tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47385704508326004282024-03-05T20:36:50.492+07:00The Risky JournalRizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.comBlogger127125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-44885252041532068332017-11-23T08:04:00.000+07:002017-11-24T13:00:30.921+07:00Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts, an Important Movie for Men and Women<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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A day of work and sleep deprivation exhausted me. Yet, last
night I still decided to go see <i>Marlina Sang Pembunuh Empat Babak</i> (Marlina the
Murderer in Four Acts) at a movie theater nearby my office. As the film started
to roll, I was half awake. “I would fall asleep,” I told myself. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I was wrong. In just several minutes, the film cast its spell, making my eyes
and my mind wide open. I was hungry to know what would come next.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts tells the story of
Marlina (Marsha Timothy), a widow living by herself in the savannah of East
Sumba, Indonesia, with the mummified corpse of her husband, who died a year after she
lost her son in a miscarriage.</div>
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Local belief hold that people must arrange a traditional
ritual, which cost millions of rupiah, to bury the death. If one has not gathered
enough money, then the deceased must be kept at his or her house. <o:p></o:p><br />
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To bury her husband, Marlina had been working hard to raise enough fortune. However, one day, a debt collector named Markus (Egi Fedly) came to her house. He told her that he and six other people would rob her in just a few hour. He said they would take turn raping her and that she would enjoy that. <o:p></o:p><br />
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The robbers arrived and stole her cattle. As she lived alone, with no nearby neighbors, she could not look for help. Marlina tried to keep her cool to find ways to escape from this predicament. She managed to poison four robbers. Two robbers brought the cattle away from Marlina's house. Yet, fortune eluded her. When she tried to poison Markus, he raped her instead. However, when seeing an opening during
the forced intercourse, she beheaded him with his own machete. With Markus' head in hand, Marlina embarked on a
journey to find justice for her. </div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ninety minutes flew by solemnly, fiery, and, emotionally. The
movie ended. Credits rolled. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I thoroughly enjoyed following Marlina’s journey for justice.
Award winning director Mouly Surya elegantly combined the mesmerizing views of
Sumba savannah and Marlina’s plight. Not a second did I want to miss the
beautiful scenery of Sumba or disconnect from Marlina’s feeling. While the long
shots in many scenes captured the breathtaking views of Sumba, the close up and
medium shots empathize us with Marlina’s fight. As a man, I felt and shared her
pain. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The story, which was written by a group of writers including
award winning filmmaker Garin Nugroho, was also very strong. One can tell that
the people behind the film did a thorough research. The movie’s representation
of local culture and belief correspond with information I got from a friend who
has visited Sumba and done a project with locals.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The film does not judge local cultures and belief. Rather, it
intrigues its viewers to know and study more about them. “Is it true that traditional
burial is that expensive? What happen if one does not have money? What about
the role of government on sites, or religion? What is it with a breech baby? What
about that, what about this, what if…?” Coming out of the movie theater, my
head craved for more information about Sumbanese and the local cultures. As an
Indonesian, I am ashamed on how unfamiliar I am with the diverse culture of my
nation. <o:p></o:p></div>
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In addition, the movie tackles a very important issue of raping
stereotypes on women. When it comes to raping, women in whatever culture and part
of the world are mostly blamed. Women are always wronged whether for wearing
revealing clothing, or not being defensive, or just for being women.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The film presents these stereotypes and issues very well, making
its female and MEN viewers reflect on that. As a men, I was overwhelmed by
Marlina’s emotion and plight. The raping scenes somehow linked me with her stress,
sorrow and anger. I also felt relieved and satisfied when she beheaded Markus
and poisoned the robbers. “What would I do if I am a woman who is raped?” It is
not easy being a woman, this feminist film tells its audience. If you still
think women are at fault in rape cases after watching the movie, then you need
to go see a doctor.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://style.tribunnews.com/2017/10/15/istrinya-raih-penghargaan-lewat-film-marlina-si-pembunuh-dalam-empat-babak-reaksi-vino-g-bastian">Marsha Timothy as Marlina </a></td></tr>
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Each of the movie’s act also symbolizes different stages in
Marina’s journey. Each act delivers important message. No act is more important
than another. In each act, Marlina always finds something to empower her and to
reflect on so that she can make a peace with herself. With each act, viewers
also grow their sympathy and empathy towards Marlina. Those who started watching the film careless
about her fight came out a staunch supporter in the end. </div>
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Finally, I want to conclude that Marlina the Murderer in
Four Acts, <a href="http://variety.com/2017/film/reviews/marlina-the-murder-in-four-acts-review-1202446324/">which received rave reviews at Cannes Film Festival 2017</a>, is a movie
that both women and, importantly, MEN should watch.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It does not matter if you want to watch it just because you
want to see Sumba’s majestic view. It matters not because by the end of the
movie you will be transformed. You - and by you I mean Indonesians - will care more about culture and society
which are foreign to you, yet they are closer than you can imagine. You will
believe that women issues are real and not a laughing matter. You will respect
women more because yes, they earn every right to be respected.</div>
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<span style="color: orange;">Rating: 5/5</span></div>
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0Jl. Sulaiman, Palmerah, Kota Jakarta Barat, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta 11480, Indonesia-6.1996487999999994 106.79544540000006-6.203595299999999 106.79040290000006 -6.1957023 106.80048790000006tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-23867901329537389232017-11-21T10:30:00.000+07:002017-12-05T11:11:45.942+07:00Injustices to Justice League<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Growing up, I was always more familiar with DC superheroes.
Therefore, ever since Avengers arrived on the cinematic world in 2011, I had
long wondered when their DC’s counterpart would follow suit. <o:p></o:p></div>
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After six years of waiting, I finally Justice League
appeared on the big screen. I was disappointed, unfortunately. The waiting was for
nothing. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Justice League follows the events of Batman V Superman: Dawn
of Justice (2016), where Superman (Clark Kent/Henry Cavill) died after fighting
Doomsday. Crimes spike and hope is lost in a Superman-less world. Batman
(Bruce Wayne/Ben Affleck), however, smells a graver danger threatening
humanity. With the help of Wonder Woman (Diana Prince/Gal Gadot), the Dark
Knight enlists a group of meta-humans – Aquaman (Arthur/Jason Mamoa), Flash
(Barry Allen/Ezra Miller) and Cyborg (Victor Stone/Ray Fisher) – to help fight
the extraterrestrial threats, led by Steppenwolf (Ciarán Hinds).<o:p></o:p></div>
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A group of superheroes defend the earth against alien
invasion. This plot sound familiar for superhero movie fans, like me. Avengers
already defended earth in 2011 against an army of extraterrestrials led by Thor’s
little brother, Loki. Avengers was a good movie. For someone like me who was not really familiar this group of heroes, I enjoyed watching it. It was also well received by critics and moviegoers. The film sets the bar high for any movie featuring a
group of heroes. The bar, however, seemed to high for Justice League to reach. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Justice League belongs to the DC Extended Universe (DCEU).
However, with the exception of Wonder Woman solo movie earlier this year, so far most DCEU movies have been poorly criticized. Man of Steel (2013) was an interesting take on
Superman. Despite winning an, ehm, an Oscar, Suicide Squad (2016) was a catastrophe.
Batman V Superman was … a disaster, yes it was. The “Martha” conversation
between the dark knight and the Kryptonian will forever be remembered in the history
of meme.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Critics have argued that <a href="https://www.cinemablend.com/new/Why-DC-Comics-Movies-Need-Dark-Brooding-71822.html">DCEU movies are too dark, brooding and philosophical</a>. They often compare DCUE
movies to Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) superhero movies, which are often
light, fun and entertaining, although still touching on important issues. Some
time ago, <a href="http://uproxx.com/hitfix/why-dcs-serious-superman-may-give-marvel-the-big-screen-edge/">reports
said Warner Bros. ordered DCEU movies to contain no jokes</a>. I wonder if
Warner Bros. regretted their instruction considering the backlash against DCEU
movies.<o:p></o:p></div>
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To response to this criticism, Director Zack Snyder tried to
lighten the tone in Justice League. Before stepping down from the film in May
due to her daughter’s tragic death<a href="https://screenrant.com/justice-league-reshoots-lighter-tone-wb/">, Snyder
brought in Avengers’ director, Joss Whedon, to rewrite and reshoot several
sections of the film</a>. However, the end result, in my opinion, is a mess.
The movie is indecisive whether wanting to be a DCEU or MCU movie. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As the movie is set in a world void of hope, Snyder still
relied on his trademark visual cues such as desaturated color throughout the
film. However, things became weird when the heroes started throwing jokes.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I get the idea of the Flash as a jokester. Barry Allen is
historically a funny guy. It will be weird if Barry becomes a brooding
character. It will be a big no. In Justice League, wait for it, you will hear
Batman throw self-pity jokes and awkward remarks. Yes, the Batman and Dark
Knight. For me, this is extremely weird! It disconnected his character from Batman
in BvS, no matter how I loathed that film.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What happened then is a tug of war between literally light
and dark. The film loses its DCEU traits and tries mimicking MCU movies.
Audience also did not buy it. I heard some laughing, some barely chuckling. I
heard no unanimous laughter from the audience like when I watched MCU movies. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Then let’s talk about Steppenwolf, the villain boss. Who is
he once again? Yes, he did mention Darkseid name once. DC fans must know
Steppenwolf’s connection to Darkseid and the threat both characters posit.
However, besides roaring and smashing, Steppenwolf’s existence meant nothing.
