The movie Sesuai Aplikasi (As per Application Request) tries to take in the rising popularity of online ride-hailing services and sprinkles it with a little bit of drama and a grain of laughter.

Directed by Adink Liwutang, Sesuai Aplikasi portrays the lives of online ride-hailing drivers and their hardships to provide for their families.

Although the cast is filled with popular comics such as Ernest Prakasa, Lolox and Fico, the film introduces newcomer Valentino Peter as one of the lead characters.

The story revolves around two online ride-hailing drivers, Pras (Valentino Peter) and Duras (Lolox), both of whom are best friends and neighbors.

Having their own different issues, both work hard to provide for their families. Pras, while kind-hearted and internet-famous because of his handsome looks, has to work hard to pay for his mother’s heart surgery.

Duras on the other hand is the polar opposite of Pras in terms of looks and personality, willing to do anything to fulfil his father’s wish to afford his sister’s (Meisya Amira) med school tuition.

Their unfortunate situations force both of them to work with a thief, Sakti (Ernest Prakasa), to retrieve diamonds he stole from Cik Asiu (Dayu Wijanto), which are now lost in Sofiyah’s (Titi Kamal) mansion.

Overall, the plot is light, easy to understand and predictable. There is nothing special about the story itself; it’s just your typical action-comedy movie. However, it is well executed enough and does not leave significant plot holes, which tend to get in the way of other comedies like this.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the film is the way it tackles character development. The upfront introduction lets the audience understand the personality of the characters and what to expect of them from the get-go. Those expectations are, however, broken by character developments happening throughout the course of the movie.

The film opens up by introducing the two main characters: Pras and Duras, and their major differences; their day-to-day lives, personalities and values. It is quite gut-tickling and ironic to see them as polar opposites although they are neighbors that share the same wall. However, despite their differences, it is also heartwarming to see they share common ground: they work hard for their families.

The diva: Interactions between pop star Sofiyah (Titi Kamal, right) and her assistant (Arief Didu, left) rarely fail to make the audience laugh.

However, although the introduction makes the characters seem predictable, the film develops the key characters effectively, adding color to them along the way. The good guy Pras breaking his values and joining the pivotal heist, the constantly lying Duras laying out some truth and the cranky Cik Asiu becoming sensitive and forgiving.

The way they throw their jokes out to the audience is decent. Although none of the jokes create loud laughs, but the jokes are scattered here and there, keeping the audience from getting bored by the predictable storyline.

While there certainly are jokes that don’t land, the movie compensates for this by having a lot of jokes to go around overall, making the unfunny ones seem insignificant.

Valentino serves his purpose of being the stereotypical good guy quite well, but his acting is underwhelming, which is fair considering this is his big-screen acting debut. There are several moments when he fails to emphasize strong emotions, such as being angry, upset, shocked and playful.

The real star is Lolox as Duras. He fulfils his role as the main source of jokes perfectly. The role only seems natural for him as he is a comic himself.

Beyond the jokes, Lolox and Meisya’s chemistry as siblings is believable and heartwarming. There is no tension or awkwardness in their interaction. Although Meisya’s performance is mediocre, her interactions with Lolox are fun to watch.

Dayu Wijanto successfully embodies the definition of a hot-headed lady in the film. However, what makes her performance stand out is when she is able to show the more sensitive side of Cik Asiu when she tears up listening to the struggles of Duras and his sister.

Other actors like Titi Kamal and Arief Didu fit their own respective roles quite well to spice up and provide additional laughs. Portraying Sofiyah, Titi’s acting comes off as campy and pampered, similar to Arief Didu who stars as Sofiyah’s assistant.

In a way, the film feels similar to Ernest’s previous films, Cek Toko Sebelah (Check the Store Next Door) and Susah Sinyal (Bad Phone Signal), for successfully incorporating humor and drama.

While genuine jokes and believable story certainly help, the film has no wow factor but is enjoyable enough to watch.

— The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post.

— Photos Courtesy of TBS Films