Deddy giving a fresh look to oldtime religion

Deddy giving a fresh look to oldtime religion

Joko Anwar, Contributor, Jakarta

In a modest editing room, Deddy Mizwar sang along to a rock song
featured in the closing credits of his big-screen directorial
debut.

It wasn't clear whether he really liked the song (it sounded
like bad local rock from the 1980s) or he was singing out of
nervousness while awaiting the response from his test audience.

The 48-year-old actor has been inviting small groups of film
reviewers to separate previews, which is a good strategy because
it provides a more intimate setting to see what the movie is all
about.

Plus, with the potentially risky title of Kiamat Sudah Dekat
(Doomsday is Near) and the publicity blurb touting it as a
"religious romantic comedy", he needs as many opportunities as he
can get to dispel the suspicion it's all fire and brimstone.

"The way young people date according to TV shows and movies
today has become monotonous. I'm just trying to give something
different," he said as way of explanation.

It is different, indeed. In accordance with Islamic teachings,
the young couple do not have any premarital physical contact.

"I want people to acknowledge that there are people who still
date this way," he added.

It's an interesting premise in this age of cheesecake-filled
tabloids and salacious tales of celebrity goings-on, but it also
runs the risk of scaring away prospective viewers.

Fortunately, the story works and the movie managed to impress
the test audience on the day. It has its shortcomings, but,
overall, it is good-natured, unpretentious and witty.

And it seems only Deddy, onetime leading man and now the
religious everyman, could pull it off.

Born in Jakarta and a native son of the capital, Deddy ranks
among the best actors in the country. A college dropout with a
theater acting background, he went on to star in some of the most
memorable films of the 1980s, including the satirical war/comedy
hit Naga Bonar, the ambitious ensemble drama Opera Jakarta and
Kejarlah Daku Kau Kutangkap, arguably the best Indonesian comedy
ever made.

He was the winner of four Citra acting awards in the now-
defunct Indonesian Film Festival.

When the local movie industry collapsed amid the onslaught of
Hollywood movies in the early 1990s, Deddy moved into acting in
TV series, as well as producing and directing.

He also made the transition from leading man roles to a
character role, typecast today as the wise, upstanding, devout
middle-aged man.

The native Betawi community is known for their strong Islamic
beliefs, and it has made it into his works. With next to none of
the scandal that plagues other celebrities, Deddy is also a
favorite advertising spokesman for products during Islamic
holidays.

In the ongoing TV series Lorong Waktu (The Time Tunnel), he
plays a time-traveling hajj encountering various sinners and
helping them find a way to seek God's forgiveness.

In Kiamat Sudah Dekat, he again plays a hajj, this time one
who is reluctant to let a rock musician date his daughter.

"If an Indonesian movie does not have a religious element, it
is simply not being honest," Deddy said. "Our society is very
close to religious things.

His TV series have received good ratings, but it cannot be
assumed that more sophisticated movie-going audiences will have
the same reaction.

The new generation of local filmmakers understandably avoid
religious issues because they are associated with old-fashioned
Indonesian movies that became extinct by natural selection:
People simply did not buy tickets.

"I believe religious themes can still be commercial. It just
depends on how you present the idea to the audience so as not to
make it a cliche," Deddy said.

In Kiamat Sudah Dekat, Deddy does try to buck the stereotype
of the holier-than-thou religious man. He makes mistakes and also
envies the cool attitude of young people.

"And I don't cite the Koran in my movies," he quipped.

The local film industry has began making a resurgence since
2000, but it's still in search of an identity. It continues to
look to Hollywood for ideas, even though the latter is exploring
Asia's potential.

The jury may still be out on whether Deddy is hopelessly naive
about audience tastes -- "I made the film with the audience in
mind" -- or a visionary, but the vehicle is still an alternative
to the mainstream offering.

It will come as no surprise that Deddy's next project will be
a comedy with religious nuances. More interesting news to many
will be that he is also planning to make a sequel to Naga Bonar.

He sees himself on a mission to remedy the ills affecting the
local film world.

"The Indonesian film industry died because the trash far
outnumbered the good," Deddy said. "It can happen again anytime
now if we don't do something about it. We have to make more good
movies. We are in a race now."