PETALING JAYA – I have always baulked at using the term Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) as I feel it is more empowering to call them Persons with Unique Abilities, just as the participants at the Unveiling Uniqueness (UU) concert held here on 13 July had proven.

From the first act when the guests were mesmerised by a group of young men playing some exciting instruments that are not run of the mill and combined with generic musical instruments, we knew it was going to be an event to be remembered for many years to come. There was Samuel Ng on the traditional Chinese instrument Guzheng, Maxx Lim playing the Sarawak Sape, Ilyas Wong on the Chinese Drum, Wan Zareef thumping the Djembe, Shafic switching between the Australian Aboriginal instrument the Didgeridoo and the Malay Gendang, Jerry on the Indian Tabla, She Jun Yuen on the Keyboard while his brother Jun Wei was enjoying himself stroking the Violin.

Yes, the opening act spoke volumes about inclusion and bringing forth individuals with a passion for music with the ability to showcase their talents. According to Musicians For Musicians (MFM) vice president Edwin Nathaniel, 65, the concert represented more than just a performance opportunity.

“It’s a chance to challenge misconceptions and demonstrate the limitless potential of individuals with special needs,” he added. MFM, together with Nak Seni, Music Mart and BAC Education were the organisers of the concert, while Seadale Malaysia was the main sponsor.

Unveiling Uniqueness – All About Inclusion

“In total we received over 100 audition entries. From there, 36 musicians were selected to perform at the two-hour concert. Those who didn’t make it for the concert were given a chance to perform at the UU bazaar, which was held throughout the day.

“Our goal was inclusive participation, ensuring that everyone had the opportunity to showcase their talents at the event,” added Nathaniel, co-founder of Aseana Percussion Unit (Apu), and known for his dedication to teaching music to children with disabilities.

Performances were not only by those with neurodiverse issues, but those with physical challenges. These are what made the whole evening stupendous.

“I was immediately blown over!” exclaimed one of the guests, former TV show host Anita Pandian, when asked about her comments on the concert.

“If no one told me that its a concert by those with different abilities, I would not have known at all because the talents showcased tonight were immense. These musicians with special needs truly presented their best with skills and passion, proving that talent knows no bounds,” said Anita.

She lauded the organisers for presenting such a wonderful concert, saying that such an event should be on a bigger stage, somewhere like Istana Budaya.

Echoing her thoughts was Nena Omar, a parent of one of the performers, Arezz “Rust”, who is with the band Raaze.

Nena had earlier posted in her Facebook: “I can’t describe nor quantify the amazing energy one feels to be in a room with greatness.

“One just has to be there to experience it.”

After the concert, Nena posted that each and everyone at the Omnia Auditorium, Menara BAC left the place very “well-fed”.

That is the kind of affirmation one needs to move ahead in life, whether it is from a parent or an outsider.

That was also the boost needed for another performer Aidel Rahman Morshidi (ARM), to go up on stage with his back up singing friends, Sarah, Nur, Lucas and Emily to present a fun rendition of “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” that had everyone swaying to the beat.

ARM is no other than the son of NMH‘s Editor-In-Chief, Hasnah Abdul Rahman, who was ever so grateful to the committee for placing their trust in Aidel.

“You see, four or five years ago, Aidel was performing in quite a number of shows – public concerts (there was one with a 1,000-member audience), school activities and in mall performances. He may have some problems with his voice control, but he has that cute, lilting way of presenting his notes that were endearing, especially to my ears,” Hasnah said with a grin.

Regression

“Unfortunately, after his dad passed away due to Covid complications, he almost became a recluse due to regression, and it was so difficult to get him back on track,” she sadly added.

Hasnah was therefore ecstatic when Aidel, who has Aspergers, was accepted during the auditions, but there was a lot of problems during rehearsals with getting him to focus and just belt out the tunes.

“But the committee members, especially Edwin, Cindy and Sonia, even the backing musicians, never gave up on him. They even suggested that he may want to change his song to one which he would be more comfortable with.

“With that kind of support and encouragement, it was no surprise to me that he not only sang his best, but introduced himself and his team mates at the beginning with so much confidence and even wanted to sing another song, but of course, there was no time for that,” Hasnah laughingly added.

Yes, if only there was more time. I think the audience would not have minded if they had to stay through till the morning because of the great performances which I must share here, even in brief.

Autistic Savant

Everyone was honoured and thrilled to be showered with the great piano thumping skills of autistic savant Clarence Kang who has performed in various international shows like AXN and for performers like Yuna.

Having seen Clarence that night, I was not surprised that he had won those accolades.

My favourite of course was that baritone voice of Lee King Tech who, despite his young age, just presented Engelbert Humperdinck’s El Mondo which such ease you would have thought he would have been trained by the great balladeer himself.

Of course, we would not be doing justice if this article does not mention the talented Joshua Johnson who obviously stood out with his singing prowess and he even sang an original song with his team mates from Jimi ‘Z. The song, Hello Malaysia, written by him, would be perfect for this Merdeka Day celebrations.

There were 21 performances by 36 performers, they were all great and I feel sad that I can’t mention them all in this article. But if there is a part 2 of Unveiling Uniqueness, I will gladly attend and cover it again. It was a night well spent when organisers unveil uniqueness unsurpassed. – NMH

The post Unveiling Uniqueness A Class Act For Inclusion first appeared on NMH.

The last time we met Tunku Mona Riza, which can be read here, we discussed her beginnings as a commercial director and venturing into a feature film, Redha, which is not exactly commercial. Redha is soul crushing enough to make audience leave with teary red-eye. At that interview session, she mentioned her next flick, Rain Town, an all-out Cantonese film, which is not – again – commercial either.

