Adipati Dolken (left) and Kevin Julio are two young men in a search for love in Adriana. (Courtesy of Visi Lintas Films)

Want to know more about Jakarta's historical sites? Adriana takes you around town after two young men on a hunt and out for romance and adventure.

Directed by Fajar Nugros and written by Laila Nur Azizah, Adriana, which is based on a story of the same name by Fajar, leaves the typical boy-chase-girl plot behind. Instead, the girl challenges the boys to take up a mysterious quest.

Mamen (Adipati Dolken), a good looking with bad-boy charm, is a reckless playboy who draws the attention of all the swooning ladies.

Meanwhile, his best friend Sobar (Kevin Julio), a history nerd and loyal, nice guy, bottles up his feelings and succumbs to the fear of facing the world.

Mamen drags Sobar into deep trouble after Mamen messes around with the daughter of a notorious thug and the two have to escape in a chase through the city.

One day, Mamen meets a mysterious girl (Eva Celia) in a library. Instead of giving Mamen her name or number, she gives him a clue.

Curious Mamen is eager to solve it. The clue she gives refers to a place in Jakarta that involves Indonesian founding fathers Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta and the latter's proclamation of Indonesian Independence.

With little knowledge in his head, Mamen calls up Sobar for help. Sobar does the favor, but they fail on the first try. A follow-up message comes, revealing a name, Adriana. The message, however, isn't the end of the hunt.

Sobar unveils another possibility for understanding the messages, Mamen is up for the challenge and the quest continues.

Producers Eko Kristianto and Sophia Latjuba said they wanted to portray a youthful love story from a different angle.

'When I read the original Adriana story for the first time, I saw it as a visual work, instead of as literature. I hope those who watch the movie will understand history of Jakarta better,' said Eko after a recent press screening session in Jakarta.

The film, which was released on Nov. 7, slips in views of several historical places in Jakarta, including Fatahillah Museum and Prasasti Museum, which play an important part in the movie. Shooting also took place in Bogor, West Java.

The film also offers a glimpse of some landmarks in the city, including the Dirgantara Monument in Pancoran, South Jakarta, and the Pemuda Membangun (Youth Building the Nation) statue, which most of us know it as the 'Pizza Man' statue, in Senayan, South Jakarta.

Being a first-time film producer, Sophia considers Adriana her 'baby'. Therefore, she chose to work with those who are dear to her, including her daughter, Eva, and her former husband, prominent musician Indra Lesmana, who is the film's music director.

Eva shows her potential with some natural acting and singing ability. Surprisingly, Kevin delivers an applause-worthy performance as the nervous geek. Adipati reprises the typecast bad-boy role he took in his previous movie, Crazy Love.

Indra has produced a top-notch original soundtrack album for Adriana, which is worth having on its own.

Adriana
(100 minutes, Visi Lintas Films)
Director: Fajar Nugros
Screenwriter: Laila Nur Azizah
Cast: Eva Celia, Adipati Dolken, Kevin Julio, Agus Kuncoro
Producers: Eko Kristianto, Sophia Latjuba

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