Arisan!

ARISAN (The Gathering) is a fine little story about the ins and outs of Jakarta's wealthy class - sort of an Indonesian Beverly Hills 90210/Melrose Place sitcom. The characters include frustrated wives, jealous wives, career women, cheating husbands, man-hunter girls, and two gay men - one closeted and one open. The film explores the social dictates of society and the jumbled events that occur when family or friends try to match make.

The cast is young and attractive and handles the material well. The problem with the film is the emphasis on clothes, fancy homes, cars, and all the trappings of the wealthy class. An 'arisan' is a gathering where friends come together, pitch in $100. each and pass the hostessing around to various locales where their main conversation is fairly shallow gossiping. But this film, though drowning in the over-the-top trappings, has many sensitive issues well discussed and played. For a film from Indonesia it is a terrific change from the usual horror flicks that originate from their studios and as such bodes well for a new movie industry that obviously has the ability to become important. It is funny, tender, very colorful and entertaining: some judicious editing could have pared this overly long movie into a fine little film. In Indonesian and English with subtitles. Grady Harp

Exiting times in Indonesia! two Indonesian films defeate the 3rd movie in 'The Matrix' Trilogy. But the one that everyone's eyes are at is 'Arisan!'. 3 Close friends live a normal life, that is, at first look. After a while we see them strugle with unhappiness in different forms. Meimei hears from her Doctor that she won't be able to become pregnant and sees her husband run away. Andien's husband slept with someone else, and Sakti -who is gay- is afraid that his mother or best friend Meimei might find out that he is.

Well, she finds out, but in a way he never imagined she would.

This film is the first BIG HIT in Indonesia where it is all about 'coming out'. Sakti and Nino will learn that in modern Indonesia, being gay is as normal as in other countries (far from the reality, but common in some areas of Indonesia).

Screaming girls in the cinema when Sakti and Nino first kiss. No sensor in Indosia, and that is surprising!!

Over all, this film is not only good because it doesn't show any stereo type Indonesian gays (mostly transsexuals or overacting feminate gays), but two people like everone else. It is also a film technically quite good, although the editing could have been better.

Two thumbs up for Arisan!

Arisan! arrived when public had become jaded with Indonesian films. After a string of trashy horror and fluffy teen flicks, Arisan! came as an adult-oriented drama/comedy which bravely tackled issues never before seen in Indonesian cinema: the lives of upper-class people and gays and succeeded in both attempts.

The film would have been ordinary if not for the well-written script which shows wit, intelligent, and honesty. This is a work from the heart. Considered as the best Indonesian film ever made and arguably so.

Indonesian native speakers will agree that the dialogs are wonderful and sounds very real, unlike ALL Indonesian films which speaks like textbook.

Not without flaws (the editing feels choppy at times) but the script manages to sidesteps all clichés.

a fresh & clever movie, finally some good screen adaptation on the wealthy indonesian pop culture life style, this movie is in some way light on the outside but heavy on the inside has an entertaining & intelligent shape all in one, a wake up call for the indonesian film and especially soap opera industry that the theme of entertainment for the people is rising to a higher level of standards.

what amazed me is this film still taste & feel ( in a ethical philosophical way) indonesian not abducted like janji jony which doesn't taste indonesian, so the concept of arisan is indonesianized of American not the other way around, which in the day ahead creates its own special tone for the indonesian movies industry, that point i think deserves a respect

bravo.., Ms nia dinata you have done an exiting breakthrough trough your innovative well crafted quality movie, that i hope will stimulate the birth of another high creativity & intellect movies in the near future, salute.....

"No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world"

• john keating, death poet society

Witty,fresh,very daily style... Represented some indonesian life style....in some spots....But two thumbs up for this first gay themed with kissing scene.Especially if we think about muslim majority people.Two thumbs up for Director Nia Dinata and Tora Sudiro who played as gay man, Good work you guys