The article also mentioned that she had wrapped up the shooting of the second theatrical film, Rain Town – in Cantonese nevertheless set in Taiping (where the title came from) and “set to release next year”.

She was quoted there saying: “When shooting this, a journalist from a Malay media asked how many awards was I aiming for this film,” she recalls. “I said, I had forgotten about the awards. I just want to do this film the best way I could.”

Whether she cares or not, awards are in the horizon, if the reception of her film that had made rounds in the international circuit are anything to go by. Hollywood wunderkind Quentin Tarantino, first exhibited his film in the Pulp Fiction in Cannes film festival before he became Hollywood darling. Well, commercial darling. Not exactly the letterbox Tunku Mona would be slotted in. Yet. One never knows.

Before nationwide release for Chinese New Year, it had been exhibited around many film festivals and needless to say, the audience, critics and fellow filmmakers raved.

Tunku Mona On Rain Town Elsewhere

“My biggest worry was India,” she said. “As far as I know Indian audience are open to western films. If at all oriental, it would be Korea or Japan, but never Malaysian Chinese films.”

Yet, in Goa, she was surprised to see the filled seats. “They loved it. I hope the Malaysians would feel the same way too.” That speaks volumes on her worries about today’s Malaysian audience.

Malaysians should, if one were to see from the reactions of audiences elsewhere during her tour of the international circuit, embrace it. The recently released Malaysian film Abang Adik was received enthusiastically by both critics and audience (you can never box these two groups together, or the Vin Diesel films would be at the Oscars).

Mona felt that the success amidst the international audience out there was not surprising. “They could relate to the conflicts in the film which is universal. At the end they were very positive.”

The only stumbling block she encountered was the audience in Xiamen which had split opinions about the ending, and actually demanded a different climax. It anything, it showed that at least they cared about the characters enough to want to decide on the denouement themselves.

“But in India,” she noted, “when asked about the ending, they said they liked it as it is because of the bigger spectrum of emotion.” The Indian audience are already heavily invested in cornucopia of emotions, for ages their films are always neatly packaged with navarasas (nine emotions), and naturally Rain Town readily fits into that mould. With or without subtitles.

Which, incidentally, was a bit of a bother in, of all places, China. “In China they (the festival crowd) couldn’t understand Cantonese, so we have to add subtitles,” she noted.

Adding to that was the audience group, as when the film was shown in Fuchow, Mona noticed that the audience was very young causing her to be anxious. This is not the folks who’d be appreciating a melodramatic heavy storytelling in “family” genre and definitely not a Jackie Chan slapstick action flick. “But they sat through the film. In fact, they asked so many questions.” It touched them. The young ones were able to relate to the film saying that the characters could have been someone they know in their own family.

Cantonese or Mandarin?

But what was the deal with China not wanting Cantonese?

“Originally I wanted to do in Mandarin,” Mona noted. “The problem was despite Mandarin covering a bigger market, the people I work with couldn’t speak Mandarin.” So she did some googling and found out that Cantonese is among the many dialects that is losing out to Mandarin. “When I went to Penang, I saw majority speak in Mandarin. I even asked if they speak Hokkien any longer. They hardly do.”

Down south, Singapore too is Mandarin-heavy. That’s some swimming against the current the director has to face up to.

But forget language, what about traditions? On the house which she used for the shoot; the owners laid down few pointers she had to follow. There were few no-nos, in fact.

“Simple traditions like not painting your house or knocking nails into the wall when someone in the family is pregnant,” she noted, adding that if she wanted to be difficult, she could have fought against it. “I could be debating about it. But it won’t make a difference, at the end of the day, you have to respect the traditions.”

The biggest headache was during the post-production, the posters for example. “Initially I thought the scriptwriting was tough, it was not. Then, I thought the shoot would be tough. Alhamdullilah it was not. You know which is the toughest part of the whole process?”

Now, she says, the hardest part was the promotions and marketing.

Not Chinese Enough

She had to deal with critics who says the posters are not Chinese enough, and why it started with Malay version of the promotion first. Change this. Add that. Indeed, she foresees more issues to crop up when the film is released to the mass.

“But to me it won’t matter. There will always be those sorts of debates; some people asking ‘what does a Malay know about Chinese film’. You can’t stop them from talking,”.

What rumbling would there be? She predicts that some will whine that why can’t she just do a Malay film. “But I tell you this, if I am Melayu, and I am able to direct films of other languages, I will get more brownie points. In fact, that makes me a better Malay”. – NMH

The post Tunku Mona Riza On Crossing The Cultural Hurdles first appeared on NMH.

It was not until nearing the climax that there was something of a revisionism going on in the film, directed by Tunku Mona. From the outset, Rain Town is a typical family drama set in the “rain town” itself, Taiping, known for recording the highest amount of rainfall per year. As the story progresses the revelation of characters, the evolution in fact, sets the film apart from its fellow melodramatic counterparts.

The plot revolves around a headstrong, lantern-making patriarch, Choo (Kin Wah Chew), who rules over the family with an iron fist and is himself not without weakness—gambling. There’s the mother Aileen (played by Susan Lankester, yes, that Susan Lankester), caring, sharing, and being the to-go person for the kids when daddy has only “no!” in his vocabulary wallet. (Susan, though speaks Cantonese, doesn’t play a Malaysian Chinese, before some of you start carrying placards, her character, like Susan herself, is a Rojak, i.e., British dad and Chinese mom). Then, there are three children: Isaac (Fabian Loo), Alex (Wilson Lee), and Ruby (Pauline Tan) – all about the same as the other three fingers in a hand.