His character was just an empty shell. There is just no introduction or even a
chance for audience to know and hate him. If we could fall in love with Loki
and all of his stupidity in Avengers, we would just forget Steppenwolf as soon
as we get out of movie theater. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Can we also discuss about the final fighting scene? It was …
chaotic. Again, I could not help but compare how it was so similar and yet so different
from Avengers. Both teams fought against alien invasion. Avengers gave each of
the hero his or her shining moment. I still remember how impressive it was when
Thor and Hulk brought down the flying gigantic alien snake or when Iron Man
tried to sacrifice himself by blowing up himself at the alien portal. I can
also easily recall the scene where Hulk destroy and smash Loki. It was
legendary!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Justice League, however, was no Avengers. There was nothing
special or memorable of the fighting scenes. They just threw punch here and
there, shot some beams and threw Batarang. Poor choreography and blocking, I
guess. The film should give more chance to each of the hero to shine. As an
action superhero movie, it is very interesting to note that Justice League
leaves no impression at all.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Two hours I spent watching Justice League. When the credit
rolled, I was shocked. Two hours and I said, “Is that all? Just like this huh?”
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Is there a future then for DCEU? Maybe, if Warner Bros can
get the right persons to work with the cast. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Gal Gadot reprising her role as Wonder Woman glowed brightly
in Justice League. I see a glimpse of hope in Jason Mamoa as Aquaman. His portrayal
as a naughty version of the King of Atlantis is interesting. I am also
interested to know how Ezra Miller as Flash is going to be. Henry Cavill
finally smiled here! That’s good! Ben Affleck… I am not sure if he even still
wants to be in DCEU at all. He looked so damned bored in the film. <o:p></o:p></div>
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If Warner Bros still want to have Justice League sequels,
then I guess they better find the right person to work with these heroes. They
did it with Wonder Woman. Why can’t they do it with the others? <o:p></o:p></div>
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If they cannot do it right, then just don’t do it. The world
is swamped with superhero movies anyway. I just cannot stand watching anymore
injustices done to Justice League!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: red;">Rating: 2/5</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-61935986326464917342016-05-26T21:01:00.000+07:002016-05-26T21:01:34.566+07:00Why Bad Reviews Don’t Stop Me from Watching X-Men: Apocalypse<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%; text-align: left;">Rotten tomatoes rated
X-Men: Apocalypse, the latest installment of X-Men universe, rotten,</span><a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/x_men_apocalypse/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="line-height: 115%; text-decoration: none;"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">with only 49 percent of approval.</span></a><span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">Critics’ consensus in the website mentioned that
the movie had wasted several “strong performers” and “resonant themes.”</span></span></div>
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<br />
Meanwhile, Metacritic gave a mixed review for
X-Men: Apocalypse with<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><a href="http://www.metacritic.com/movie/x-men-apocalypse"><span style="line-height: 115%;">a 52 Metascore,</span></a><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">making the movie to be the lowest rated of the
X-Men movie adaptation since X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), which has<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span><a href="https://www.google.co.id/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjln8vz6PfMAhVEqo8KHUDOAisQFggbMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.metacritic.com%2Fmovie%2Fx-men-the-last-stand&usg=AFQjCNFyXS5-AYx-pcwRbtGfTQAdVfsyIQ&sig2=F3v1ExrOWj3ThChkxEQ9VA"><span style="line-height: 115%;">a 58
Metascore.</span></a><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="line-height: 115%;">An X-Men movie which is
even worse than The Last Stand? How bad can it be?<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
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Apocalyptic reviews have indeed slammed Bryan
Singer’s latest take on X-Men. However, I still went and watched the movie last
night. I was satisfied. love it. And I want more …<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><br />
</span></span></div>
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<span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">X-Men: Apocalypse is set 10 years after Magneto’s
attack to the White House in the acclaimed movie X-Men: Days of Future Past
(2014), which was also directed by Singer. In Apocalypse, Charles Xavier aka
Professor X (James McAvoy) has finally started his School for Gifted
Youngsters. Along with his longtime friend, Hank McCoy aka Beast (Nicholas
Hoult), Professor X teaches young mutants, including Scott Summers aka Cyclops
(Tye Sheridan), Jean Grey (Sophie Turner), Jubilee (Lana Condor) and
Nightcrawler (Kodi Smit-McPhee), to learn to control their power and abilities.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div>
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<br />
The world, however, soon plunges into a terror
when a group of people in Cairo, Egypt, revives an ancient God and a tyrant, En
Sabah Nur, who is also known as Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac). CIA Agent Moira
MacTaggert (Rose Byrne) then reveals to Charles and Beast that Apocalypse is
the world’s first mutant, with a Godly power.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><br />
<br />
The revived Apocalypse then recruits
Angel/Archangel (Ben Hardy), Psylocke (Olivia Munn), Ororo Monroe aka Storm
(Alexandra Shipp) and Erick Lehnsherr aka Magento (Michael Fassbender) as his
four horsemen. Together, they attempt to conquer the world. The young X-Men
team, led by Beast and Raven aka Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence), then tries to
stop Apocalypse and his four horsemen from bringing Armageddon to the world.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://screenrant.com/wp-content/uploads/X-Men-Apocalypse-Four-Horsemen-Explained.jpg" height="320" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apocalypse's Four Horsemen: Psylocke, Archangel, Storm and Magneto </td></tr>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Critics argued that Apocalypse wasted the talents
of the many strong performers. This may be true, in some extent. However, in my
opinion, that is a classic problem for a movie which includes so many cast. The
original X-Men trilogy (X-Men, 2000; X2 United, 2003; and X-Men: The last
Stand), for example, had the same problem, in my opinion. In those three
movies, Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) becomes the center of the spotlight. He
overshadows other characters, which includes Academy Award winner Halle Berry,
who acted as Storm, or diminishing the role of Cyclops (James Marsden), from an
X-Men leader to be a jealous boyfriend. Both Storm and Cyclops were given
little room to shine and develop their character in that movies.<br />
</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">
X-Men: Apocalypse, despite the many casts, is able
to develop some of the key characters, such as Cyclops and Jean Grey, who play
important roles in X-Men Universe. Cyclops, for instance, who is introduced as
a fragile and anxious teenager can turn into a youngster with apparent
leadership skill by the end of the movie. Meanwhile, Jean in the first part of
the movie is depicted as a young lady who is insecure with her power. In the
last part of the movie, she can channel her Phoenix power and seem to have her
power in check. Even, veteran character, such as Mystique, also experience
character development in this movie.<span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdR7R67NbXJDUHtc7JqFCrGEENR6srbBuIAvf3RQgknKTV3BUSgl4vv5FZY94tqzx32EjJXkIJ38WeOEpx2h5wLv8nSOhC0SkP133-G6zs4-nlgIJsK0WD1bR7r06EovoUTKTTmKm-hLM/s1600/Clipboard02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdR7R67NbXJDUHtc7JqFCrGEENR6srbBuIAvf3RQgknKTV3BUSgl4vv5FZY94tqzx32EjJXkIJ38WeOEpx2h5wLv8nSOhC0SkP133-G6zs4-nlgIJsK0WD1bR7r06EovoUTKTTmKm-hLM/s1600/Clipboard02.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">All new Jean Grey, Nightcrawler and Cyclops</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">However, it is true that several supporting
characters, need more screenplay and development. Jubilee, for instance. Since
her appearance, I thought that X-Men: Apocalypse would allow her to have more
dialogues or a chance for her to showcase her power. The same can be said to Storm, another contender in X-Men universe. Although this movie narrates Storm’s past live, a
milestone on its own since Storm’s past was never revealed in other movies,
X-Men: Apocalypse unfortunately still gives little screenplay for Storm to
fully exhibit her weather controlling power. It causes her for not having her
own glorious moment in this movie compared to other characters.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCl12N0ajuqMieu3X2eR1UPCSdpytsK9nsf970FuWekSh55wX7j6F1Kot8fOfYBF_ipx_BN_tptcCuG9dLtq4KZx53fM1ItneNHZqTv5FoPyyqCnU7pIZ3rNY7UR18rG86pSVpV0ZecHk/s1600/psylocke+.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCl12N0ajuqMieu3X2eR1UPCSdpytsK9nsf970FuWekSh55wX7j6F1Kot8fOfYBF_ipx_BN_tptcCuG9dLtq4KZx53fM1ItneNHZqTv5FoPyyqCnU7pIZ3rNY7UR18rG86pSVpV0ZecHk/s1600/psylocke+.gif" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">While Psylocke has her own shining moment, Storm has none despite her importance in X-Men universe</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Another thing that critics said about this movie
is that it relied heavily on computer generated imagery for most of the
destruction scenes. Pardon my cheap taste, but I actually enjoyed this.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><br />
<br />
In the movie, thanks to Apocalypse, Magneto is now
fully aware of the extent of his power i.e. metals are everywhere to be found
on earth. Magneto then decided to obey Apocalypse to alter Earth’s magnetic
field in order to restart the world. Magneto, who has felt nothing toward
humanity, then went on rampage, tried to destroy the very earth itself.
