The basis of this story is actually quite simple. The British want to capture Tok Gajah before he reaches Terengganu to get support. This is where Awang's role is to protect Tok Gajah.
Although the story is simple, the arrangement of the story is a bit messy, making the journey of the story less clear and the viewing experience unsatisfactory.
This film is a spin-off from Mat Kilau: Kebangkitan Pahlawan (2022) which focuses on the character of Awang, but it feels like a sequel.
My expectation for this movie was to learn about Awang's backstory, his redemption arc and to see his character development from the previous movie. But I was disappointed because it was not achieved.
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POSITIVE THINGS:
1. High production value.
2. Good cinematography overall.
3. Nadhir Nasar's acting for Tahir is ok.
4. The action scenes are decent.
5. No shaky camera work this time.
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NEGATIVE THINGS:
1. The plot was messy and unclear.
2. The premise was not strong and the themes were not explored enough. Lacking depths.
3. Lack of emotional connections making it hard to feel the scenes that were supposed to be sad.
4. The way some new characters were introduced was not impressive enough. Sometimes it felt like they were suddenly there. Were we supposed to know them? Introduce them properly.
5. The dialogues are too boring and too preachy. It was supposed to tell the story in an implicit manner, not tell it directly. Also why do they have to talk like a poet? Just talk normally and not with a Batman's voice.
6. The female fighter group had no back story which made their appearance so sudden and awkward. Who were they? Who were their teachers?
7. The way the soundtracks are used in the film does not provide enough emotional impact.
8. The editing is bad.
9. Character writing for the villain was weak. There was potential and it could have been a lot better.
10. Sometimes it preaches too much. We get it, you're very faithful and islamic, but overusing such element becomes too redundant and boring. Learn to express it subtly.
11. Feels like watching a cartoon. It doesn't feel serious. Sometimes I just laugh.
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Spin-off stories are often well-received and more successful than the original because they are based on the popularity of an aspect of the original film. In this case, the chosen character is Awang.
Unfortunately, this film cannot overcome or match the quality of Mat Kilau: Kebangkitan Pahlawan (2022).
In conclusion, Pendekar Awang: Darah Indera Gajah (2024) has many shortcomings but it is not completely garbage. I understand why some people like it very much. This type of film has its own target audience but I sure am not one of them.