The plot is not new. The characters are shades of many we have watched on screens before. What makes it even better is that they are Malaysians – people we know. The dialogues constitute a heavy mix of Cantonese, English, and Malay, which will get the non-Chinese or non-Cantonese speakers around and provide the crucial emotional GPS during any part of the flick. Still couldn’t understand what they were saying? There are three subtitles: Malay, English, and Mandarin. If you are still lost, check which movie hall you are in.`

The Rain Town Journey That Matters

As mentioned, the plot is not new. You can find it in any Drama Minggu Ini type of shows or old Tamil films (Sathuranggam, 1978, comes to mind). But it’s the journey that matters. Many times, it belies the expectations of those who have seen the abovementioned dramas, or, for fans of Indian language shows, the mega serials—this is where the revisionist aspect takes place. There may seem to be stereotypes in that family, but when the director takes us deeper into their world, they are a whole bunch of very original characters whom we are rediscovering—as often we do in real life, where we think we know some people, only to know that there are much more to know about them.

This is why the emotional roller-coaster ride provided by the characters works, thanks to the riveting performances by all of the leads, especially Susan Lankaster.

And good god, Susan girl! How far she has come from playing an Ang Moh stereotype in TV and film comedies, often at her own expense (the Rojak parentage), and boom! Suddenly, she’s pulling off a Meryl Streep right in front of our eyes. She is the central station, the never-centre, nay, the gravity of the film. She’s still that Ang Moh-ish girl belting out strategic, accented English dialogues, but this time it’s not for laughs. Again, this is a revisionist look at the stereotyping our film and TV landscape have unleashed on us for decades.

I have not seen Lankester even on a small screen for a long time—decades, in fact. Sure, she is a lot older now, and she has aged into giving us one of the most powerful performances I have ever seen in this industry. If she does not win any awards for this flick, I will eat my shoe. (Please win, Susan, my teeth are not strong.)

Emotionally Taxing

Add to her character’s and the others’ predicaments, one can be assured that Rain Town can be taxing emotionally, as it does pull you into the monsoon. Which is why I would be lying if I said that there were no dull moments. There was quite a bit. If you are emphatically empty, it’s going to be a hell of a boring flock. But thanks to the emotionally naked onscreen performers, we live with them and tough it out, scene after scene.

Since most of the action takes place indoors, Taiping, unfortunately did not become the star of the film, as did Woody Allen did with New York (who incidentally made A Rainy Day in New York a few years ago) as the filmmaker would have intended to. It’s the people of Taiping, like the side characters who gamble with senior Choo, who provide the face of the locale.

Also, don’t be too taken away from the storyline given in IMDB (by the filmmakers) that promises tearjerking scenes frame after frame. There is quirkiness and even sly humour in some parts. It has two strong female characters (mom and daughter) who do not wield weapons or issue flying kicks. And beware; it may not fulfill your expectations if you anticipate a neatly wrapped-up package at the end. It looks like a happy ending, it sounds like a happy ending, and it even feels like a happy ending.

Forget any of that; the film doesn’t end. And that’s what would trouble the audience, walking out of the darkness into light after the end credits, and still in dark. They would brood over the question, “What’s gonna happen to them?”. – NMH

Other articles by the writer:

The post Rain Town: A Revisionist Drama That Hits The Right Spots first appeared on NMH.

HERZOGENAURACH – Adidas AG (ADSGn.DE) ended its partnership with rapper and fashion designer Kanye West aka ‘Ye’ on Tuesday after he made a series of antisemitic remarks, knocking him off Forbes’ list of the world’s billionaires.

This month, Adidas reviewed the collaboration, which has resulted in several hot-selling Yeezy-branded sneakers.

“Adidas does not tolerate anti-semitism or any other form of hate speech,” the German conglomerate stated on Tuesday.

Comments by Kanye West Deemed as Hateful

“Ye’s recent comments and actions were unacceptable, hateful, and dangerous, and they violated the company’s values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect, and fairness,” the statement said.

According to Forbes magazine, the end of the deal reduced Ye’s net worth to RM1888.60 million. His stake in the Adidas partnership was valued at RM7.08 billion by the magazine.

According to Forbes, the rest of Ye’s fortune is made up of real estate, cash, his music catalogue, and a 5% stake in ex-wife Kim Kardashian’s shapewear company, Skims.

Representatives for Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

For Adidas, ending the partnership and the production of Yeezy branded products, as well as stopping all payments to Ye and his companies, will have a “short-term negative impact” of up to 250 million euros (RM1175.18 million) on net income this year, the company said.

Ye has courted controversy in recent months by publicly ending major corporate tie-ups and making outbursts on social media against other celebrities. His Twitter and Instagram accounts were restricted, with the social media platforms removing some of his online posts that users condemned as antisemitic.

In now-deleted Instagram posts earlier this year, the multiple Grammy award-winning artist accused Adidas and U.S. apparel retailer Gap Inc (GPS.N) of failing to build contractually promised permanent stores for products from his Yeezy fashion line.

He also accused Adidas of stealing his designs for its own products.

On Tuesday, Gap, which had ended its partnership with Ye in September, said it was taking immediate steps to remove Yeezy Gap products from its stores and that it had shut down YeezyGap.com.

“Antisemitism, racism and hate in any form are inexcusable and not tolerated in accordance with our values,” Gap said in a statement.

European fashion house Balenciaga has also cut ties with Ye, according to media reports.

Controversial

“The saga of Ye … underlines the importance of vetting celebrities thoroughly and avoiding those who are overly controversial or unstable,” said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData.