Although the movie does not show any human casualty caught up in Magneto’s
rampage, for me, this movie part is still significant to make me think that
Apocalypse is happening.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I was in awe when watching Magneto at his full
power in all of the X-Men movie franchise. There was a sense of admiration to
the extent of his power, believing that he is indeed an omega level mutant, and
a fear of his power that could bring the world to an end. This kind of effect
and feeling, in my opinion, will not be reached if CGI was not overtly used.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
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I felt the same feeling when when Jean taps to her
true power and exhibit her Phoenix persona. I cheered! Finally! The Phoenix is
properly presented. Fiery bird envelopes her body when Jean is tapping to her
true potential. This image is the closest depiction of the Phoenix as it
originally appears in comic book and television animated series. This is much
better than how the Phoenix is seen in X-Men: The Last Stand, where Jean (Famke
Jensen) causing havoc by only standing in the center of destruction. This
CGI-ed Phoenix is nothing but awesome.</span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8GswRKw-5o-mQR3pfFndOGX23udbHHFI0MOUEZX4vqJwEkC3d37x9QD9R_mfgn4x2B2bq1OpwwBn6XCi8jVlfv2LMbvu2UUUsOxPiiDReGretVJx6H7Jq19T94RzgxF7YYD6uG54jX7o/s1600/Clipboard01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8GswRKw-5o-mQR3pfFndOGX23udbHHFI0MOUEZX4vqJwEkC3d37x9QD9R_mfgn4x2B2bq1OpwwBn6XCi8jVlfv2LMbvu2UUUsOxPiiDReGretVJx6H7Jq19T94RzgxF7YYD6uG54jX7o/s640/Clipboard01.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lame portrayal of the Dark Phoenix in X-Men: The Last Stand</td></tr>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br />The other thing to cheer on the movie is the
character of Quicksilver (Evan Peter).. Since his first appearance in Days of
Future Past, Quicksilver has been able to win the heart of the viewer. His
cheerful and glee character is very different than the rest of X-Men characters
who are very serious. In X-Men: Apocalypse, Quicksilver has more screenplay
that will make viewers even love his character more.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
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<br />
Some critics also argue that this movie lacks of
philosophical meaning and plays around a straightforward good-vs-evil conflict
resolution.I have a mixed feeling to this critique. True, X-Men: Apocalypse
lack of philosophical significance compared to Batman v Superman (2016) or
Captain America: Civil War (2016), which indeed play around philosophical
concept of human with superpowers.<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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Compared to those two <span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 115%;">box
</span><span style="line-height: 115%;">office
movies, indeed, X-Men: Apocalypse’s theme is very usual: a Godly evil mutant
arises to bring chaos to the world that needs to be stopped. However, should it
be more complicated than that? I personally do not think it necessary. For
once, I spent my money for a movie that I can watch purely as an entertainment
without having to think what is the contextual meaning behind it. I believe,
however, Singer is capable of making this movie more complicated. Just see what
he has done in Days of Future Past, which combine storyline between two
timelines of X-Men universe. It takes a genius to film that complicated
concept.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br />
<br />
All in all, I enjoyed the 2 hours and 27 minutes
of X-Men: Apocalypse. I truly did. My eyes were always fixated to the screen,
as I enjoyed the action, the story and the effect. I do have one regret,
though. I regretted the casting of Oscar Isaac as Apocalypse.</span><a href="http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Why-X-Men-Fans-Might-Like-Apocalypse-According-Oscar-Isaac-100197.html"><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="line-height: 115%; text-decoration: none;"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">Oscar himself, however, has actually
warned that his image of Apocalypse may not be liked by X-Men fans</span></a><span style="line-height: 115%;">. Sorry Oscar, but I did not really like it, too. In comic
book and television series, Apocalypse is portrayed for having a giant body.
When watching him in television series or comic book, his posture itself sends
a message that he is very powerful and a troublesome foe. However, in this
movie, Apocalypse is seen with small body that diminishes the eerie image of
Apocalypse. I wish other actors with bigger bodies could take the role as
Apocalypse.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apocalypse encounters Cable in X-Men animated series in the 90's </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">As a fan of X-Men, I still believe that this movie
can made much better. I agree that this is not the best X-Men movie. However, I
disagree if this movie is called as worse than The Last Stand, because I think,
Apocalypse is way better than that. In fact, X-Men: Apocalypse can potentially
open the door for new X-Men movies. As a fan, my review may be biased. But, who
cares? I love X-Men: Apocalypse and I plan to rewatch it.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rate: 4/5<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span><br />
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-2505098373650520532015-11-03T19:39:00.000+07:002015-11-03T19:39:41.264+07:00People Behind Pendekar Tongkat Emas Could Have Fought Better<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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There was a time when martial arts movies or television series were very popular in Indonesia.<br />
<br />
At such time, I really loved watching <a href="https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saur_Sepuh:_Satria_Madangkara"><i>Saur Sepuh</i></a> movies on local television. I also really enjoyed watching popular TV series such as <a href="https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Si_Buta_Dari_Gua_Hantu#Adaptasi_di_media_lain"><i>Si Buta dari Goa Hantu</i></a>, <a href="https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiro_Sableng#Adaptasi"><i>Wiro Sableng</i></a> or <i>Misteri dari Gunung Merapi</i>.<br />
<br />
Therefore, I was very excited when I heard that Mira Lesmana and Riri Reza would produce an Indonesian martial art movie called <i>Pendekar Tongkat Emas</i> (The Golden Cane Warrior). “About time,” I said to myself."Can't wait to see it!"<br />
<br />
Since its resurrection in 2000, Indonesian film industries have never paid much attention to martial arts movie. They have mostly produced crappy horror movies, or romantic comedy, which frankly deserved no place on the big screen. Thus, I thought that PTE could rekindle my lost joy of watching martial arts movie.<br />
<br />
I became more excited when I learned that Ifa Isfansyah, the man behind an acclaimed movie,<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sang_Penari"> <i>Sang Penari</i></a>, would direct PTE. My expectations further rocketed when learning about top Indonesian actors and actresses casted for PTE. <br />
<br />
Finally, <i>Pendekar Tongkat Emas</i> was released on December 18, 2014. Alas! Due to my hectic schedule, I could not watch it in a movie theater. Interestingly, I did not hear any news about the movie being a hit. Mira and Riri targeted that some <a href="http://gorontalo.antaranews.com/berita/5688/film-pendekar-tongkat-emas-telan-rp20-miliar">1.7 million people</a> would watch it. <a href="http://www.tabloidbintang.com/articles/extra/lensa/16709-jalan-panjang-menuju-1-juta-penonton?widget=toplist&page=2">However, until January 2015, only 230 thousand people watched it. </a>I wondered what went wrong.<br />
<br />
I answered the question myself when I watched PTE last week: <i>Pendekar Tongkat Emas </i>unfortunately did not quite meet my (and probably others') expectations as a colossal martial arts movie. <br />
<br />
The movie tells a story of legendary martial arts master Cempaka (Christine Hakim), who is trying to find a worthy successor of her Golden Cane. She has four students: Biru (Reza Rahardian), Gerhana (Tara Basro), Dara (Eva Celia) and Angin (Aria Kusumah). Biru, being the strongest among the four, expects that his master will hand the legendary cane to him. However, he is devastated after learning that he is not the chosen successor. PTE then explores devastation, betrayal, friendship, love and solidarity among Cempaka’s students as its plot and storyline.<br />
<br />
PTE has a standard action movie plot, which is easy to follow. You can easily divide the plot into set up, confrontation and resolution, with some flashback scenes as inserts. However, contrary to action movies which usually have quick pace, PTE has a slow pace so that it failed to engage me. In fact, I spent several minutes playing my cellphone, waiting the characters’ to finish their sophisticated dialogue in formal Bahasa Indonesia. <br />
<br />
As an action movie, PTE also lacks memorable fighting scenes. If I recalled correctly, there were only three memorable fighting scenes i.e. the beginning, middle and ending. The fighting scene in the beginning excited me the most, despite poor visual effects (which I understand considering this is an Indonesian not a Hollywood movie). I loved the fighting the ending, although I expected it to be better constructed or presented considering it was the “bomb” scene.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizITyS_YUhJCv8wWiVeDE9kmsyLElWCvAzZc_tetZhK2FJKiATtcIyEKCqz9De7ihvSCXi2f-R-Z2UhCKXI0R8KTiBLgagULrYeMZSPcFhAadY3H3w0XD0lt03zBPzUJpWywZp7JIApWE/s1600/The.Golden.Cane.Warrior.2014.720p.BRRip.x264.Indonesian.AAC-ETRG.mp4_005731788.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizITyS_YUhJCv8wWiVeDE9kmsyLElWCvAzZc_tetZhK2FJKiATtcIyEKCqz9De7ihvSCXi2f-R-Z2UhCKXI0R8KTiBLgagULrYeMZSPcFhAadY3H3w0XD0lt03zBPzUJpWywZp7JIApWE/s640/The.Golden.Cane.Warrior.2014.720p.BRRip.x264.Indonesian.AAC-ETRG.mp4_005731788.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Biru vs Elang fighting scene was dominated by medium shot</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
What made the fighting scenes less memorable was partially due to the overly used medium shots in the film. The medium shots only captured half of the characters' body, thus limiting viewers' eye on the screen. The medium shots are excellent to portray dialogue scenes, but do not really work well to present fighting. In my opinion, a mixture of medium and long shots is best to portray fighting scenes because they can better showcase the characters' fighting mastery and also their interaction to the environment when the fight occurs.<br />
<br />Take Crouching Tiger Hidden Tiger, for instance. Its audience must still have remembered the memorable fighting scene in the woods. If you watch it back, the scenes mix long and medium shots. Such shots not only showcase the characters’ mastery on martial arts but also showcase interaction to the environment. It shows how the characters can make use of the environment as an element of their battle. <br />
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In the ending fighting scene of PTE, long shots are mainly used as a transition between two concurrent battles. Other than that, the cinematographer mostly used medium shots to package the battles that, in my opinion, only make the scenes boring. Besides, the extensive use of medium shots in PTE has also concealed the fighting choreography, which actually is pretty fantastic. <br />
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PTE hires Xio Xin Xin, a martial arts master from China, as the action director. Xin Xin is not a stranger in a film industry since he was involved in Once Upon A Time in China movie franchise. Xin Xin’s <i>kung fu</i> influence is rich in PTE, thereby creating the fighting style in the movie to be more of <i>kung fu</i>, instead of <i>pencak silat</i> (Indonesian martial arts). <br />
