This year’s depiction of Asrul Sani’s beloved character excited me. As a member of the “millennial and after” age group, I have never watched the original Nagabonar (1987), nor have I seen any Indonesian film set in the Dutch colonial era without blood and tears, emancipation or unrequited love as the main plot. 

Nagabonar Reborn piqued my curiosity. 

The film, directed by Dedi Setiadi, starts with the birth of sweet little Nagabonar. Living with his mother in a rural area near Medan, North Sumatra, Naga (Azka) spends his childhood running around with friends and learning moral lessons from his mother. The little hero warms hearts because he’d rather starve than eat a mango stolen from a neighbor’s tree. His only dream, pure and simple, is to rebuild his father’s grave so that it’s easier to find.

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The film proceeds on a bittersweet but comedic path as we see adult Naga (Gading Marten) bidding his mother (Rita Matumona) farewell as he embarks on his journey to Medan. Naga soon reunites with his childhood friends, pickpocket Mariam (Roby Tremonti) and well-educated Lukman (Rifky Alhabsyi). He also falls in love with Kirana (Citra Kirana), the soft-spoken daughter of a doctor, who is also the girlfriend of Bastian (Delano Daniel), a Dutch captain in charge of Medan.

From humble beginnings, Nagabonar, our strong-willed but uneducated hero eventually leads a group of young men to fight against the Dutch. But what started as a nationalism-driven film quickly turns into a mediocre story of naive Naga pursuing high-profile Kirana. The only consistency is the film’s comedic atmosphere, as the precious moral of patriotism seems to disappear as the story progresses.

Now the audience is served with a more cringe-worthy Nagabonar who flaunts his new role as a general, forcing his friends Lukman and Ujang (Ence Bagus) to do ridiculous things and make decisions based on how they affect Kirana. 

But perhaps this is the question Nagabonar Reborn wants to address. Does Naga fight for his country or for love? Even Ujang questions it. Personally, I am inclined to choose the latter. 

It is disappointing to know that Nagabonar Reborn could have been a strong film about how the young men of the nation fought against the Dutch and Japanese in the colonial era. The moral values director Dedi Setiadi sought to express, although evident, are lacking. The appearance of former Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister Puan Maharani does not help much as it seems like a publicity effort rather than a show of support for a strong message.  

I do, however, want to praise the actors, especially for their believable Batak accent. Gading Marten and on-screen mother Rita Matumona deliver a remarkable performance. Their chemistry is heartwarming to watch and is the most memorable part of the film. 

With that being said, Nagabonar Reborn was enjoyable, mainly because of the hilarious banter between characters and the actors’ performances. But if anything, the film proves the point that war films do not mix well with comedy. (kes)

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The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post

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