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    The Early Malaysian Cinema

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    Nur Aisyah Fitriah
    The early Malaysian cinema was influenced by British colonial rule from the 1910s-1940s. The British government enacted laws like the 1910 Theatres Licensing Act and the 1923 Cinematographic Film Ordinance to censor films and increase control over their content. During Japanese occupation from 1942-1945, all films screened had to be approved by the Japanese government and were used to promote Japanese culture and nationalism. After the war, Malaysian filmmakers like P. Ramlee were subtly influenced by the Japanese films screened under occupation, incorporating some of their narrative and cinematography techniques into their own films.

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    The Early Malaysian Cinema

    Uploaded by

    Nur Aisyah Fitriah
    94 views16 pages
    The early Malaysian cinema was influenced by British colonial rule from the 1910s-1940s. The British government enacted laws like the 1910 Theatres Licensing Act and the 1923 Cinematographic Film Ordinance to censor films and increase control over their content. During Japanese occupation from 1942-1945, all films screened had to be approved by the Japanese government and were used to promote Japanese culture and nationalism. After the war, Malaysian filmmakers like P. Ramlee were subtly influenced by the Japanese films screened under occupation, incorporating some of their narrative and cinematography techniques into their own films.

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    THE EARLY MALAYSIAN CINEMA

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    The early Malaysian cinema was influenced by British colonial rule from the 1910s-1940s. The British government enacted laws like the 1910 Theatres Licensing Act and the 1923 Cinematographic Film Ordinance to censor films and increase control over their content. During Japanese occupation from 1942-1945, all films screened had to be approved by the Japanese government and were used to promote Japanese culture and nationalism. After the war, Malaysian filmmakers like P. Ramlee were subtly influenced by the Japanese films screened under occupation, incorporating some of their narrative and cinematography techniques into their own films.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pptx, pdf, or txt
    94 views16 pages

    The Early Malaysian Cinema

    Uploaded by

    Nur Aisyah Fitriah
    The early Malaysian cinema was influenced by British colonial rule from the 1910s-1940s. The British government enacted laws like the 1910 Theatres Licensing Act and the 1923 Cinematographic Film Ordinance to censor films and increase control over their content. During Japanese occupation from 1942-1945, all films screened had to be approved by the Japanese government and were used to promote Japanese culture and nationalism. After the war, Malaysian filmmakers like P. Ramlee were subtly influenced by the Japanese films screened under occupation, incorporating some of their narrative and cinematography techniques into their own films.

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    You are on page 1of 16

    THE EARLY

    MALAYSIAN
    CINEMA
    EARLY MALAYSIAN CINEMA

    ► Circa 1989, film screened in KL


    ► By 1910s, larger cities had cinemas (usually owned by Chinese, traveling film shows
    visited smaller towns and rural towns and rural areas
    British Colonialization

    ► British Government concern about effects on movies “natives”


    ► British accused Hollywood movies produced in the 1920s for:
    a) Spreading communist propaganda
    b) Undermining image of white race as superior
    c) Teaching Malay undesirable things about white woman
    (independent)
    d) Increasing crime rate, promoting interracial marriage
    The ENACTMENT of 1910 required all Theatres
    to be licensed, required local censorship

    ► ORDINANCE No. 200 (CINEMATOGRAPHIC FILM) of 1923’


    a) In effect in Straits Settlement (Penang, Singapore and Malacca), Federated Malay States,
    & Johore
    b) All films screened by official censor in Singapore
    c) Around 1925, 12% of films banned outright, 90 censored
    ORDINANCE No. 200
    (CINEMATOGRAPHIC FILM) of 1923 is
    designed
    ► To increase control over films
    ► Gave official censor authority to approve or ban films, posters, photographs
    ► Films fined US500 for indecency, banned
    ► Appeals committee, but for more censorship
    ► 1927, there were 128 films banned for:
    ❑ Immodest Dress of Western Women
    ❑ Portrayal of Gambling & Criminal behaviour
    ❑ Showing Interracial marriages & attachment
    ACTIVITY ONE:

    ►DISCUSS THE BENEFIT OF BRITISH


    GOVERNMENT THROUGH THE
    IMPLEMENTATION OF LAW AND
    REGULATION IN MALAYA
    Early Film Production

