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Reviews
Puteri Gunung Ledang (2004)
PGL : Progress in Malaysian Movie Industry.
I bought the Puteri Gunung Ledang (PGL) VCD last week and was excited to watch Malaysia's biggest budget movie. I have some comments and opinions on the movie:
Good cinematography. The view and scenery in the movie was spectacular and beautifully done. The harbor, lake, river and forest scenery was superbly done. This is something to me that's up to international standards. The leaves falling down on the rock scene like something from a Hollywood Fantasy story.
There seems to be confusing 'flashback' scene in the movie. Why not have something like the 'usual' blurry effect before the reminiscing scenes as indicator to the audience what's going on in the story? It could actually help the viewer differentiate the past and present scene in the movie.
The costume and props was also praiseworthy as it reflects the culture and differences of the races. Some of the dialogue was poetic, portraying true Malay wisdom in usage of proverbs in conversation.
The fighting scene at the market displayed one of the best Silat Silat (Malay Martial Art) I've seen in years. Excellent job was done by the choreographer in charge. (Could be made better without the exaggerated stunts). The scene where Hang Tuah and the Jawa Gusti Adipati fights in the 'mental realm' was cool but looked like something from Zhang Yimou's movie.
The legendary love story between the princess and Hang Tuah was not actually developed. I for one did not understand how the princess fell in love with Hang Tuah. (Except for the kick-flower-in-the-face scene).
Overall, in my opinion, this movie is a commendable effort by the local Malaysia Film industry. Keep up the good work!