TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Lily - Bunga Terakhirku
(Courtesy of 700 Pictures)Blooms in saturated film industryA title can be deceitful because Lily, Bunga Terakhirku, translated as âLily, My Last Flowerâ, is not even slightly close to being the purportedly stop-and-smell-the-roses kind of drama as it suggests
Change Size
(Courtesy of 700 Pictures)
Blooms in saturated film industry
A title can be deceitful because Lily, Bunga Terakhirku, translated as 'Lily, My Last Flower', is not even slightly close to being the purportedly stop-and-smell-the-roses kind of drama as it suggests.
A drummer by heart and a comedy actor by choice, Indra Birowo made his debut on the other side of the camera with a psychological thriller ' a genre that is rare in today's Indonesian film industry.
Rated as an adult film for violence, bed scenes and coarse language, which is mostly spoken in English, Lily is a film about the gory vengeance of Datura (Baim Wong) who makes a living by culturing flowers in his isolated hillside house.
The film starts with little Tura witnessing house burglars raping and murdering his mother while a slow jazz song titled 'Bunga Terakhir' (Last Flower by Sore) was playing on the gramophone.
Closing the first part of the film, Tura, now an orphan, was seen burying a large object in her mother's deserted garden.
Enter Teresa (Salvita Decorte), a high-class prostitute who goes by the name of Lily, whose life was saved by Madam Bunda (Wulan Guritno), but it was her fateful acquaintance with Tura that gave her choices in life.
Their fragile relationship gradually builds into something else, weighed down with pity and fear.
There is no guessing game in the film because scriptwriters Priesnanda Dwi Satria and Ilya Sigma drop hints here and there instead of bombarding viewers with new revelations by the end of the movie.
The story is full of metaphors about flowers and their meanings, a result of the writers' deep research on the subject.
Datura is the other name of angel's trumpet, also known as the devil's snare, depending on how it is used. It can cure asthma, but in the wrong hands, it can make one blind for three days. Or worse.
The plot twist, however, is very much welcome, especially because the actors pulled out the ending scene without overdoing it, with just enough tears, no big words, just something for the viewers to discuss on their way home.
Lily is a decent thriller with a neatly written script and it cleverly builds up tension in the course of 87 minutes. The story is told with the right pace with help from a TV anchor reading the news, or some friends discussing news posted on the Internet.
The film takes places in an unidentified current time period, although the color grading gives a 1970s' look that somehow enhances the raw and brutish nature of the film.
The undefined location is also an advantage because it allows the characters to communicate in an American English that doesn't sound awkward at all.
The production budget could be an issue as shooting sets were limited to two main locations: Tura's village house and the luxury brothel. Or maybe not, because Tura is driving a vintage Triumph motorcycle.
The cast ensemble is well chosen. Known better as a TV drama actor, Baim Wong showed mature acting and believable chemistry with Salvita, an Indonesian-Indian-German model who made her debut as lead in this film.
As the new darling on screen, the emerging contemporary artist showed promising acting skill that could persuade noted director Joko Anwar to give her the main role in his HBO series Halfworlds, which is to be aired in November.
Seasoned actress Wulan Guritno was the strong element in the film as she, according to Indra, 'lives in the character' and her acting 'doesn't need a retake'.
Lily may not be for everyone, but it is entertaining enough and the best alternative amidst the flood of romantic drama, religious-themed and action films.
As Indra has acknowledged his knack for the psychological thriller genre, his upcoming project is to watch out for.
