Record box office numbers prove renewed interest in Malaysian flicks

Ka-Ching:

PETALING JAYA: This year is a golden year for the Malaysian film industry as three local films have set a new high by raking in more than RM30mil each at the box office, almost doubling the RM18mil record set by Abang Long Fadil 2 last year.

Horror film Munafik 2 led the year’s highest grossing local films, making RM42mil at the box office, with horror-comedy Hantu Kak Limah coming second at RM36mil and military action film PASKAL the Movie coming in third with RM30mil.

And the year is not done yet as Polis EVO 2, the sequel to the crowd favourite Polis Evo, will be shown later next week.

Malaysian film buffs who watched the movies mostly said they enjoyed the movies very much and asked for more of such offerings in the future.

They added that this year’s releases showed more variety in genre than in previous years, which were often dominated by films centred on romance.

Account executive Siti Syazwani Ahmad, 31, said that audiences were keen on watching films with more depth rather than the usual romantic comedy fare.

“(We want) more films such as PASKAL, which has action and shows passion and real sacrifices. Munafik 2 and Dukun can educate people about moral values and being a good human being,” she added.

Siti Syazwani, who watched all three movies, said that great acting and script, as well as the stunning cinematography of the three movies showed the growing maturity of the local film industry.

Sally Tee, 37, caught both Hantu Kak Limah and Munafik 2 at the cinema and was impressed.

“I did not expect to like Munafik 2 as much as I did, but I found it to be on par with contemporary (international) horror flicks,” said Tee, who is self-employed.

Customer support agent Wan Syahrul Afif, 25, was impressed with the line-up of local films released this year.

“Films such as PASKAL showcases themes such as patriotism and many Malaysian films lacked that, so it is something new (in recent years).

“We have had so many films centred on love stories, that is why I think films like PASKAL and Munafik 2 are getting so much attention.

“People are bored of the same genre,” said Wan Syahrul.

PASKAL the Movie director Adrian Teh was grateful for the support shown by Malaysians to films of different genres.

“PASKAL is the first (locally) in this kind of genre, and I am sure that it opens the door for more films of this kind in the future,” Teh said when contacted, adding that he was expecting Polis EVO 2, set to be released next week, to receive a warm reception from filmgoers as well.

“The level of quality in local productions has risen recently and the result can be seen this year.

“The competitiveness of the industry is on a healthy level. This is how the industry can grow further,” he said.