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Some moviegoers criticized this nuance. They said they wanted to see a <i>pencak silat</i> movie, not a <i>wuxia</i> (Mandarin martial arts movie genre). I shared their frustration, at first. But, I came across a PTE review at Cinemapoetica, which stated that PTE maybe pay a tribute to <i>wuxia</i> that indeed influenced Indonesian martial arts movie.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDYEIbhpwNQeUwv_tRonGrjeAOuQe4-i-mzsl84cxrtS2JBM3Xzv_AIa8hhx2ERmBARxJxhF53ZnW8IEaZ176Gl57zrNC32_TLfolmSNgFLMNOk2M-Bo9YOeiU6nXPtRdwa3mn1RJBCBI/s1600/pte.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDYEIbhpwNQeUwv_tRonGrjeAOuQe4-i-mzsl84cxrtS2JBM3Xzv_AIa8hhx2ERmBARxJxhF53ZnW8IEaZ176Gl57zrNC32_TLfolmSNgFLMNOk2M-Bo9YOeiU6nXPtRdwa3mn1RJBCBI/s640/pte.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The reviewer may be correct. If looked closely, PTE has actually “promoted” that it will be more of a <i>wuxia</i> movie instead of a <i>pencak silat</i> movie. The stances of PTE characters in the movie poster, for instance, resemble kung fu stances rather pencak silat stances. Gerhana and Darah’s stance in fact is very similar to kung fu stance, as seen in the pictures below. The reasons why Ifa features more Kung Fu style fighting remain unclear until now. Even so, PTE should be recognized because the fighting choreography is indisputably on its own league.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9YqaxWuTRxgJjifHZQUklKFI_Yz6DVKr1N1YJHrg3bz1RYJhcvMnU1LnLCtozWzMxQB7dNwKYKfKjk28zRbi2F2PhMfmkMlXl3ABkh3-f-LyFPIY5Uj5pOTbrTL1tVesDs3xAlGKT_8c/s1600/PicMonkey+Collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9YqaxWuTRxgJjifHZQUklKFI_Yz6DVKr1N1YJHrg3bz1RYJhcvMnU1LnLCtozWzMxQB7dNwKYKfKjk28zRbi2F2PhMfmkMlXl3ABkh3-f-LyFPIY5Uj5pOTbrTL1tVesDs3xAlGKT_8c/s400/PicMonkey+Collage.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kung fu stances vs PTE characters stances</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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PTE should also receive recognition because if compared to other Indonesian action movies, it actually features more female fighters. The female heroes and villains in PTE are also depicted as powerful fighters although still dependent to the male characters. This kind of spectacle is rarely found in Indonesian action movies, which usually portray ultra powerful male characters and helpless female characters.<br />
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To conclude this post, I would like to say that PTE is not a bad movie, not at all, if compared to other Indonesian movies. However, after watching it, I did not really feel the excitement that I expected. It could have been made better, considering the budget which according to news was more than<a href="http://www.muvila.com/film/artikel/pendekar-tongkat-emas-film-silat-klasik-berbujet-rp-20-miliar-140324g-page1.html"> Rp 20 billion </a>(one of the most expensive Indonesian movies in 2014). With such budget, I think <i>Pendekar Tongkat Emas</i> could have been made much better considering the big names in Indonesian film industry involved in the movie.<br />
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<b>Rating: 3/5</b> </div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0Slipi, Palmerah, West Jakarta City, Special Capital Region of Jakarta, Indonesia-6.1937584 106.80161440000006-6.2095444 106.78144440000007 -6.1779724 106.82178440000006tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-13283353703738061762015-10-31T15:20:00.001+07:002015-11-01T11:22:57.161+07:00 Meet the 2015 Supergirl; A vulnerable female hero with superpower <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Female-led superhero movies are rare US’ export commodity. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJN7ZpdDW3RSSuZ6URngWxCMsI8P1xuUto21OJ3k6lGmOdYS_FqZ1NubN3ZvABT87xRDoqyA7EL589-1bXwqcOgHRjlO7kH7NH56C5EHk_yRV4_1bdhhkRI8GCd9Qh2ZzJPW881Z0EQUE/s1600/supergirl.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJN7ZpdDW3RSSuZ6URngWxCMsI8P1xuUto21OJ3k6lGmOdYS_FqZ1NubN3ZvABT87xRDoqyA7EL589-1bXwqcOgHRjlO7kH7NH56C5EHk_yRV4_1bdhhkRI8GCd9Qh2ZzJPW881Z0EQUE/s320/supergirl.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2015/07/22/supergirl-poster-cbs">CBS Supergil Poster</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />Since the booming of superhero movies in 2000, for instance, only <a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/catwoman/">Catwoman</a> (2004) and <a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/elektra/">Elektra</a> (2005) featured female as the lead hero. Unfortunately, citing many reasons, <a href="http://www.boxofficeprophets.com/column/index.cfm?columnID=11996">the feline antihero</a> and <a href="http://www.boxofficeprophets.com/column/index.cfm?columnID=14188">the female assassin</a> successfully failed in the market. <br /><br />The failure of female superhero movies re-affirmed the existing myth in Hollywood that female superhero movies are cursed (or, <a href="http://www.wired.com/2015/06/hollywood-sets-lady-superheroes-fail/">are allegedly set to fail according to this website</a>). This is interesting because according to the statistics released by the Motion Picture Association of America, <a href="http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20130911-where-are-the-female-superheroes">52 percent of moviegoers are women</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Therefore, I was excited when I found out that <a href="http://deadline.com/2014/09/supergirl-tv-series-dc-comics-829364/">a Supergirl series was being made</a>. And, after watching the first episode of the series, I actually think that this time, female superhero characters will not fail. <br /><br />Supergirl series first aired on Monday, October 26, 2015 at CBS. This is the latest installment of DC Comics character after Flash, Arrow and Gotham are being aired at CW. <br /><br />The episode opens with a standard narrative of superhero origin. It tells the story of how Kara Zor-El (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melissa_Benoist">Melissa Benoist</a>) came to earth. Kara is sent to earth from the dying Krypton after her baby cousin Kal El. She is sent with a mission to protect Kal-El. However, her escape pod was caught in Krypton’s explosion and was then rerouted the Phantom Zone. By the time she got to earth, Kal El has already become what earthlings call as Superman. Kal El then sent Kara to live with the Denvers, so that she could learn to adapt as a human. Half of the show then continues with the story of Kara being torn between living as a “normal” woman or using her Kryptonian power to save people. <br /><br />Supergirl pilot episode offers an easy storyline to follow. It sets Supergirl’s history, mission and conflict. It also gives its audience a clear perspective of what the next episodes as Supergirl’s main enemy has apparently being introdu</span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">ced. <br /><br />Supergirl’s easy storyline shies away from other narrative contemporary superhero series, like <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2193021/">Arrow </a>or Heroes Reborn. It took me seven episodes to understand <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3556944/">Heroes Reborn</a>, for instance. Arrow, meanwhile, offers a more complex storyline. <br /><br />CBS’ Supergirl also distances herself from the dark and gloomy depiction of contemporary superhero characters. Particularly, Supergirl breaks away from the latest gloomy image of her cousing, Superman, in Zack Snyder’s <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0770828/">Man of Steel (2013</a>). </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.blastr.com/sites/blastr/files/ManofSteelHenryCavill1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="http://www.blastr.com/sites/blastr/files/ManofSteelHenryCavill1.jpg" border="0" class="shrinkToFit" src="http://www.blastr.com/sites/blastr/files/ManofSteelHenryCavill1.jpg" height="579" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.blastr.com/2013-6-19/christopher-nolan-originally-said-no-way-man-steel-ending">Henry Cavill as Supernan in 2013</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://themovieblog.com/2013/why-man-of-steel-is-receiving-bad-reviews-while-the-public-loves-this-superman/">Zack Snyder was criticized by Superman fans and critiques for portraying a grim of the Man of Steel</a>. Some fans were disappointed because the hero, whom they know as a beacon of hope, was turned into a dark and gloomy character. Probably, learning from Snyder, Supergirl, was not constructed to follow her cousin's dark portrayal. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In the series, she emerges as a gleeful young female character, true to her comic book portrayal. This is a good take, in my opinion, because public have been exhausted with dark superhero portrayals. I need more lighter superhero narratives, I can say that. Thus, I was glad when I found myself smiling alone at some moments when watching Supergirl's pilot episode. The other superhero series that made me smile is just the Flash,<a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/flash/s01/reviews/"> which has positive reviews so far</a>. <br /><br />Further, CBS also tries to pull Supergirl away from Superman by clearly narrating that this girl is the earth’s other superhero. CBS tries to emphasize that Supergirl is not just Superman’s cousin and sidekick. The pilot episode tries to instill the idea that Supergirl is a hero on earth that should be reckoned beside Superman. “Earth doesn’t have just one hero anymore. Now it has me. Now it has Supergirl,” says Kara at the end of the episode. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5D6YJZrui5z1z6hham0yitV8005KZSSAg4tjXq63-lbVmNirNkMGMGjH4RfAKm9ofdfgZNZ0zJfZXlxM57MYf2RFnAipl04ErOGpVwEMpkbDtsLCJZPrF4LtaA3aWpWIzJyeCsrispzg/s1600/supergirl.101.hdtv-lol%255Bettv%255D.mp4_001989407.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="359" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5D6YJZrui5z1z6hham0yitV8005KZSSAg4tjXq63-lbVmNirNkMGMGjH4RfAKm9ofdfgZNZ0zJfZXlxM57MYf2RFnAipl04ErOGpVwEMpkbDtsLCJZPrF4LtaA3aWpWIzJyeCsrispzg/s640/supergirl.101.hdtv-lol%255Bettv%255D.mp4_001989407.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She was cut by a weapon from her alien enemy</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Besides attempting to set her image off Superman’s shadow, Supergirl also breaks away from the conventional narrative of superhero as indestructible characters. The pilot episode has already revealed that Supergirl, like Superman, is weak to Kryptonite. Not only that, it also tells the audience that Supergirl can actually be hurt even though she is bulletproof. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUFTNxBfkEMm3-lW8Zz9dPkCROwvuSvMmJgIbuGyiJyEzO3j1_if1gBsjU6Upf9YNeMV3Gu3P5mUKeIEddrSKSed5olz0Ud6MWPUJJaCfisUxPVlWC6EqGhNsLCfIwso3P5pWS_UXtYHE/s1600/supergirl.101.hdtv-lol%255Bettv%255D.mp4_002040325.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUFTNxBfkEMm3-lW8Zz9dPkCROwvuSvMmJgIbuGyiJyEzO3j1_if1gBsjU6Upf9YNeMV3Gu3P5mUKeIEddrSKSed5olz0Ud6MWPUJJaCfisUxPVlWC6EqGhNsLCfIwso3P5pWS_UXtYHE/s640/supergirl.101.hdtv-lol%255Bettv%255D.mp4_002040325.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“Kara: I never have felt pain like that before […] I never felt pain” <br />“Alex: You are not indestructible Kara”</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After watching the first half of the episode, I had drawn an image of CBS’s Supergirl as a strong superpower female hero but with flaws. True, she can fly and lift an airplane. It is also true that she can shoot heat rays from her eyes. But, at the same time, she still sustains injuries if she is not careful when fighting her enemies. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">An destructible super powered girl is the image of Supergirl that CBS tries to introduce, at least in the first half of the pilot episode. This representation is advanced further by contextualizing her in a feminist discourse, a must-have discussion when talking about female heroes. <br /><br />In one of the scenes, Kara furious asked her boss, Cat Grant, on how the later named the new hero in National City in the newspaper: why Supergirl and not Superwoman? To which, Cat calmly answered: </span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijxpb5NS6e3nqiAniEKts2N7u20f8yjWm3US3qwAyH2S-IksB67CIgToyDhUDGun-k5Gj2UhhoTt6XXz2S4PwgCohGoxezcFCgmNmqEfCjMN6egQZvrfjnzh8fyuZidAqMyNV4xDzJJQ0/s1600/supergirl.101.hdtv-lol%255Bettv%255D.mp4_001748789.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijxpb5NS6e3nqiAniEKts2N7u20f8yjWm3US3qwAyH2S-IksB67CIgToyDhUDGun-k5Gj2UhhoTt6XXz2S4PwgCohGoxezcFCgmNmqEfCjMN6egQZvrfjnzh8fyuZidAqMyNV4xDzJJQ0/s640/supergirl.101.hdtv-lol%255Bettv%255D.mp4_001748789.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">“What do you