Adidas poached Ye from rival Nike Inc (NKE.N) in 2013 and agreed to a new long-term partnership in 2016 in what the company then called “the most significant partnership created between a non-athlete and a sports brand.”

The tie-up helped the German brand close the gap with Nike in the U.S. market.

Yeezy sneakers, which cost between RM944.30 and RM3305.05, generate about 1.5 billion euros (RM6.94 billion) in annual sales for Adidas, making up a little over 7% of its total revenue, according to estimates from Telsey Advisory Group.

Shares in Adidas, which cut its full-year forecast last week, closed down 3.2%. The group said it would provide more information as part of its upcoming Q3 earnings announcement on Nov. 9. – Reuters

The post Adidas Officially Terminates Kanye West Contract, Costing Rapper Billions first appeared on NMH.

Separating Hollywood from political propaganda is like separating pineapple chunks from pizza – it can still exist, some would prefer it, but your pizza outlet will be frequented by faceless zombies.

Hollywood is not too crazy about making political films, it couldn’t afford to, being an industry that is bound by regulations, that benefits from incentives and other offerings that need political interference.

Yet, it wants the shelves to be filled with shiny trophies, and therefore they do issue few films out once in a while made by hungry filmmakers looking to make a statement or two, or have suited up on self-importance platforms and deliver priestly preaching; thus, availing these political films to many raised eyebrows of the critics and award-mongers.

With our own election, GE15 around the corner, we could only hope that this better be the most exciting one in the franchise as the last few had been quite riotous with the fall of the government outing led by a nonagenarian.

Propaganda Can Lead You To The Wrong Choice

Anyway, here are few films voters can expose themselves to (without doing mental striptease, that is) as they again vote all the wrong candidates in. They are always the wrong one, aren’t they? Why not? Regret is always the painful gift life keeps handing us.

I have categorized these few films so that it would be easier to look at them in one swoop. There would be some overlaps, so bear with me. There are more films out there for scrutiny, but in the meantime, let’s look at these babies…

The Nix-up

Films: All The President’s Men (1975), Nixon (1995) – IMDb (1995), Frost/Nixon (2008)

All three films are directed by the best in the industry, Alan J. Pakula, Oliver Stone and Ron Howard respectively. All three deals with the fall of the American president Richard M. Nixon, the only politicians constantly identified with lying, further perpetuating the association of b.s with that profession though we consistently turn up in millions to vote them in, anyway.

One of the most famous of Nixon caricatures has him with a Pinocchio nose, you can do a google image and never be disappointed – his lying through the nose being the point. But what is usually left out in these tales of a hunchback leader is the bungle-up by the burglars. The break-in occurring in Nixon’s opponent’s office was the event that led to the fall of the mighty “leader of the free world” (citation needed).

All The President’s Men was a detective flick; Nixon, a “remake” of Citizen Kane (see below) about corruption of the innocent while Frost/Nixon was the recapping of all that. Without any doubt, media and its power played massive part in the fall of this monster, and the 1975 film was inspirational in making that field respectable. Then, of course, online media appeared.

The Bio-picks

Films: Citizen Kane (1941) – IMDb (1941), Nixon (1995), and JFK (1991)

Here we see the youthful idealism and how the noble direction gets corrupted along the way. Yes, the old are wise, but there’s nothing more inherently worse than the mental incest committed by these older men towards the younger ones looking up to them. What corrupted them in the first place? Money is not the root for all evil, the pastor of our rehab centre used to remind us….it is the love for money that throws us into the greed pit. Likewise, the popular saying ‘power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely ‘makes more sense as one gets older. The temptation of a youth is simpler compared to what draws the ageing, desperate, hanging on to strands of rope type of has-beens.  

But the abovementioned films are three very different biographic portrayals, all fictionalized (anything recreated are retold from many perspectives). Citizen Kane is a thinly disguised biopic of William Randolph Hearst – a turn of the century media baron who used the power of printed pages and later, radio to influence the political landscape in the country.

Meanwhile, both JFK and Nixon, directed by the father of film conspiracies and controversies, Oliver Stone, are based on actual events with presuppositions thrown in. it de-glamourises the Camelot glitter of John F. Kennedy’s leadership and focuses on the detective angle, with images of the late leader’s body in the morgue thrown in to show that fall not necessarily occur late in life in case of many leaders – glories can be shot down anytime.

The Propaganda Extravaganza

The Manchurian Candidate (1962), The Front (1976) & Red (1981),

From the time when we generations earlier than millennials were warned of the communists, we somewhat associated cruelty, arrogance and debauchery to that form of ideology. Especially cruelty. Adulthood, though it throws us headlong into the cesspool of responsibility, also opened our mind and made us realise that we have been victims of especially the American propaganda. Damn it, we owe much of the government-to-citizen social amenities to the communists (like EPF, Socso and much of what has been decreed in the labour law).

These films showed the red fear as a menace, and the leads in these films were somewhat persecuted for their involvement with the commie b***tards! – victims of political witch hunt perpetrated by one Senator Joseph McCarthy. Who knew that few decades down the road when the Ruskies finally closed their rickety shops, the Americans moved in to terrorize and menace the entire world.

Now, propaganda on the US behalf is made by the scores of comic book superhero flicks that are infesting the cinema like the cockroaches in the Men in Black movies. Of course, I enjoy them, and then bitch about them, no different than Malaysians who take the BR1M and spew hatred on former Prime Minister Najib Razak. Same deal, bro.