    ► 1st film made in Malaya entitled Leila Majnun (1993). Made by Indian Producer S.M
    Christy & Directed by B.S Rajhans
    ► Employed bangsawan actors, become common.
    ► The mid 1930s saw the founding of TWO companies (film empires) :
    ► Shaw Brothers & Cathay Keris
    SHAW BROTHERS & CATHAY KERIS

    ► SB used second hand equipment found in Shanghai China


    ► Distributed own films and bought Theatre
    ► Loke Wan Though began Cahtay in Kuala Lumpur Singapore
    ► As both studios becoming popular, WWII broke out

    ► NOTE: ON WORLD WAR II


    MALAYSIAN CINEMA
    DURING JAPANESE
    OCCUPATION
    ► Film exhibitions under control of one of the “kaishas”,
    CONTROL OF official Japanese occupation gorverment monopolies
    FILM INDUSTRY ► NIPPONISATIONS
    ► A) Japanese films used in “Nipponisation”
    ► B) Malaysian preffereed British & US movies over
    Japanese
    ► C) Japanese band all the films except Japanese films in
    Malaya
    ► D) Since Japanese films were only ones available, few
    Malaysian refused to see them.
    UNDER JAPANESE OCCUPATION FILMS
    WERE DIVIDED INTO TWO CATEGORIES

    ► The Bunka Eiga Gekijio or governmental propaganda film unit, screened only newsreels
    and educational films. 
    ► According to Chin Kee Onn, who, in his book Malaya Upside Down, has described life
    in occupied Malaya: "The films were designed to emphasize the rare qualities of the
    Japanese spirit, the thoroughness of Japanese patriotism, the supremacy of the Japanese
    Armed Forces, the efficiency of Japanese light and heavy industries, the vastness of
    Japanese material resources, the capabilities of Japanese organizing skill, the quickness
    of reconstruction in conquered regions, [and] the willing cooperation of the "freed
    peoples" [of southeast Asia]."
    "popular" cinemas

    ► Japanese feature films designed to familiarize the Malaysians with Japanese culture. This
    Japanese culture included, according to Chin Kee Onn, "the excellence of Japanese
    family life, the harmony of the Japanese social system, the "modernness" of Japanese
    civilization without the sacrifice of the finer points of ancient culture, the fine qualities of
    Japanese art and music, the nobility of filial devotion and the greater nobility of devotion
    to the Nation and the Emperor."
    THE IMPACT & HYPOTHESIS

    ► Certainly, the experience of the Occupation itself had a negative influence on the subject
    matter of Malaysian films made after the Occupation. Such films as Sergeant
    Hassan (1957) were made showing the cruelty of the Japanese and the bravery, as well as
    the suffering, of the Malays. But what I am more interested in are the positive influences
    of these Japanese films on Malaysian cinema. For, just as the Japanese films showed the
    influence of Hollywood films in terms of style, narrative technique, and subject matter,
    Malaysian films of the postwar era show the subtle influence of Japanese films,
    especially in terms of narrative style and cinematography. An important area of
    investigation, therefore, is the nature of the Japanese films shown in occupied Southeast
    Asia.
    ON CINEMATIC ASPECTS

    ► In addition to this narrative influence, we can see in the films of P. Ramlee, and in the comedies in
    particular, the probable stylistic influence of the films of Yasujiro Ozu. Ozu, who directed a number of
    nonsense comedies, some of which were almost certainly seen in occupied Malaya, is known for his
    unusually low camera height, usually about three feet off the ground. This low height is duplicated by
    Ramlee, but often with a low angle, especially when characters are standing, as opposed to Ozu's straight-
    ahead shots, even when characters are standing, as Ozu simply moved the camera back further in order to
    capture the full figure in the frame.
    ► This can be seen, for example, in Ramlee's 1962 film, Ibu Mertua Ku, in which we get highly unusual crane
    shots, including one that begins over a set of a house (without a roof, in order to accommodate the crane)
    from an acute, extremely high angle, then snakes through the house following a character as she walks
    through the house.
    ► The long tracking shots, the shots in the forest looking up at the sun filtering through the trees, and the
    tracking shots of the characters walking with a screen of branches between them and the camera, all recall
    Kurosawa's masterpiece.

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