think is so bad about girl? I’m a girl, and rich, and hot and smart. So
if you perceive Supergirl is less than excellent […] Isn’t the problem
is you?" says Cat Grant </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Had I not taken Amerian Women classes, I probably might not catch that Cat Grant’s response was based on the prevailing girl power movement, one of the agenda of <a href="https://beingfeministblog.wordpress.com/2013/05/16/todays-feminism-a-brief-look-at-third-wave-feminism/">the third wave feminis</a>m. Girl power movement advocated girl’s independence on herself to define her own identity. <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/girl-power">Cambridge</a> explains that girl power is </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">the <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/idea">idea</a> that women and <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/girl">girls</a> should be <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/confident">confident</a>, make <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/decision">decisions</a>, and <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/achieve">achieve</a> things independently of men, or the <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/social">social</a> and <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/political">political</a> <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/movement">movement</a> that is <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/base">based</a> on this <a href="http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/idea">idea</a> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Not once have I read elsewhere that Kara Zor El was upset that her codename was Supergirl. But CBS’ Kara apparently took a Feminist class that she thought Supergirl is not equal with Superman. Such thoughts, if I believed correctly, stemmed from a Second Wave Feminism. <br /><br />However, Cat Grant wanted to take Kara to the third wave of feminism by initially liberating the hero from a trivial fuss about woman vs girl. In her response, Cat as if suggested that it did not matter whether the hero was named Supergirl or Superwoman, as long as she could define how she wanted the world to know her by herself. <br /><br />The image of the revived Supergirl has thus been completed: a vulnerable girl with superpower who wants to protect people of earth. With her vulnerable and humane depiction, and also affiliation to the girl power movement which is prevalent in the western world nowadays, even though Supergirl soars high in the sky, people can still closely relate to her. <br /><br />Maybe this time, Supergirl can even lift the curse placed on female-led superhero movies. Maybe. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMZn2QFVlL2xVEHpnSX5LJakebKQHo_d9uxHkYSfMu-3v_iyWBmnj85lS-sEoVfY-1MfbqImEGre__pwzg-d1F9L4q_NutVjfLJsh2Lihgp_y-kS6fUyRL_NwCshlIskZL0SkPeGJzWl8/s1600/supergirl.101.hdtv-lol%255Bettv%255D.mp4_002645345.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMZn2QFVlL2xVEHpnSX5LJakebKQHo_d9uxHkYSfMu-3v_iyWBmnj85lS-sEoVfY-1MfbqImEGre__pwzg-d1F9L4q_NutVjfLJsh2Lihgp_y-kS6fUyRL_NwCshlIskZL0SkPeGJzWl8/s640/supergirl.101.hdtv-lol%255Bettv%255D.mp4_002645345.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-39640032464087040892015-10-31T00:59:00.000+07:002015-10-31T01:03:29.721+07:00Let's Kick Our Colonial Mentality Out <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY-0u9B6nTGr_ToX5IoJWtw7dcMgUG4SYP_rFtzIG-GCOKRilb9-jn2q_YPDZSkZLz7DmnyWxaR1zfJGZzo6XczgCwuw2ur22x5tvZR1MbcdUsa2MDQB8X_B6elYbozktaGLGCibb5ZoQ/s1600/colonial-mentality-in-the-Philippines.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY-0u9B6nTGr_ToX5IoJWtw7dcMgUG4SYP_rFtzIG-GCOKRilb9-jn2q_YPDZSkZLz7DmnyWxaR1zfJGZzo6XczgCwuw2ur22x5tvZR1MbcdUsa2MDQB8X_B6elYbozktaGLGCibb5ZoQ/s320/colonial-mentality-in-the-Philippines.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The <a href="http://definitelyfilipino.com/blog/2014/12/the-filipino-colonial-mentality/">Philippines</a> also experience colonial mentality </td></tr>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Last night, I had dinner with two friends at an Italian restaurant
around Thamrin area, one of the main business districts in <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Central </span>Jakarta. It was a nice and open
door restaurant to hang out since I could enjoy the beautiful scene of Jakarta’s
glowing skyscrapers from where I sat. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My friends and I then ordered some snacks and beverage. The
food was good and not too pricy. <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">But, j</span>ust a couple of minutes after I finished my meals, one of
the waitresses cleaned my plate and <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">my </span>glass. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Do you want to order anything else?” she asked me who
replied with a simple “no thanks.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Then, the same waitress approached and cleaned my friend’s
plate as soon as she finished her meals, while asking the same question she
asked me. To which, my friend said, “later probably.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="_aOd rg_ilm">
<div class="rg_ilmbg">
<a class="rg_l" href="http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://images.clipartpanda.com/intimacy-clipart-inferiority-md.png&imgrefurl=http://www.clipartpanda.com/categories/inferiority-clipart&h=246&w=299&tbnid=c_lkf-RMuSRL7M:&docid=GLUmqNag6g8DsM&ei=W64zVrvDNcm00ASL_angDw&tbm=isch&ved=0CBwQMygAMABqFQoTCPvchbrh6sgCFUkalAodi34K_A" style="height: 190px; left: 0px; width: 232px;"><span class="rg_ilmn"> </span></a></div>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">My friends
and I</span> continued chatting for a while, talking about life and future plan<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">. While chatting,</span> my other
friend was finishing her food and enjoying her second bottle of liquor. Right
after she finished her meal, that waitress came to our table again, cleaned my
friend’s plate and took away the empty beer bottle<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s</span>. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Do you want to order anything else?”<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> <span lang="EN-US">the waitress said. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That was the third time the waitress asked that same
question to me and my friends. We then knew that it was the waitress’ "polite" way to
say “you finish your meal, please leave the place immediately.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I am a Javanese, my other friends are Maduranese and
Floresnese. In short, we are just typical Indonesian<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s: </span>black hair, darker skin, not so tall,
you know the rest. We stood out among other visitors of the restaurant who happened
to be white, <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">having </span>blond
or white hair, speaking French<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">
or </span>English<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">. </span><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After a small observation, I noticed that no waitress
approached the tables where the foreigners sat even though they had finished
their meals and emptied their beer bottles. No one bothered asking whether they
wanted to order anything else. <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Why? My best guess was because they were foreigners thus the
waitress ‘did not have the guts’ to do what she did to me and my friends. <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It really upset me that the waitress, who <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">is </span>an Indonesian, treated me and friends
differently than how she treated those foreigners. <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I probably would tolerate her act if there was
a queuing line outside the restaurant. But, there was no such line. There were
still many empty tables. Then, why did the waitress try to kick us out? Why didn’t
she kick the foreigners out? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span>It was like she instinctively did this
racist treatment only to her fellow Indonesian nationals. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Studies and theories mentioned that the waitress’ <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">act and </span>treatment to me and
my friends was based on a colonial mentality. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_mentality">Wikipedia </a>writes that
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
A colonial mentality is a conceptual theory around feelings
of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inferiority" title="Inferiority">inferiority</a>
within some societies post-European <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonialism" title="Colonialism">colonialism</a>,
relative to the values of the foreign powers which they became aware of through
the contact period of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonization" title="Colonization">colonization</a>. The concept essentially refers to the
acceptance, by the colonized, of the culture or doctrines of the colonizer as
intrinsically more worthy or superior”</div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Indonesian society, which was occupied by the Netherlands
for over 300 years, without a doubt exhibited such mentality. I would not lie
that I still felt inferior to people from the Western society every time I
interacted with them. However, <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">as
much as I feel inferior to the Westerners, I cannot believe that such </span>feeling
of inferiority <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">has led the
waitress to unconsciously did a</span> racist act <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">to me and my friends, her fellow Indonesians</span>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If my anecdotal story cannot be categorized as a display of
colonial mentality, then you probably need to read this opinion piece of Dewi
Anggraeni at <a href="http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2001/02/04/the-diehard-colonial-mentality.html">The
Jakarta Post</a>. <span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">In the
article, Dewi shared some instances of encountering people with colonial
mentality. You probably ever experienced this yourself without realizing it. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://images.clipartpanda.com/intimacy-clipart-inferiority-md.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Image result for inferiority clipart" border="0" class="rg_i" data-sz="f" name="c_lkf-RMuSRL7M:" src="data:image/png;base64,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" style="height: 190px; margin-top: 0px; width: 232px;" title="" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Colonial
mentality is a sickness in our society that we all need to eradicate. It is a
dangerous trait because it makes you always feel inferior of our own nation. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I have been
working in international setting for almost three years and I dare to say that Indonesia
has its own distinctive beautiful values that other nations lack of. Indonesia
may not be a perfect nation, but so are other nations. The superpower nation, USA,
for instance, is a nation of paradigm. While it declares itself as a champion
of human rights and democracy, the nations’ policies and social reality quite