The Idea-pedia

Films: The Candidate 1972, Wag The Dog (1997), Our Brand Is Crisis (2015)

All three talks of political candidate or situation where an idea man, a spin doctor and a strategist are roped in to give their few cents worth. In the candidate, Peter Boyle plays the head hunter (not the native type) who searches for the perfect, youthful candidate to shore in the younger voters and finds one in form of Robert Redford. Young, handsome, charming, Redford agrees to stand for the election, but not without guidance and handholding by Boyle. Redford finds himself slowly betraying his own values and idealism and begin to fall into the cesspool of dirty politics. The ending is one of the most harrowing ever to put on screen. Having won, Redford sits in his hotel room, looking dazed and confused. When Boyle enters the room, Redford asks, “now, what?.

The manipulation occurs in Wag The Dog, when Robert de Niro, playing a spin doctor who engages Dustin Hoffman’s character, a film director, to help shoot clips and short films that will help to divert the attention away from the real problem (political sex scandal) to a made-up war. The besmirched US President’s name is now laundered with non-existent blood, because nothing gets Americans hot and heavy but with war and violence. Sort of what happened between one Clinton, Lewinsky and many Iraqi lives

Sandra Bullock plays the amalgamation of both Boyle and de Niro, plus more, and a lot more intelligence, gut, and more heart this time in Our Brand is Crisis, where she helps to redeem a Bolivian presidential candidate’s crestfallen image, cleaning it up and, like the end of The Candidate, this time it is she who realizes that all that idealism, eagerness and knee-jerk reaction in putting on the superhero cape is merely temporary. It’s back to square one.

Prologue:

That Sandra Bullock film especially is a big lesson for all of us. No matter how we start believing that we did the right thing by going behind, supporting or voting for a person or cause, we have no say or power whatever to deal with the outcome. Its back to the poll again and we are back at square one.

Voters, when facing the ballot papers, has to think with a black and white mentality when voting in people, real human being, who are as grey as they come, loaded with virtues and sins just like you and me. There got to be a better way, but in the meanwhile, happy listening to the lies, empty promises, but forget about the tattooed Rafizi Ramli’s face and tentacles in your head, use these films to make up your own mind instead. – NMH

About the writer: Rakesh Kumar is a writer, scriptwriter, and film aficionado, who is four years and ten months clean and sober. And counting. The points expressed in this article are that of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the stand of the NMH.

The post Hollywood, Politics, Propaganda And Brainwashing first appeared on NMH.

West, who legally changed his name to “Ye” last year, was locked out of Instagram on Friday by Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc (META.O). He then switched to Twitter, where he posted for the first time in two years on Saturday.

West’s first tweet since 2020 was a hazy photo of him singing karaoke with Meta Platforms founder Mark Zuckerberg. According to the tweet: “Take a look at this, Mark. How did you get rid of me on Instagram?”

West then tweeted: “You guys have toyed with me and tried to blackball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.” That post, in which he said he was not anti-Semitic, was removed by Twitter. His account was also locked, a Twitter spokesperson confirmed on Sunday.

West then tweeted the following tweet which was then removed by Twitter Inc:

The step by Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) to lock the performer’s account was noteworthy because billionaire Elon Musk, who has said he would buy Twitter and calls himself a free speech absolutist, had welcomed West’s return to the platform and replied to a post by the rapper tweeting: “Welcome back to Twitter, my friend!”

On Monday evening Musk said on Twitter that he had talked to West and “expressed my concerns about his recent tweet, which I think he took to heart.”

West has previously made erratic online posts. Earlier this year, he was suspended from Instagram for 24 hours after he directed racial slurs at comedian Trevor Noah.

Before he took to Twitter early on Saturday, the rapper had his Instagram account suspended after a since-removed post in which he invoked anti-Semitic tropes, accusing a musician of being controlled by “the Jewish people.”

The company said on Saturday temporary restrictions on posting, commenting and messaging were imposed on West’s Instagram account.

The suspension comes days after German sporting goods maker Adidas (ADSGn.DE) said it had put under review its business partnership with West.

CNBC, which first reported the news, said West had been publicly critical of Adidas and its CEO and told the broadcaster that the German group was copying his ideas. Adidas has been partnering with West since 2013, CNBC said. – Reuters

The post Kanye West Suspended on Twitter & Instagram After Anti-Semitic Posts first appeared on NMH.

The search for a new Bond actor has not even begun, according to sibling Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, following Daniel Craig’s final outing as the suave superspy in 2021 film “No Time to Die.”

“We won’t actually be really looking for an actor for some time,” Broccoli said in an interview ahead of the 60th anniversary of the Oct. 5, 1962, world premiere of “Dr. No,” the first Bond film.

“What we have to do is start a whole new reinvention, which is what’s exciting about being at this place now,” added Broccoli.

But, as fans continue to speculate about who will be cast in one of Hollywood’s most coveted roles, what qualities are producers looking for in the next Bond actor?

“We want, first of all, a good actor, an actor who is just not necessarily an action actor, but someone who can play what we hope will be the demanding roles that we write in the scripts,” Wilson said.

“That’s certainly, I think, number one, but it’s so hard to … I mean, if you look at the actors who portrayed Bond, it’s very hard to pin down any common characteristic,” he added.

Sean Connery made his debut as the fictional spy created by author Ian Fleming. George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and finally Craig followed.

Broccoli stated that casting the right actor was critical to the franchise’s success.

“Thank goodness they cast Sean Connery originally because I think if it had not been him, who knows whether we’d still be here 60 years afterwards. And each one of the actors has transformed the series in a new direction, kept them fresh and relevant for the time.” – Reuters

The post Who Will Be The Next James Bond? Producers Consider Options As Film Franchise Turns 60 first appeared on NMH.

