The Big Durian (2003)

On the night of 18 October 1987, a soldier ran amok with an M16 in the area of Chow Kit, Kuala Lumpur. Due to the thorny circumstances of the time and place, his amok triggered a citywide ... See full summary »

Director:

Amir Muhammad

Writer:

Amir Muhammad

Stars:

Amir Muhammad, Ghafir Akbar, Soh Boon Tat

2 wins.

Cast

Credited cast:
Amir Muhammad	...	Narrator
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ghafir Akbar	...	Shamsul Cairel Ridzuan
Soh Boon Tat	...	Khor Chun How
Bernice Chauly	...	Herself
Anne James	...	Herself
Salleh Ben Joned	...	Himself
Jo Kukathas	...	Renuka Thiagarajah
Erna Mahyuni	...	Dania Muluk
Namron	...	Himself
Nell Ng	...	Angie Phoon
Low Ngai Yuen	...	Tan Gek Leng
Farish A. Noor	...	Himself
Micheal Oo	...	Himself
Nigel Rajaretnam	...	Himself
Rashid Salleh	...	Taufek Nyipang

Storyline

On the night of 18 October 1987, a soldier ran amok with an M16 in the area of Chow Kit, Kuala Lumpur. Due to the thorny circumstances of the time and place, his amok triggered a citywide panic and rumours of racial riots. Why did he do it? Why were Malaysians so jittery at the time? And what happened next? "The Big Durian" speaks to 23 Malaysians (some real, some fictional) to find out.

---

Plot Keywords:

kuala lumpur malaysia | independent film

---

Genres:

Documentary | Drama

---

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Malaysia

Language:

English Malay Cantonese

Release Date:

1 November 2003 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Company Credits

Production Co:

Doghouse 73 Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

75 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The first Malaysian movie to screen at the Sundance Film Festival.

User Reviews

Great stuff

This is my first comment on movies. This is a semi-documentary film featuring genuine interviews with genuine people and interviews which are acted out by fictionalised characters. It also features different types of Malaysians of different backgrounds offering their opinions on the 1987 amok incident and also the general state of politics in Malaysia. It centers around the real incident where an army officer suddenly ran amok it the district of Chow Kit in Kuala Lumpur. The film offers a number of possible explanations for the outburst by way of rumours offered by interviewees. However it also subtly moves into the subject of racial politics of Malaysia (which was one of the possible reasons of the amok incident). It offers an alternative explanation or summary of the socio-political situation in Malaysia that is counter to that often given by the state-controlled media in Malaysia. The way the director mixes real interviews and fake ones is interesting and somewhat new for me. The music and visuals used also deserves credit.