often contradicts those core values. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
is nothing as a perfect nation, I believe. Each country has its own positive and
negative values. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Therefore,
we really need to start throwing away the feeling of inferiority to citizens of
other nations. Once we are able to kick our feeling of inferiority, then I believe Indonesians can more develop themselves and will have better confidence in facing the global society and competition. Lastly, b</span><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">e proud of being an Indonesian because believe me; the
Westerners I have worked with, they really love Indonesia.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-52634208175871296672015-10-22T17:27:00.004+07:002015-10-22T23:20:48.899+07:00Is app-based ojek a messiah for Jakarta’s traffic? <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl3150My3F4QBRIfAn54Keo1LL3fhPjxh8qKSTmNteekqsvVWzZKT7WIPy730VPBQ545iAQiGy83oOopZzZdI-wzkT2ZcpYp2Z9hYXe1T1JqY3utUR8Z91kc-MoB38PrzF3Mn6ke15an8/s1600/11244012_327856970671773_1223331186_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl3150My3F4QBRIfAn54Keo1LL3fhPjxh8qKSTmNteekqsvVWzZKT7WIPy730VPBQ545iAQiGy83oOopZzZdI-wzkT2ZcpYp2Z9hYXe1T1JqY3utUR8Z91kc-MoB38PrzF3Mn6ke15an8/s200/11244012_327856970671773_1223331186_n.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
App-based motorcycle taxi, known as ojek, in Jakarta is the capital’s newest sensation. When you hit the road, you will find it extremely easy to see motorists donning green helmet which displays <a href="http://www.go-jek.com/">Gojek</a> or <a href="http://grabtaxi.com/jakarta-indonesia/category/grabbike/">Grabbike</a> logo on it. They boast that they have thousands of drivers in the capital. <br /><br />Gojek and Grabbike are two smartphone applications that enable users to order ojek with a rational price. They break away from the conventional ojek which usually charge irrational fare. They calculate fare based on distance through google map. <br /><br />For instance, I once tried to take an ojek from my office building to a train station which is only 5 km away. If I took a taxi, it would cost me around Rp 40 thousand. However, it was a Friday evening, meaning that only miracle could help me get a taxi in Sudirman area, the main business district in the capital. After waiting for an empty cab for more than an hour, I gave up.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://assets.kompas.com/data/photo/2013/03/01/1441345-tok-kendaraan-terjebak-macet-780x390.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://assets.kompas.com/data/photo/2013/03/01/1441345-tok-kendaraan-terjebak-macet-780x390.jpg" height="200" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The notorious 'Macet' in Sudirman Area during peak hours<br />
credit: <a href="http://kompas.com/">Kompas.com</a> </td></tr>
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Then, I decided to take an ojek to take me to the station since my train was about to leave in an hour. I approached one driver, who he told me that the fare was Rp 50 thousand. I then tried to find 4 other ojek drivers only to be offered with similar range of fare. I finally agreed with Rp 45 thousand since I got no other choice. <br /><br />The ojek drivers cited he charged me with Rp 45 thousand because the route was far; they should navigate through the congestion; and many other irrational reasons. I did not buy their reasons because I am a motorbike rider myself. I know what ‘far’ is and I think 5 km is not that ‘far.’<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://images.cnnindonesia.com/visual/2015/06/11/fdfbdf90-d50a-4afc-a149-35720e5851de_169.jpg?w=650" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://images.cnnindonesia.com/visual/2015/06/11/fdfbdf90-d50a-4afc-a149-35720e5851de_169.jpg?w=650" height="360" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gojek driver and his passenger</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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If only I used app-based ojek, I mostly would spend less than Rp 25 thousand for that travel. Gojek, for instance, charges its passengers with Rp 25 thousand for minimum use of 6 km. If there is a promo, I probably will only spend Rp 5 thousand!<br /><br />Rational price, transparent fare calculation and reliability. These are probably the reasons why app-based ojek is so popular in Jakarta for the last two months. Both Gojek and Grabbike (downloaded as GrabTaxi) have been downloaded by more than 1 million people in Play Store. <br /><br />The popularity of app-based ojek shows that Jakartans actually really need public transportation that they can rely on. I sometimes find it exhausting to ride my motorbike, navigating through the crazy city traffic all the time. That is why, I have been using these app-based ojek for some times now and I find them extremely helpful. All I need to do is open my phone, wait patiently, and just hop on the bike.<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrreqSdengRfZhqdEj_3qcRVber6N8Gg_sKTfhIfJbpUuX62ymAd3RgOClndziaeVfJUaUQtIWzyGC0unnCB1Vdc6k1CNSvUZdXPssqVjE9TtLTrSHkQ6zUxY0lCHA2eziYA5GJj7r-cg/s1600/penumpang_transjakarta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrreqSdengRfZhqdEj_3qcRVber6N8Gg_sKTfhIfJbpUuX62ymAd3RgOClndziaeVfJUaUQtIWzyGC0unnCB1Vdc6k1CNSvUZdXPssqVjE9TtLTrSHkQ6zUxY0lCHA2eziYA5GJj7r-cg/s320/penumpang_transjakarta.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Inside a crowded Transjakarta</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Credit: unclegoop.com</span></td></tr>
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<br />True, the Jakarta city administration has been developing other means of public transportation. The city favorite Transjakarta bus is one of them. With only Rp 3,500, you are able to commute all across the city. However, the bus is oftentimes not reliable. The headway is still very long. Sometimes, you have to wait for an hour for a bus to show up. In peak hours, the bus become extremely crowded and inconvenient to ride. Either being squeezed in the bus or going home late at night, your call.<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYomLR6t7cpXn5lQpRoKLvypoj1ikzd0VHlOX45c3ngxwe3LxgKHYCb9pgv0g7WT5TLzjPcLNao7l5xsyNEv6-Q-KhlINVFp7bAeS6qzr3yaVGgd_ZzF2y4avOCM9RLgGoxed2V2azHks/s1600/krl1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYomLR6t7cpXn5lQpRoKLvypoj1ikzd0VHlOX45c3ngxwe3LxgKHYCb9pgv0g7WT5TLzjPcLNao7l5xsyNEv6-Q-KhlINVFp7bAeS6qzr3yaVGgd_ZzF2y4avOCM9RLgGoxed2V2azHks/s320/krl1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">'Fish in a can'<br />Credit: <a href="http://wepreventcrime.wordpress.com/">wepreventcrime.wordpress.com</a></span></td></tr>
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The other means of transportation is the city train system Commuter Line. Similar to its cousin, Transjakarta, Commuter Line is also a favorite since we can travel to the outskirts of Jakarta and its satellite cities with low price. Also, it is free of macet! However, as its cousin, riding in a Commuter Line train at peak hours is like being a fish in a can i.e. you barely can stand.<br /><br />Other than Transjakarta bus and Commuter Line trains is crappy city buses, which have roamed the city traffic since the 80s, probably. The buses are old and poorly maintained. And, you need to pay more cautions since pickpockets love to ride such buses as well. While it is true that some bus operators start to rejuvenate their fleet, but the number of the new buses are still very limited. <br /><br /> Enough said. The city lacks proper public transportation. Thus, when app-based ojek is launched, it suddenly becomes popular because Jakartans consider such ojek as the alternative for proper public transportation in the city.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz-QTHfhwkXOt1zfeK6vtdToWN-uSy9mXbL9Mv8wMMikEXJVcNd4Nfel0W80g-QEgH53FEWlBPnEAw4qR1D1fWhtZ7tWThO3FrXy8AD2zD7OcyULAj1DNwdMQw_bu0B4M5ewAkbirc4ac/s1600/11850184_520630854755214_1954916405_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz-QTHfhwkXOt1zfeK6vtdToWN-uSy9mXbL9Mv8wMMikEXJVcNd4Nfel0W80g-QEgH53FEWlBPnEAw4qR1D1fWhtZ7tWThO3FrXy8AD2zD7OcyULAj1DNwdMQw_bu0B4M5ewAkbirc4ac/s320/11850184_520630854755214_1954916405_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inside the legendary PPD 213bus (by Rizqi Arifuddin)</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />However, people should also realize that these app-based ojek is not the solution to the city problem. Even though I really love these ojek, I still firmly believe that mass public transportation is still the answer to solve the worsening traffic in Jakarta. Motorcycle is not a form of public transportation as it only accommodates two people. <br /><br />As the graphic above shows you, train is the answer for Jakarta’s traffic as it can accommodate thousands of people into one set of train. Ojek meanwhile can only accommodate one passenger. Imagine how many ojek the city will need if more and more people use gojek and grabbike. In fact, Jakarta streets already house thousands, if not millions, of motorcycles every day. Thus, I highly expect that the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) train that the city administration is developing will not fail us. It may be the answer to solve the city’s worsening congestion. <br /><br />Until that day comes, gojek and grabbike may become the alternative way of commuting in Jakarta, at least for me.<br /><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://assets-a1.kompasiana.com/statics/files/1431317829972823746.jpg?t=o&v=1200" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://assets-a1.kompasiana.com/statics/files/1431317829972823746.jpg?t=o&v=1200" height="324" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">MRT Jakarta Plan<br />
Credit: <a href="http://www.kompasiana.com/mariodarmawanw/2017-mrt-sudah-beroperasi-di-dki-jakarta-woww_55546f376523bd6f144aef58">Kompasiana.com</a> </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-19497192278563402112014-06-20T09:20:00.000+07:002015-10-31T01:05:22.647+07:00Ramadan Lifestyle in Capital: Partying or Praying?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw5q3Xj0383keyAgWchyphenhyphenBql3_6NJqqVCrWlfg1_BJw9ue5YgxV9BjzKm_p4qOoDz97rXTdNEZJT5xkwU-r4rCV2DHR2J8jWP0wcXA6yTEkZtFqf1fNn8q_Quvhp79aC8m9uyB70039rY0/s1600/ramadhan-mega-sale.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw5q3Xj0383keyAgWchyphenhyphenBql3_6NJqqVCrWlfg1_BJw9ue5YgxV9BjzKm_p4qOoDz97rXTdNEZJT5xkwU-r4rCV2DHR2J8jWP0wcXA6yTEkZtFqf1fNn8q_Quvhp79aC8m9uyB70039rY0/s400/ramadhan-mega-sale.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
In
one week, Muslims all around the world will welcome the holy month of Ramadan.
In this month of devotion, evaluation and reflection, Muslims are all expected
to increase their prayers so that after the month ends, they will become better
persons.</div>
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<br /></div>
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The
Holy Quran has taught Muslims that during the Holy Month, they should have more
worshipping activities. Muslims are essentially taught to be closer to the
Creator. </div>
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<br /></div>
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However,
my two year stay in Jakarta has taught me a different face of Ramadan</div>
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<br /></div>
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The
capital city has taught me that Ramadan is the month of discounts and sales. Starting
next week, malls around the city will probably start offering discounts that
are so hard for us to ignore. Thus, during Ramadan, instead of swarming
mosques, people will swarm malls. </div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
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Sales
and discounts have clouded our memories of a promise that God once made. We
suddenly forgot He once said that our one good deed would be counted as ten
good deeds during Ramadan. We suddenly forgot that there is a night in the month
when one night of prayer is equal to a thousand months of prayers.</div>
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We
