Janji Joni

Janji Joni exceeds my expectations, really. When I first read the synopsis, I thought to myself: "Well, maybe a totally wacky comedy would do me good after all the stress of studying..." So, I slotted the disc into my laptop, and the journey began.

For the first few minutes, I did just what I'd wanted to do - I simply sat back and relaxed. And indeed, I enjoyed the light-heartedness of the film tremendously. The comedy is fresh without bordering on slapstick, and its cinematography is really beautiful. The crew successfully presents a nostalgic and charming portrayal of Jakarta. The film's greatest strength, though, is its motley group of characters: the carefree, somewhat naive Joni (acted well by Nicholas Saputra); the avuncular operator of the movie projector; the chatty taxi driver with his pregnant wife; and many, many others. Joni's encounters with these diverse characters are guaranteed to tickle you.

Apart from all the laughters, however, I also discovered a deeper layer of this film. Despite its unrealistically weird premise, Janji Joni actually presents a very potent metaphor of life itself. Life is like Joni's journey - full of unexpected twists and turns, and it doesn't always unfold as we want it to. And I'm glad that I have the opportunity to learn from how Joni reacts to all these situations. He made me re-evaluate my own life and inspired me with a new love of life. And I think that is quite something to take away from a "wacky comedy".

Do watch this film, but don't take it for face value. Go deeper and you may find yourself living your life a little more happily after watching this film. Trust me, we can all learn much from Joni.

Saw this at Sydney Film Festival. Just like the rest of the audience, I was so surprised that an Indonesian movie can be so funny, intelligent, and witty. We were constantly laughing throughout the screening even though sometimes I didn't get the jokes (but my Indonesian friend was laughing so the movie must have hit the right note). What I notice was the performances. They were so good, especially the lead actor who never overplays his character. And the story is also so well-written. This is one of the best films shown at the festival this year and I'm so glad I saw it.

We got the chance to have a Q&A session with the writer/director Joko Anwar and he was such a funny and humble guy. I don't understand some of the bad comments from Indonesians in IMDb. You guys should be proud of this movie. This could be your ticket to get recognized by international audience.

EXCELLENT!!!

I think Joko Anwar did wrote a powerful story and gave each of the character "life".

Unfortunately, (imo), the problem with most Indonesian (young) actor is they talks with this, kinda like (special) accent and tone. When you listened to it, you would absolutely believe that they actually read from the script. The only sincere words that sounds pretty convincing out of Joni was the time when he was cursing. It really was sounded natural.

The much more experienced actor has done well. They really gave me the right impression of the profession that they did in the movie.

Hopefully the young actors can relax a bit and do much better next time. :p

It's the first time I really enjoy Indonesian next-generation movie. The combination of original storyline, smart dialog, satire humor, talented casts, beautiful pictures and awesome music tracks make this movie very enjoyable. Joko Anwar proves that he's a talented scriptwriter and also a prospective director. As a scriptwriter, he built the original story and developed humorous dialog with satire and social-critical nuances in it. Some of us may not get in of humor like that. As a director, he's the kind of perfectionist and he really knows what he wants in making his movie.

The script is the ultimate strength of this movie and it's so rare in Indonesian cinema. I wish this movie will motivate other Indonesian filmmakers for using good script in film-making. I am the one of them who thinks the script and story are the soul of a movie.

Other strength is the casts. From the hard-working Nicholas, the dazzling Mariana, the impressing Surya, the effectiveness of Fedi till the cuteness of Dwiki....they give fresh-air to the future of Indonesian cinema.

No one knows why Indonesian filmmakers are so fond of art movies. They seem to think that if you want to be regarded as a good filmmaker, you should make an art movie. Too bad there's no good art movie yet produced in Indonesia. Meanwhile, the other side of the group think that they can produce low-quality craps and just put them on the theaters. Both groups are killing the industry.

It's so refreshing that finally a commercial movie got made with competence. Janji Joni is hip, smart, and never take itself too seriously (even though many critics tried to analyze the movie deeper than they should be). Janji Joni is basically an independent movie on a larger scale. Full of big stars and many locations even though it was shot in 19 days according to IMDb.com. It's raw but yet audience-friendly.

Full of unforgettable characters from the beautiful Mariana to the cult actor Sujiwo Tejo and underground action superstar Barry Prima.

This movie is a rebel many people will love.