Filmic Depiction of Malay Subjectivity in the Late Yasmin Ahmad’s Films

Abstract

Besides P. Ramlee, Yasmin Ahmad’s name is synonymous with Malaysian cinema. The award-winning Malaysian filmmaker’s death impacted not only the Malaysian film industry but also those who admired her work. The late legendary filmmaker was a liberal Islamic Malaysian who explored Islam and humanity through interracial love stories. These filmic stories resonated with the ordinary Malaysians as they were compelling and courageous, often challenging the norms and conventions of other Malaysian films by daringly dramatizing and visualizing societal taboos and hypocrisies on the cinematic screen. The employment and integration of cosmopolitan themes of love, humanism, and humor in her films sets her apart from other local filmmakers. Yasmin’s films had attracted international attention and garnered awards at film festivals in Europe, North America, and Asia. This paper attempts to analyze her cinematic approaches of the construction of Malay subjectivity in all of her six films. For example, interracial relationships in Muallaf and Talentime is the dominant leitmotif of each, which connects the films with parallel events occurring in real-life Malaysia. The author interviewed production crew members who worked closely with Yasmin for her six films and tried to have a better understanding of the narrative motifs and themes in her films. These interviewees provided a comprehensive picture which drives her films, even now, to move beyond being focused on multiculturalism and to more socially, culturally and politically issues related to Malaysians.