just forget that, or probably we choose to forget that. We probably choose to
remember that Ramadan is a month when I can “buy two get three” at malls.
</div>
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<br /></div>
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The
capital city has also taught me that Ramadan is the month of excessive social
gathering. Breaking the fast together, known as <i>bukber</i>, is ubiquitous during
this time of year. Have you for once tried to count how many <i>bukber </i>you
had last year?</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
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In day three, for example, our elementary school friends held <i>bukber</i>. In day
five we had <i>bukber </i>with college friends, day seven with high school
friends. The <i>bukber </i>list went on and on and on until day
30 with invitations from various groups that we are part of.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Feeling
familiar? </div>
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<br /></div>
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Without
realizing, you and I have spent our Ramadan only with <i>bukber</i> here, <i>bukber</i>
there, <i>bukber</i> everywhere. Now that I wrote down this experience, I
realize that I hardly said no to those invitations. </div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://superfluorescent.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/dscn2651.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://superfluorescent.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/dscn2651.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">only illustration</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br /></div>
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While
<i>bukber </i>is overwhelming, you may even be invited for post <i>bukber </i>activities.
Sadly, post <i>buber </i>activities that I ever attended were far from being
labeled as religious. They included karaoke, watching movies or chatting with
old friends all night long until <i>sahur</i> time arrived. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The
<i>bukber </i>and post <i>bukber </i>participants – I myself included – have thus
frequently forgotten to pray when the time comes, or again, simply choose to
forget? Thus, instead of a month to gather God’s reward, I think Ramadan has
turned to be a month to gather more unnecessary sins. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I
spent the first five years of my life in Pekalongan, a city in Central Java
which is known as the city of ‘<i>Santri</i>’ or Islamic students. Then, I moved to
Surakarta, a city more heterogenic and larger than Pekalongan. If my
memory serves me well, my Ramadan experience was much better than what I had
lately.<br />
</div>
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I
remember spending hours of hours of Quran reciting. I remember going to the
mosque having Tarawih prayer every evening throughout the month. I remember
breaking fast together with my family was my awaited moment after a whole day
of fasting. I remember having just one or two <i>bukber</i>, and not more than
that. </div>
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<br /></div>
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However,
like dew after the sun shines, I never experienced them again after living
Jakarta for two years, it is all just gone.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I
do not blame the city, no I don’t. I know it is my fault for not being able to reject
the hedonistic lifestyle during Ramadan which, the last time I check, is still not
advocated anywhere in my Holy Book. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Now
as Ramadan nears, questions linger in my mind. Am I now ready to welcome
the holy month this year? Am I ready to resurrect my childhood and teenage memories in this city? </div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-63669994565890692582014-05-31T01:55:00.001+07:002015-11-01T11:16:26.885+07:00Presidential Election, Metro TV and TV One<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKLE5kXRrGGS5R-ilR0x5DAFu5dQM8T8Xk4fWAqPom2Jbx2zG8OFj6Z3CPD_UJJ4iDYacoVY4qG_fA6WwT4JM7NBDkq2s7rggozOdypC7Ne_8aE6IBKHotmiYWBNq9T79Kn6VCK-flCgE/s1600/1400553085865675744.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKLE5kXRrGGS5R-ilR0x5DAFu5dQM8T8Xk4fWAqPom2Jbx2zG8OFj6Z3CPD_UJJ4iDYacoVY4qG_fA6WwT4JM7NBDkq2s7rggozOdypC7Ne_8aE6IBKHotmiYWBNq9T79Kn6VCK-flCgE/s1600/1400553085865675744.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">News Giant Battle Credit: <a href="http://www.pulsk.com/545759/Metro-TV-VS-Tv-One-Dalam-Pertarungan-Pemilihan-President-dan-wakil-President.html">Pulsk.com</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As the presidential election draws
closer, observing some major media in Indonesia has become a very interesting
activity to do. By doing such a thing, one can really learn how media actively
engages in the nation’s political environment.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">This post was written as a simple
result of observation in some online media. I observed the twitter accounts of television
stations Metro TV and TVone. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
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</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">Metro TV belongs to the Media Group
owned by businessman Surya Paloh, who happens to be the chairman of the
National Democratic Party (NasDem). In this presidential election, the party
sides with presidential and vice presidential candidate Joko “Jokowi” Widodo
and Jusuf Kalla, or known as JK. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">Meanwhile, TV One belongs to the Viva
News group owned by businessman Aburizal Bakrie, who chairs the Golkar
Party. The party chooses to support presidential and vice presidential candidate
Prabowo and Hatta Rajasa. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">I once wrote in this blog about
media’s role in politics. I reasserted existing opinions that those who control
media control the nation. And there is no more vivid period than this time to
observe that opinions. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">Although both the Media Group and
Viva News Groups have pledged to maintain their independence regardless their
owners’ political affiliations, the reality speaks differently. They cannot avoid
bias reporting in their news, each group supporting a certain presidential
candidate.</span></div>
<br />
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">I observed twitter posts of the two
media published throughout the whole day on May 30, 2014. During the period, I
noted tweets and news concerning presidential candidates. Some difficulties
encountered included the two media’s activeness in Twitter. Metro TV’s account @Metro_TV
is very active but TV One, @tvOneNews, is not. Within one hour, Metro TV can post
between 9-13 tweets, while TV One can only post between 2-5 tweets. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="border: solid black 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 154.0pt;" valign="top" width="205"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">TV Station’s Twitter
Account<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid black 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-left-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 154.05pt;" valign="top" width="205"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">News on Jokowi – JK<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid black 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-left-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 154.05pt;" valign="top" width="205"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">News on Prabowo –
Hatta<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid black 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-top-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-top-themecolor: text1; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 154.0pt;" valign="top" width="205"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">Metro TV<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid black 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid black 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-bottom-themecolor: text1; mso-border-left-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-left-themecolor: text1; mso-border-right-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-top-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-top-themecolor: text1; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 154.05pt;" valign="top" width="205"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">11 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid black 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid black 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-bottom-themecolor: text1; mso-border-left-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-left-themecolor: text1; mso-border-right-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-top-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-top-themecolor: text1; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 154.05pt;" valign="top" width="205"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">11<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid black 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-top-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-top-themecolor: text1; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 154.0pt;" valign="top" width="205"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">TV One<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid black 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid black 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-bottom-themecolor: text1; mso-border-left-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-left-themecolor: text1; mso-border-right-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-top-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-top-themecolor: text1; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 154.05pt;" valign="top" width="205"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">4<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid black 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid black 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-bottom-themecolor: text1; mso-border-left-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-left-themecolor: text1; mso-border-right-themecolor: text1; mso-border-themecolor: text1; mso-border-top-alt: solid black .5pt; mso-border-top-themecolor: text1; padding: 0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; width: 154.05pt;" valign="top" width="205"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">9<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">Now, based on the figure above,
Metro TV gave equal amounts of news of both Jokowi-JK and Prabowo-Hatta. Meanwhile,
TV One, during the observed day, only ran 4 news on Jokowi-JK, nearly half of
news on Prabowo-Hatta it ran. Reflecting from this figure, I could argue that
TV One is more bias than Metro TV in terms of quantity of news of both presidential
candidates. This bias can probably be influenced
by the fact that TV One is owned by Bakrie, who was promised a special position
in the cabinet if Prabowo was elected as a president. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN-US"><img src="http://jurnalpatrolinews.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/jokowi-vs-prabowo11.jpg" height="388" width="640" /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">Aside from looking at the quantity,
I also observed the theme of the news ran by Metro TV and TV One in their
twitter accounts. Based on my own notes, I could classify the news they
presented on May 30, 2014 in their twitter accounts in two major themes. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">The first theme concerns on how each
presidential candidate gathers supports from various members of society. Metro
TV ran a couple of news on how Jokowi was endorsed and supported by youth
groups, women’s group, businessman, farmers and fishermen and religious group.
