06.16.06
SIFF 2006, day 21
The Last Communist
Malaysia
This novel approach to documentary filmmaking delightfully relates the tale of the exiled leader of Malaysia’s banned communist party, not through fact and fiction but through testimony and song, without benefit of footage of the central character, and in a way that most musicals would be proud of!
There is no way I could call this a good film. It’s poky and meandering; not only does the central character never appear, but most of what’s said in the film has nothing whatsoever to do with him. Instead, a good portion of it is people in various cities and professions simply talking about their jobs (I learned how charcoal is made and that there are two types of pomeloes–we Westerners apparently prefer the sour ones), though there is a chunk dealing with some of the members of the CMP (most of whom now live in exile in manufactured “refuges” made especially for them just across the Thai border). Interspersed with this are weirdly cheery musical numbers describing the history of communism, the dangers of malaria, which machine guns are best in the jungle, Malaysian industry, and identity cards. Not just a strange mash of elements, but not assembled well, and this screening bled audience members steadily (and it’s not like the crowd was large to begin with).
But I have to say that I mostly enjoyed it. I like hearing people tell stories and talk about their work when it’s done with enthusiasm, and there were enough bits of history in this that my curiousity was engaged and I want to go learn more about the topic. I don’t think I could recommend this to anyone, but I don’t feel that I wasted my time seeing it.