oni_sur

I feel compelled to write down this review after reading so many bad reviews. Here is why.

One, there is nothing wrong that it is actually based on 47 Ronin, even though the producer seems to be a bit shy to admit that openly. 47 Ronin is indeed a timeless tale and this movie is paying a great tribute to it. I even find that this movie is way better than the "official" home of 47 Ronin by Keanu Reeves. Even though it is set in fantasy land, but it certainly captured the spirit of 47 Ronin better than the Keanu's one. Keanu's 47 Ronin is too deeply entrenched with the fantasy tale that it lost its grip into the reality, even though it is staged in a historical Japan land. Last Knights is staged in a land of fantasy, but it is a more realistic grip by giving up all the magic and dragon, which in my opinion bring a more powerful story. Not to add that Morgan Freeman is actually doing a better job at portraying a staunch believer in honor and justice, a true noble man that we all missed today.

Two, there is nothing wrong that the fighting scene is a bit idealized than realistic. Not to mention that it is actually set in a fantasy land. Their fighting skill is indeed a bit over the edge. Please do not compare it with Game of Thrones just because you have many gruesome deaths. Both movies have their own merit.

Three, there is nothing wrong with a fantasy movie without magic and dragon. As long as it is true to the story line, it does not matter whether there are actually dragons or not.

Maybe it is not an excellent movie, but it is a good movie of chivalry and sword fighting. The characters is not too well developed, except Lord Bartok and Raiden. All the others seem like just companions to die. But in the end, I am quite satisfied with the movie. Maybe it would have been better if they stick with the original 47 Ronin, when all of their rank are executed. It certainly would bring a stronger tone of how corrupted the country actually is.

This movie is an adaptation from a popular novel by the same title (Sang Pemimpi a.k.a The Dreamer). It portrays two village boys with a dream of traveling to Paris, to study at Sorbonne University. Being a movie about dream, it failed to capture the audience to follow the story and get attached. It fails much behind movie with similar theme such as the much acclaimed Slumdog Millionaire or even the modest Pursuit of Happiness. The characters are poorly developed so the audience doesn't get attached to the character.

More over, it also failed to represent the culture, Malayan culture, which it portrayed. Following a dream is not a major theme in Malayan culture. The culture is more on interested in wandering, adventure and myth. Pursuing happiness, such as stated in American Constitution, is not really in the mind set of the people. Maybe it enters the writers mind because the writer is an European university graduate, therefore he was exposed to such culture.

The acting was also poorer compared to its prequel "Laskar Pelangi". Luckily the acting of the epilogue part is quite good, thanks to the star performance of Lukman Sardi, an award winner actor, and a surprisingly good performance of Ariel Peterpan, who is well known as a singer, not an actor. Because of their performance, I still give this movie a SIX instead of FIVE. Their performance as the adult version main characters is quite convincing, compared the the main story which depicts the teenage life of the main characters.

The story line is boring and not focused. It tried to build a story about dream, and also wanted to show a movie about a dedication of a father, and in the end failed to achieve both.

It looks like the the director and writers need a major overhaul if they want to make the sequel (Edensor). Miles production cannot depend to much on the popularity of the novel. A movie is a movie, a novel is a novel. You can make good movies out of a bad novel (not an easy task, but still possible with major changes, for example Julie and Julia). And you can make a bad movie out of a wonderful novel.

The theme of this movie is very common in Hollywood pictures, a boy's dream to become a sport star, but this theme is rarely explored in Indonesian movies. This makes it very special in the history of Indonesian cinema, especially since it depicts the most popular sport in Indonesia, which is football (or in American English: soccer), while being the most popular sport, Indonesian national football team never again reach its peak in 1950-s era, when the team successfully held Russian team 0-0 in the Olympic Games.

The movie is lightly written, and lightly delivered, but the directors succeed in delivering all the potential of the movie. Yes, the story line look a bit too good to be true, but come on, it is a children movie, all of them are too good to be true.

The other compliment for the movie makers are their success in depicting children world as it is. You have friendship, puppy love, and sneaking out, and so on. A character in the movie which is a driver plays as the comic to add up to the cheer of the movie. All the children actors acted naturally and beautifully. It is the performance of the adult actor that is not at the highest point, especially for the coach character.

But it still lack of some magical ingredients to make it an extraordinary movie. It is a common movie about a common dream of a common kid, in a common country. It's the story itself that limits the movie, to be compared with Slumdog Millionaire or Spiderwick Chronicles for example. But nevertheless, the team has work very hard and successfully to deliver it to the max.

This movie really lights the day in Indonesia cinema, which too full of low quality horror movies, or low sexual comedies, and it brings the dream that one day, our football team can be a great team, and can compete in World Cup. It is a dream of all Indonesian, children and adults.