.
From my understanding and observation, it is the independent films that draw diverse crowds, with little marketing and funding as compared to officially funded projects. This is so because generally, the standard to storytelling is better expresssed in the independent scene.
Rarely do indie films make it to the silver screen for commercial screenings, and Sepet is one of the first to make it. So... there are two ways to write this review. 1) In comparison to other Malaysian films to date, 2) Film as film, period, without any other contextual bindings.
1) It is a very good film. It is among the best film to be made in the last 20 years or so, perhaps, in Malaysian cinema. If there is one film that quite accurately gives viewers a taste of what Malaysian village/town lifestyle is like, Sepet is the movie to go. It is not so much captured in forced dialogue, or marketing of typical trademark Malaysian structures, but rather in the subtleties that are made obvious, like slangs, choice of words, bla bla bla.
2) Film as film, it still is a very good film. I have qualms about how the film is cut in some scenes, and the editing is choppy at best, but that is in no way a turn-off point for viewers. The scenes where I cringed because of technical messups were few, and the scenes where I gazed at the screen in awe were plenty.
The story is good. Interracial relationships is a common issue in Malaysia, and it is good to see it discussed widely. The acting is fairly good, and the songs selected to accompany the film does well to boost the film's quality.
This is by no means what Schindler's List is to the Jews, or Braveheart to the Scots, but it is certainly a big boost for Malaysian cinema. Watch it if you can.
7.5/10