For film critics, when it comes to trashing films there are no other sadistic joys more pleasurable than deploying in words the most devastating weapon of mass disparagement with glee. The adrenaline rush when the creative juice is flowing to hurl the most colourful insults enveloped in elegant sentences is simply irresistible.

That creative kernel was inside veteran filmmaker Anwardi Jamil, who had an early start as a journalist and film critic in the New Straits Times (NST), and was recently honoured with Best Director award at the Asian Cinematography Awards 2021 in Manila for Showtime 1958 (Netflix). When he was in NST, Anwardi trashed Rahsia (1987), directed by the then rising-star director Othman Hafsham – and the latter was not too pleased.

“He told me: Why not you direct a film yourself?” recalls Anwardi, in an interview with NMH.

Well, this happened to the celebrated French film director, Francois Truffaut, who started out as a film critic writing for Cahiers Du Cinema in the 1950s, a French language publication that put film criticism at a pedestal higher than just peanut-shell encrusted floors occupied by fat theatre reviewers of the past. The magazine also happened to be the textbook that fed the likes of the Brat members of Hollywood 1970s, like Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola and Brian de Palma.

When it came time to practising what he preached, Truffaut dumped his typewriter and went behind the camera to churn out respectable outputs, ie, critically acclaimed films that have been very influential all around the world. Indirectly, he had helped to rejuvenate Hollywood in the 70s.

Renaissance or Lack of Essence?

Yet, fast forward five decades, and a rejuvenation of a different sort seem to be happening in Malaysia, with the success of Mat Kilau and Air Force recently. A renaissance era for Malaysian filmmakers perhaps? Anwardi shrugged it off, saying, “Is that the type of movie that you really want to do?” Oops. Forget renaissance, even rejuvenation needs scrutiny.

The question was not aimed at current filmmakers per se, but also to his students who attend his film classes. “That’s what I ask them,” he noted. “If you want to make big mainstream films, fine. But you will become jaguh kampung. Nobody cares who Mat Kilau is overseas.”

Jaguh kampung is the English equivalent of big fish in small pond. Not really a good adjective.

“Mat Kilau is good, yes, but if compared to Ip Man?” A question again, this time to the interviewer. Of course, Ip Man is huge, the sort of cult film that attained cult status before even it is in a legal age to become a cult film. The highly excitable audiences of the age of multiple-platform screens are prone to label any film as legendary, cult, or epic, even if they are still fresh in the memory and released only few hours ago. Cults are ordinary now and eat at the same table as popcorn fares. The discerning ones are turning the heads towards ones that can truly stand out and stand the test of time.

“To me, is the story universal enough to cross the border? To go to film festivals? Remember, that’s why the late Yasmin Ahmad‘s films were successful in many film festivals. Because her films are about anonymous characters who had real life and universal conflicts. There were emotions of the sort that audiences can relate to,” he pointed out.

From One Media to Another

Being born to filmmaker parents – the remarkable late Jamil Sulong and (gorgeous and super talented) actress turned film producer mother, Rosnani Jamil – Anwardi did not grow up camping in the film studios and cradling along dolly tracks. He was not even allowed there, in the first place. In fact, he recalled, the siblings were shielded from the industry.

Indeed, daddy Jamil was a serious filmmaker. He meant business. At the time when P. Ramlee was mostly making entertainers (directing himself or performing onscreen for others) Jamil Sulong was blazing the trail with titles like Batu Belah Batu Bertangkup (1959), Isi Neraka (1960), Si Tanggang (1961) and casting Jins Shamsuddin as our very own James Bond (Jeffrey Zain) in Gerak Kilat (1966). Between 1959 and 1966, Jamil had directed 14 films! That would have sent any decent filmmaker to the nuthouse, especially with those fiery titles.

The kids were schooling hard too. Jamil’s brothers and sister found themselves successful in varied fields, advertising, aeronautical engineering and even flying – a pilot that is. But Jamil wanted to become a writer. That was not really going to bring gleam into the parents’ eyes, but he forged ahead.

As he finished schooling (the pre-STPM, HSC), he got himself mired, nay, involved in the newspaper industry. But what was he doing in the frayed cuff, pen and notebook industry when his parents were both the royalties of the Malay film industry?

Well, it was still in his blood and during his years in the New Straits Times he wrote film reviews as well (he flirted with cartoon drawing, a career that lasted one good year, Lat was safe). Anwardi then took up Mass Communication degree in-between the media jobs, and turned his attention to the entertainment industry, especially when he joined the newly installed TV3, as one of the pioneers where he helped to set up the internal production department – a herculean task having had to compete with the monolithic RTM.

One thing led to another (a story for another day, considering his vast experience was also in the corporate world and the ICT platform), and Anwardi started directing his own features films. His debut film, Tuah (1989) which he both wrote and directed, was not just a middling newcomer fare, it won the Jury Prize at the Asia Pacific Film Festival in Jakarta in 1990.

Films and Other Genres

The film itself was unique, about how the famed 15th century Melaka warrior Hang Tuah wakes up in the present Malaysia. Strangely, it talks about Anwardi himself, a man who is very much a product of the past despite himself having founded an ICT company at the dawn of Malaysia’s own silicon valley. It also comes as no surprise that he has been appointed as (on ad hoc basis) Research/Consultant for Muzium Negara.

Indeed, add authoring the book, Gamelan: Sounds of Archipelago, to further cement his credentials in the historical art milieu. Want more? How about his own father’s memoir, Kaca Permata, which talked about both the glory and the friction during the early years of Malay film production, covering the peak of Malay film industry in Singapore and the shift to KL.

