Bunohan

Today, I am going to analyze the cultural elements in Dain Said's Bunohan and discuss how these elements represent Malaysian identity.

Summary of films:

Bunohan is a 2012 Malaysian drama thriller film. This film is about three estranged brothers which are kickboxer Adil who goes by the moniker Bunga Lalang, escapes death when a friend pulls him out of a losing match, Ilham who been hired to kill Adil but also finding it necessary to redress family grievances now that he's in town after many years, the clean-looking Bakar but reedy and ruthless person, he determined to claim ownership of his father's land and their ill father experience murder, passion and haunting memories.

Cultural Elements in Dain Said's Bunohan:

Dain Said’s first scenes is set on a beach, cryptically pairing businessmen, a spiritual healing ceremony, and a young boy who leaps out of frame for a minute and jumps back in covered with blood. The shot is actually a flash-forward to the story's end, but it sets the stage for a picture that occasionally offers us the inexplicable -- a talking bird, a ghost-woman with stegosaurus-like spines -- and then moves on with things as if the spirit world is just another backdrop, like the threat of monsoons, against which living men compete for leverage and property.

The pace of these scenes can be trying -- and would be torture for audiences who came expecting a more conventional Asian crime film -- but it suits the movie's concern with family histories, rural isolation, and the inevitability of development. By the time Adli's big fight arrives, even the money and lives depending on it can't make it more important than the shadow-puppet plays whose secrets a father may unintentionally take to his grave.

The political, social and cultural context of the society strongly influence Ilham, Adil and Bakar to define their understanding of lives or based on power, dignity and struggle. How wealth, power and authority being defined in Bunohan carry the dominant masculine traits include courage, independence and assertiveness. The way Bakar interacts with his father using his diplomatic communication skills is pretty different from Adil who opts for persuasive styles in getting definite explanations of his background. Indeed, these traits vary by location and context, and are influenced by their social and cultural background respectively; Adil, the kickboxer, who was more or less kidnapped in the middle of a bout in Thailand; his half-brother Bakar, who has been living in the city and hopes to sell the family’s land to resort developers; and a professional killer named Ilham, hired to kill Adil but also finding it necessary to redress family grievances.

Elements Represent Malaysian Identity:

Wayang Kulit used in Bunohan. Wayang Kulit is one of the element to represent Malaysian Identity. Wayang Kulit is an illusion of movement on the screen and is a story based on Hindu epics of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata to teach moral values, pass down folklore & historical tales. Furthermore, Wayang Kulit was used in the first animated feature in 1926 The Adventures of Prince Achmed directed by Lotte Reiniger.

Conclusion:

Throughout this film, I can see how much effort of Dain Said trying to reflect the background of the characters in the film. The elements of the semiotics of acting include the actor’s body language, gestures, facial expressions, intonation, eye contact, postures and other vocal qualities crafted by Dain in Bunohan could link the audiences to the emotional journey of each and every character. Both visual Metaphors and the basis of human communication that Dain Said concern shaped the film greatly to the success of the film. Recommended for those who haven’t watch Malaysian film yet, it is the film you should start with.