Kami (1982 film)
6 /10 1 Votes
Duration Language Malay | Director Patrick Yeoh Country Malaysia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Release date 17 May 1982 (1982-05-17) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Kami is a 1982 Malaysian drama film. It is notable as being the only feature film featuring Sudirman Haji Arshad, a successful Malay singer dubbed the "Singing Lawyer" as he was a law graduate from the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur (an academic background almost unheard of among Malay entertainers). The film is written and directed Patrick Yeoh, who was notable as being the first non-Malay in several decades to direct a Malay film.
Contents
The film is unusual for its time, not following the conventional Hindustani-influenced formula that typified Malay films of the era.
Synopsis
The film is about two young runaway teenagers who meet in the city after leaving their respective homes in different states. Tookoo (Sudirman) the elder of the two, who was first in the city, "adopts" Din (Zulzamri) and as their relationship develops, is both big brother and father to Din. And as the film progresses we see how Tookoo dreams of being a successful pop singer, and how he and Din survive in the city, collecting recyclable items for sale. We are touched by what these two teenagers go through in the concrete jungle of the city as they are bullied by gangs who rob them of their hard-earned money, cheated by dishonest employers who do not pay them and traumatised by over-zealous police who arrest Tookoo by mistake.
Response
The film was panned by a generation of Malay film reviewers accustomed to the typical Malay film format. However, three out of four established film critics in the country voted it the best film of the year in Malaysia in 1983. The film represented Malaysia at two international film festivals. Zulzamri who played the character of Din won the Best Child Actor Award at the Malaysian National Film Festival.