The trials and tribulations were detailed in that no holds barred memoir. It was indeed a dangerous time, especially as there was a cultural shift in the sixties all around the world, and Malaysia too was moving into the dangerous 70s when foreign films began to invade the local cinema circuit. Hindi films overshadowed the success of any Malay language films and let us not even talk about the Hollywood titans. And then, as the 80s set in, when the majority of the households in the country owned at least a black and white television sets, RTM took it upon itself to screen mostly P. Ramlee flicks.

“That’s the issue,” said Anwardi. Barrage of P. Ramlee films are fine, but those aren’t the only one that shaped the Malay film industry of that era. “They forget Omar Rojik, my father, and how about the late Sudarmaji or Hussein Haniff? Are all P Ramlee movies good? He had made some really bad ones too. There were so many other gems that can be re-screened like Batu Belah Batu Bertangkup, Si Tanggang, Singapura Dilanggar Todak or Sultan Mahmud Mati Dijulang.”

Quantity vs Quality

That, sort of explains his less than enthusiastic response to Mat Kilau’s success. It’s the old issue of satiating the mainstream appetite versus providing quality meals. Anwardi’s own films are grounded, mostly, especially the Kerja Kahwin (2017), a film that fared well in film festivals, which had a very rooted Malaysian and Malay content.

In fact, that was among the films he named, when was asked about few really strong Malaysian films that should represent the country over the years. The other two being Ranjau Sepanjang Jalan (1983), a film directed by his father that takes a hard hitting look at reality, based on the award winning novel by our Sasterawan Negara, Shahnon Ahmad; and U-Wei Haji Saari‘s controversial and powerful Jogho (1997).

Moving on, Anwardi is now developing an exhibition, the working title being “Towards 100 Years of Malaysian Cinema” where he will freely include the obscure works dating back when nobody thought there was even a Malay film.

“Look, we are not putting down P. Ramlee,” he said of the content of the event. “But we want to also give credence to the others in the industry over the years.

“Names like Hussein Hanif, S. Roomai Noor and of course, Jamil Sulong. They all contributed and did wonderful jobs. But a lot of work needs to be done, especially the researches,” he noted.

FINAS Should Be More Proactive

Anwardi also hopes that the exhibition will be permanent, so that it will continue to inspire the future generations. With this initiative, he also hopes that FINAS itself will take on a more proactive role in encouraging smaller films.

“There is space for everyone,” he said. “What I am not too happy about is the government supporting commercial movies. FINAS was created to develop the industry, therefore the funds from FINAS should be for new ideas – brave courageous ideas – and fresh content”. FINAS, he said, can also offer old filmmakers the chance to make aesthetically strong films they had always wanted to do.

“Imagine funding Rahim Razali, he is still full of ideas,” Anwardi said. “Instead, we are thrown into the pitching game, pitted against 20 year olds. But we have the track record.” It’s the output, not the age matters.

Anwardi hit the nail on the head: Datuk Rahim Razali is no stranger to award winning flicks, and he still can flex his celluloid muscles. “Clint Eastwood is 93 years old,” Anwardi added, “and he is still making films”. – NMH

About the writer: Rakesh Kumar is a writer, scriptwriter, and a film aficionado, who believes that one U2 song line, “you glorify the past, when the future dries up”.

The points expressed in this article are that of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the stand of the NMH.

The post Malaysian Films And The Quest For Quality first appeared on NMH.

TV and Stage veteran director, Vijeyasingham Kandasamy, whose experience spans five decades, finally took it upon himself to unleash a feature film – and a quiet one at that, centering on nostalgic romance.

A Malaysian prominent TV director, actor and doyen of early, stage performance platform in the country, Vijeyasingham, who has been in the film and television industry for the last fifty odd years, has now directed his first theatrical feature film, Kathal Athu Ragasiyamanathu and premiered it on 07 September 2022. The event was graced by the usual VIPs of the industry, as well as some of the veterans, whom this writer have not met for decades. Veteran actor Gunasegaran, for instance, who was one of the earliest regulars of RTM Tamil dramas popped in to show his respect as he had been constantly worked in his earlier TV outputs.

The event was quiet, much like the film itself (will get in to the review shortly) and there were few quick speeches, including an emotional one from director Vijeyasingham himself. It was momentous as he put up a brave struggle to get the romance flick released on big screen on time, within the limited budget, especially with a more grounded subject. A pretty courageous move, if I may say so myself, in the era of post-Covid dread where almost no one want to walk down narrow corridors into the dark hall of magic screen shows.

Which brings us to the film itself.

Romance Is Charming

To those who have recently watched Malaysian Indian flicks which are strongly based on genres such as thriller and action, they will find this film to be slow moving. It is leisurely paced and takes its own sweet time to let things sink in which is essential in any romance flick.

Indeed, if you find the other films to be conspicuously vacant in their attempts to ape genres that may not quite fit in this tropical, multi-racial country, then you will find this gentle little drama charming indeed.

In fact, there is almost an inverse, muted Mera Naam Joker (1970) vibe in the film for those who remember one of the most famed outputs from the late actor/director Raj Kapoor of the Hindi film world. That story, if you remember, is about a guy in his prime as a famous circus clown, who recalls all the love affairs of his life, going back to the school days. The younger role was donned by his own son (Rishi Kapoor), so you have two actors playing the same role pursuing nostalgic romance over the years.

Likewise, you have Riknaveen and later, MJ Nada playing the role of the adult Ram, criminal lawyer in later stage of life and never quite finding closure to the romance of his past, or would he?

