Title : Spinning Gasing
Year : 2001
Director : Teck Tan
Screenplay : Teck Tan
Cast : Ellie Suriaty, Craig Fong, Corinne Adri, Edwin R. Sumun, Sanjeet Jarnail, Hani Mohsein, Rosyam Nor, Jalaluddin Hassan, etc.

Reviewer : Rina Omar

'Gasing' tops as a local delight

Finally, the first local English feature film is here. And gasp! It's not a rich-girl-meets-poor-boy love story, nor does it have melodramatic conversations taking place over glasses of "fresh oren" at a restaurant.

It's a story about a band, simple as that. Deejay Harry Lee (played by the delectable Craig Fong) forms a band with his old friends Yati (Ellie Suriaty Omar) and Ariff (Edwin R. Sumun), who play bass and keyboards respectively. He ropes in a vocalist, Chantal (Corrinne Adri), and drummer JJ (Sanjeet Jarnail).

The band is a motley crew (no pun intended): there's a bitchy primadonna, the flamboyant gay, the "blur" one, the sweet tomboy, and the guy who's out to prove himself. You can imagine the number of arguments that ensue as these characters grate against one another.

Sounds like the makings of That Thing You Do? Not even close. They struggle as a band, trying to make ends meet, and end up on the run. After all, musical instruments don't come cheap, and loan sharks (in stylo black leather and all) come a-calling in their trademark style.

They end up running to the east coast. Interesting how they chose to run to an area where they would stick out like runway beacons. But it is also where the Gen-X urban culture and the traditional values in the kampung setting come into contact - and inadvertently clash. Add in a gatal (lecherous) rich man (essential in ALL local movies) and a love triangle between Harry, Yati and Chantal, and there you have it: 90 minutes of entertainment.

Teck Tan should be commended for accomplishing a good job in his first directorial effort in a feature film. Elements of modern and traditional Malaysia come together beautifully - not only in the visual landscape of the movie, but also in the soundtrack as well. The movie also deals with a common yet under-represented topic: interracial relationships, and the barriers of culture and religion that Yati and Harry face as they realise their love for each other.

Although rookies in lead roles, the cast of youngsters have brought the film to life through their portrayals of the various personalities. Ellie Suriaty Omar won the Best Actress Award at Cinefan 2001 (the third Cinemaya Festival of Asian Films) last month in New Delhi, India for the role of Yati. Her portrayal of the modern Malay girl torn between her urban culture and traditional values was quite stirring. Craig Fong was equally brilliant as the irrepressible Harry. And his chiseled good looks should definitely mark him as the new poster-boy for girls. Edwin R. Sumun was thoroughly entertaining as the "queen-with-the-mulut-laser" while Corrinne Adri played the bitchy role to a "T". Spinning Gasing breaks conventions of local film by not only dealing with issues that other movies wouldn't touch with a five-foot pole, but also by using faces that are virtually unknown to the local movie audience. With the exception of Hani Mohsin, of course, who plays the sleazoid Tan Sri's son.

English is the dominant language here, but there are a couple of scenes in Malay and Chinese (with subtitles) that make the movie seem even more realistic.

Verdict: Though the plot is somewhat choppy (no doubt a fault of the censors who massacred the juicier bits), 'Spinning Gasing' is still a delight to watch. Finally, a decent movie with faces, language and locations you can relate to.

# The writer can be contacted at lifeis@nstp.com.my

Source : New Straits Times (13/10/2001)