Popular reviews

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  Review by Nona Damanik ★★★★★ 15

  This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

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  Review by Daffa Akhmad ★★★★★ 2

  "How do I even know what I want? But that doesn't mean our future is bleak."
  — Yuni (Arawinda Kirana)

  Ok, where do I begin? Wow, Yuni. A very honest and powerful piece of coming-of-age and women empowerment for every women in the whole world. Not pretentious, down to earth, and made straight from the heart.

  Yuni is set in rural Indonesia in which the system as if told us that marriage is like, the number one shortcut for everything. Shortcut for economic problems, ego and pride, or simply for men to do sexual encounter to women but didn't want to break the law -- especially the religious law. When that marriage doesn't work out, the majority that needs to…

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  Review by Nona Damanik ★★★★★ 1

  Kalau ditanya, lebih suka Yuni yang versi festival atau teatrikal? Jawabannya, dua-duanya.

  Di versi teatrikal ini, problematika masyarakat di sekitar Yuni yang patriarki lebih dalam disorot lagi. Pertemuan Yuni dengan salah satu anggota band yang kehilangan suara, sangat membekas di pikiran: “kamu yang kemarin bilang suara adalah aurat? Jangan biarkan orang melarang kamu bersuara, mereka tidak tahu rasanya benar-benar kehilangan suara.” Ada adegan hangat antara Yuni dan ayahnya yang sangat menyentuh hati. Di versi teatrikal ini, kita juga mengenal sosok Suci Cute jauh lebih dalam dan bagaimana Suci hadir sebagai satu-satunya sosok inspirasional yang aman dan nyaman untuk Yuni, preedom abis! Omongan-omongan tetangga Yuni yang rasanya bikin Yuni desperate banget ini juga disorot lebih dalam. Dan ada perubahan ending di…

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  Review by Edho Lendra ★★★★½ 3

  Film from a woman, about a woman, for a woman.

  This film's silent dissent is not only capturing our version of gender constraint and cultural bleak, but also waking us all to remind how reckless our societies are towards adolescent. It's sharp and poignant, tought-provoking yet still giving space for us to hope.

  Her reference to metaphorical love poem from late Djoko Damono, Rain in June perfectly carries the nuance of the story goes and genuinely potrays the journey of young girl seeking her place between her liberty, dreams, and her disputes reality. Thank you Kamila Andini for this powerful and important film 💜

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  Review by CinefoxxID ★★★★★

  Living a life is hard
  Living a life as a woman is harder
  💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜

  Yuni merupakan sebuah paket all-in-one dari kehidupan perempuan di negara Indonesia. Dimana di "Negara Indonesia" sendiri diibaratkan seperti sebuah ladang ranjau bagi kehidupan seorang perempuan. Ketika seorang perempuan sudah menentukan jalan hidupnya, dia bakalan menemukan banyak ranjau yang akan menghambat hidupnya

  Kita mulai dari masalah pendidikan yang diangkat di cerita Yuni. Nyatanya, kualitas pendidikan di Indonesia sendiri terhitung jauh dari kata "Bagus". Serba kekurangan dan serba kekacauan, bahkan sistemnya sendiri lebih banyak membawa hal-hal negatif bagi para murid. Yuni yang ingin melanjutkan pendidikannya ke Perguruan Tinggi saja terhambat akan masalah keuangan, prestasi, dan budaya. Pihak sekolahnya saja pesimis untuk mengantarkan murid-murid untuk bisa mendapatkan beasiswa, dimana…

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  Review by Jason Huang (黃擎元) ★★★★ 3

  Honestly... wow. Surely the biggest surprise of this year. Saw that Indonesia had submitted this as their entry for the Oscars this year, but I already had my eyes on this before hearing about that news. This made a bit of a splash at TIFF and it really caught my eye, so I had to check it out.

  Lots to love in this film. It's a brutally honest look at the life of a teenage girl in Indonesia. Their expectations to uphold what is expected of them by society. Being forced into marriage before they are ready. Like, Yuni is literally still stealing purple shit. You think she's ready for marriage? It's infuriating but eye-opening, and never feels like it…

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  Review by ValTheMovieGuy ★★★★★ 2

  Indonesian cinema at its finest

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  Review by Reyzando Nawara ★★★★½ 1

  TIFF 2021 #20
  
  another win for indonesian cinema & kamila andini, who further proves herself as a filmmaker with vital voice and sharp eyes. a candid portrait of what it's like to be a young girl in indonesia. truthful in its depiction of the country's gender constraints & traditional social belief. some parts are hard to sit through, but it's an important watch.

  shares a few beats with NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS, but this one is not specific to abortion. rather, more general about living as a woman in rural indonesia. feeling both angry and heartbroken after watching this movie. also, goosebumps all over me on that final shot.

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  Review by syifa ★★★★½ 1

  “makane ora usah pacar-pacaran. mending makan cilok.”

  “women should stay in the kitchen, well, and good in bed…” that was the neighbor's advice to Yuni, a 16-year-old girl who dreams of continuing her education to a higher level. this kind of advice is certainly not new. in Yuni, these discordant voices are processed and shown more closely. like a hard slap, these discordant issues are presented with a simple story that hits so close to home. so relatable and so close to our reach. there are other Yunis out there, women who are judged only by their virginity, women who are judged by material things, women who are opposed to having dreams. where all these things happen before our eyes…

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  Review by james💫 ★★★★

  yuni showcases the lives and struggles of women in indonesia; cis, trans, straight and queer, and it’s done so naturally and powerfully. definitely a hidden gem of 2021 and it’s easily top 5 of the year for me. check this out before posting your favorites of the year, trust me

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  Review by Charaqua ★★★★½

  In 95 minutes, it successfully covers a lot of important things, and none of them felt forced/ unnatural/ misplaced.

  Child marriage, stigma of women and sex, abusive marriage, non-existent sex education, gender identity, education, and even environmentalism at one point. 
  I can see that they cover those issues not just for the sake of being “woke” and ticking all the boxes of “hot issues”. 
  
  Yuni handles each issue with care, showing the reality of Indonesia in such a natural way while also framing it to highlight that we need to be better. 

  The shots are also beautiful. Coincidentally, purple (well, actually lavender, but close enough) is my favorite color too. 

  On other note,
  God, when will I get a boy who writes me poems and supports me in destroying patriarchy? 🥺💜

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  Review by Cinemalinea ★★★★

  Yuni mampu membuat hati saya trenyuh ketika menyaksikan adegan pernikahan. Bukan dari pernikahan Yuni melainkan sahabatnya, Sarah. Bukan dari kebahagiaan, melainkan keterpaksaan. Film ini benar-benar memotret budaya Indonesia yang tak lepas dari dampak buruknya, perihal pernikahan di usia muda yang sering dianggap pamali jika menolaknya. Tetapi memang inilah realita masyarakat kita yang masih memegang teguh stigma, jelas sekali kalau ini masih kita anggap sebagai isu sensitif, tak semua orang berpikiran sama. Menariknya, film ini tak meletakkan Yuni dalam situasi yang lemah, ia masih bisa melawan, berani menolak beberapa pria yang datang melamarnya, atau bahkan dalam posisi sex pun ia berada di atas, pengontrol. Tetapi Sarah, ia mengakui jika dirinya tak seberani Yuni, ia memasrahkan tuduhan fitnahnya dan terpaksa menikah untuk…