Much of the charm in the film comes mainly from the flashback scenes, going back to the schooldays of the central characters which many of us can related to, the puppy love that include falling for a hot teacher, entailing in the rivalry with fellow student, as well as the grounded reality, filled with friction, at home with unsavoury characters around to boot.

From School To Adult Romance

Then, we go on to the adulthood phase where the romance seeded at the school journeying into a rocky path, walking along the jagged edge of career and other pains of adulthood prodding right toward the climax of the affair that seems not reachable either. Both Riknaveen and Chandine Kaur playing the young couple has enough amount of deer-caught-in-flashlight innocence about them in the student period, blooming into uncertain adulthood later.

Up to this point, depending on the amount of nostalgia the audience got buried inside themselves, can be pretty daunting, or exciting. The director, a fellow hardcore Sivaji Ganesan fan, may also have subconsciously drawn his inspiration from a flopped but delightful film produced and directed by Savithiri Ganesan, Praptham (1971), which focuses on same couple (Savithiri and Sivaji) in various reincarnations of romance throughout those lives.

In this film, the couples experience some sort of rebirths, albeit in the same lifetime, and that is relatable to most of us. Especially, when you are in your older age and figuring out, where the heck is she and I wonder what she is doing now?

This part forms the third act of the film, where the older version of the couple, played by MJ Nada and Kavitha Chetty in their own track in life now; the former, a very successful lawyer who is widowed immediately as the character is reintroduced, while the latter works as an unmarried hostel administrator. Do they finally get together? Do you want them to?

The film gets bogged down in the mid-section – a very dangerous terrain in many storytelling platform. The second act is deadly for scriptwriters. Many films fall into this ditch, and the third act is, in the hands of capable writers and filmmakers, can be compensating if handled well. In this case, the entire last part of the flick relied heavily on the performance by Nada, and this is where many would find certain conflict.

You see, the earlier version of the character is shown as cooler, collective, and reflective (and romance-struck) as played by Riknaveen in a very understated but fun performance. Nada, in the meanwhile, is more ballistic; I can imagine the director taking cue from Sivaji Ganesan in both Uyarntha Manithan (1968) and Motor Sundrampillai (1966) as fathers tasked with forgoing the past lives and attempting to balance it with the realities of a family that just happened outside of his nostalgic framework. 

The audience may have a trifle difficulty in accepting the two versions of the same character, but then, have we not – in real life – known a nice youth once, and then meeting the same in form of, say, a raging alcoholic decades later?

Despite the run it will make in the cinema circuit, I believe the film will fare better and find more appreciative (and nostalgic) audience in the OTT platform (Martin Scorcese, for example, was wise to not have his epic The Irishmen on cinema and found better success and adulation on Netflix). The most original aspect of the film is, despite my comparisons above, is that it is still much grounded, very personal and does not try to attempt any big ideas. It chews what it can swallow. It’s a close-up of emotional entanglement, not a landscape shot of human traffic.

That makes Kathal Athu Ragasiyamanathu a very interesting entry in the list of the very few, but now growing, Malaysian Indian film outputs. Those who had seen the youthful trailer may wonder what a veteran director doing, making films about romance amidst teen especially in the first part. But upon reaching the third act, he shifts gear and looks at more matured characters dealing with their past and looking for redemptive moments. Here, perhaps, the director himself looking back at his past, the storied life he had led, making stage plays, TV dramas, Teleserial, and an aborted film project in India. These were the relationships he had with the medium; and this feature film is Vijeyasingham finally reconciling with his first love, a theatrical cinematic outing.

Note: Kathal Athu Ragasiyamanathu will start screening in theatres nation-wide from Sept. 15 onwards. Experience the nostalgia and romance. For more information please go here … – NMH

About the writer: Rakesh Kumar is a writer, scriptwriter, and a film aficionado, who is four years and nine months clean and sober. And counting.

The points expressed in this article are that of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the stand of the NMH.

The post Nostalgic Romance Rekindled in the Kathal Athu Ragasiyamanathu first appeared on NMH.

Haddish’s attorney, Andrew Brettler, has denied the allegations, calling them a “shakedown.” Brettler stated in a statement (via People) that the plaintiff’s mother, Trizah Morris, “has been attempting to assert these bogus claims against Ms. Haddish for several years.” Every attorney who initially took on her case — and there were several — eventually dropped the case when it became clear that the claims were without merit and Ms. Haddish would not be swayed.”

According to the lawsuit, a 22-year-old woman identified as “Jane Doe” claims that when she was 14, Haddish took her to the taping of a “sexually suggestive Subway commercial,” claiming that it would help her television career. According to the claim, Haddish allegedly demonstrated inappropriate sexual acts to Jane Doe.

It also claims that Haddish and Spears filmed a sexually inappropriate comedy sketch with Jane Doe and her then-7-year-old brother, “John Doe.” It claims Haddish saw “and aided, abetted, and watched Spears sexually molest a child” in the video, which featured Spears as a paedophile and Haddish as the child’s mother.

The video was allegedly posted in 2014 on the website Funny or Die before being removed in 2018. According to TMZ, “Funny Or Die found this video absolutely disgusting and would never produce such content.” “We had no part in the conceptualization, development, funding, or production… It was uploaded to the site as user-generated content and was removed in 2018 as soon as its existence was discovered.”

Haddish and Spears are being sued for intentional infliction of emotional distress, gross negligence, sexual battery, sexual harassment, and minor sexual abuse. Haddish is also being sued for breach of fiduciary duty, constructive fraud, and negligent supervision/failure to warn. – TV Insider

The post Comedienne Tiffany Haddish Sued For Child Sex Abuse first appeared on NMH.