Ibu mertuaku (1962) User Reviews

P Ramlee's Citizen Kane

[izzy520i · 8/10 · 4 September 2010]

Arguably P Ramlee's best effort amongst all his films. Ibu Mertuaku (My Mother-in-law) in summary is the story of Kassim Selamat, a talented musician, who falls in love with Sabariah. Life however does not go smoothly and Kassim's mother-in-law Nyonya Mansor opposes the relationship, and has no respect for the musician, due to his background and occupation and forces Sabariah to go for Nyonya Mansor's preferred companion, the MD Dr Ismadi. Kassim's grief causes him to go blind, and what follows next is a story of more grief for Kassim.

P Ramlee is as usual brilliant, Sarimah has really matured with a few films under her nose, and Mak Dara does a good job of playing the hated Nyonya Mansor.

a genius who entertains all

[tankoonsiang · 9/10 · 21 September 2005]

I liked the movie for its melodrama and Ramlee's superb acting. Of course, acting honours for the mother-in-law. Couldn't surpass her performance. Her evil seemed so real. And a bonus - the sad but lovely song "Di mana kan ku cari ganti" - a Ramlee classic sung in his inimitable way. You probably don't need musical backing when he sings. The whole story is so credible that you need to have the tissue box next to you. It has a sad ending. But if you can the VCD, don't wait. Watch it and enjoy Ramlee's genius. As children, we loved to see his movies even though we were not Malays. His movies were made for all and sundry to enjoy.

Classic mother-in-law stereotype

[pinolobu · 7/10 · 7 May 2000]

A mom-in-law from hell and Ramlee's classic tale of someone who just doesn't have any luck in life - and that's pretty bad for someone so kind hearted.

A masterpiece from the greatest Malay moviemaker of all time.

Malay's Saddest Tale of Love

[inrime · 10/10 · 1 December 2006]

It is truly unfortunate that the films from the P. Ramlee era will only be popular among the Malays themselves. Why is this so? The world is missing out on the great director's incredible ability to tell his story, mostly plucked out from his own experience. Ibu Mertuaku(Mother-in-Law) is a tale of a musician who fell in love with a woman from the high society with tragic consequences. We see the slow destruction of Kassim Selamat's life: from his happy-go-lucky attitude and innocent desire to love a woman to living miserably as a homeless blind man. Ramlee threw in all of his experience into portraying a man who got sucked into a tragedy which led to more. Sarimah and Zaiton gave classic and unforgettable performances as different roles in Ramlee's life. I do not intend to spill anything else about this movie because this is a must watch! This masterpiece can only be found in Singapore or Malaysia. Come down to the South-East now and not only be blown away by the performances and story but the brilliant soundtrack too.

A tragedy Comedy at Its Best

[zubir1956 · 8/10 · 22 February 2005]

This is another gem from the great director. A serious drama that a have a sprinkle of comedic relief provided by P.Ramlee and his gang( the phone scene between P. Ramlee, Sarimah and Mak Dara). Mak Dara was excellent as the evil and heartless mother-in-law to the P. Ramlee character. P.Ramlee deserved the award that he received for this movie (The Most Versatile Talent) at the Asian Film Festival in Tokyo, Japan. This is one of the rarest movie by P. Ramlee that did not have a happy ending, although the ending scene was like a Hindi movie, I might say, with thunder claps and wind blowing from nowhere!. But I enjoyed it very much.

"My Mother-in-law" is P. Ramlee at his melodramatic best

[Don-146 · 7/10 · 8 February 2000]

P. Ramlee plays Kassim Selamat, a saxophonist whose love affair and subsequent marriage to the wealthy Sabariah meet with strong objections from the latter's mother. Her cruelty and deceit result in tragic consequences.

This is a classic Malay film which deserves to be in the top 10 Malay films of all time. A bit melodramatic, but then most Malay films are.