It only published one news on people from Makassar that chose to support
Prabowo. Meanwhile, in its twitter account, TV One ran two news on Prabowo that
received supports from former athletes and youth groups. It did not run any
single news on groups that declared their supports on Jokowi. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">Looking at this news theme, it can
be argued that Metro TV tried to strengthen Jokowi’s image as a pluralist leader
who can embrace various layers of society from farmers to businessman, youth groups to women as well as religious group.
Likewise, TV One attempted to shape Prabowo as a leader who cared for neglected
group like former athletes and appealed to young generations. In this construction,
it can be seen that both tv stations no longer apply their ‘non-bias’ views. They
try to foster the good image of one particular presidential candidate to
influence their viewers. So, imagine if you only watch Metro TV, then you will
be brainwashed with all of the goodnews on Jokowi. Likewise, that will happen
in you only watch TV One, you will be brainwashed by Prabowo.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">The second theme concerns on
exploiting the weaknesses of each presidential candidate. As an illustration,
both of the presidential candidates have some grey areas in their past that can
be exploited to attack them. Prabowo, a former military commander, is suspected
as one of the masterminds behind various human rights abuse in Indonesia during
Soeharto regime. Jokowi, current Jakarta governor, is allegedly implicated in a
graft case concerning the procurement of Transjakarta buses. Both media, as
predicted, use these allegations to attack the presidential candidates they are
not favor of. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">Metro TV, for instance, ran one news
on statement from human rights activist, Haris Azhar of Kontras, who demanded
that the government should open the reason why Prabowo was fired from the
Indonesian Military Army. The news stated that Haris alleged Prabowo was fired
due to his involvement in the forced disappearance of activists in 1997-1998
who criticized Soeharto, who was Prabowo’s former father in law. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
<span lang="EN-US">Meanwhile, TV One, run three news
that in my opinion discredited Jokowi. One news video, titled “Jokowi on leave,
Jakarta Still Has Abundant Problems”, narrates that Jokowi still leaves various
problems lingering in Jakarta. They include floods, traffic jam, social
disparity and others. Uniquely, the video does not have a voice over in it.
Rather, the video is built up of many old images and video footages. The other
two videos tells a group of 1998 activists who complained to the Corruption
Eradication Commission (KPK) because they thought that Jokowi’s way of fund
raising for presidential election opens door to gratification. And one last video
tells that the Attorney General Office (Kejagung) never summons Jokowi although
he has been rumored to be implicated in the Transjakarta graft case.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">The two tv stations exploited the grey and uncharted side of each presidential candidate to attack them. And imagine if you only watch Metro TV, then you will not really pay attention to the graft case allegation that implicates Jokowi. Similarly, if you only watch TV One, then you will not know that Prabowo is still believed to be responsible for serious human rights abuse in this country. This grey area, I believe, will always be exploited to attack them if one of them wins the election. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">The observation on the twitter
accounts of Metro TV and TV One, although conducted in a very short time and
simple manner, has proven that they are not independence as they promised. They
are politically engaged with the presidential candidate that is endorsed by
their owner. Each television station tries to foster good image of a certain
presidential candidate, and likewise, each also tries to shatter the image of a
particular presidential candidate. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">I believe that those who read this
post are critical thinkers. My simple and not so scientific writing here proves
that media can direct and control you if you are not critical. Thus, I encourage
you to be more critical in reading media in Indonesia during these determining
times. Do not be consumed by blatant fanaticism to a particular presidential
candidate just because based on media representation. You have to have valid arguments as to why you
choose a certain presidential candidate as well as why you do not want to
choose the other presidential candidate. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US">What is so good in knowing one
candidate so much but not knowing a single thing about the other candidate? Well,
anyone you choose, I just want to remind you to be considerate because he
(sadly no she this time) will lead Indonesia for the next five years.</span></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-50878059326569539812014-03-21T16:01:00.000+07:002015-10-31T01:13:05.078+07:00Jokowi and Presidency<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdTv75wD-EimzGFEAcR_MuLYQST3wnm_ATOY1mvwHBbvgRle5djz3OiSeE-pyXeg_d6p5whPwErfMUJdbn_L72nG5gnMQVobMONKQYmAwtTyhyphenhyphen3izXe-GvjPG-KBB91RZuLlhqLNmjifc/s1600/12987827_0.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="440" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdTv75wD-EimzGFEAcR_MuLYQST3wnm_ATOY1mvwHBbvgRle5djz3OiSeE-pyXeg_d6p5whPwErfMUJdbn_L72nG5gnMQVobMONKQYmAwtTyhyphenhyphen3izXe-GvjPG-KBB91RZuLlhqLNmjifc/s640/12987827_0.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Credit: <a href="http://www.todayonline.com/commentary/jokowi-way-development">Todayonline.com</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It has been a week since the Indonesian Democratic Party of
Struggle (PDIP) announced that instead of nominating its chairperson as it used
to do, the party would endorse its most famous member, Jakarta Governor Joko ‘Jokowi’
Widodo, as a presidential candidate in the upcoming election.</div>
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Public is split into two: those who support the nomination
and who are against it. </div>
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The supporters deem that Jokowi, who won the second runner up in the 2012 World Mayor Prize, needs to join the race to
reach the nation’s top office because he represents a fresh figure and a young
leader. Public also deem him worthy enough to grace all people of Indonesia with
his humble characteristic, a rare trait among many nation’s contemporary political
elites. <br />
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However, Jokowi's participation is met with lots of criticisms. Jokowi, who was elected as the Jakarta Governor in
2012, still has three more years until the end of his term at the capital city.
His participation in the gubernatorial race in 2012 also drew criticism because
at that time he was just starting his second term as Surakarta mayor. This is
where Jokowi would be most criticized at i.e. he never finishes his term. </div>
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But then, if not Jokowi, who else?<br />
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At first, I was among those who were against Jokowi’s presidential
candidate nomination. I was among those who thought that the former Surakarta
Mayor should finish his term at Jakarta. I was firmed that Jokowi’s time would
be in 2019. </div>
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Nevertheless, as the election drew closer, I personally saw
no potential leaders. We are in a crisis of future leaders. Nearly all young
and potential leaders are involved in high profile corruption scandals (Anas
Urbaningrum and Andi Malarangeng to name a few).</div>
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Public surveys in 2012 were dominated by old figures like
retired Indonesian Army (TNI) General Wiranto, Bakrie group leader Abu Rizal
Bakrie (who by the way is allegedly responsible for the Sidoarjo mud disaster),
former military elites Prabowo and former president Megawati Soekarnoputri. Tailing
them are names such as former vice president Jusuf Kalla, eccentric and
controversial minister Dahlan Iskan and former chief of Constitutional Court
Mahfud MD. Young and intelligent figures such as Dino Patti Jalal, who served
as the Indonesian ambassador for United States, and Gita Wirjawan, former trade
minister, also appear in such surveys although securing insignificant supports.
Among that long list of names, Prabowo,
the chief patron of the Great Indonesian Movement Party (Gerindra) always
finished at the top of the surveys in that year. </div>
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Prabowo’s popularity seemed unchallenged until public
surveys started to include Jokowi as a potential presidential candidate. Throughout
2013, nearly all surveys on who should be the next president always placed
Jokowi at the top place, dethroning Prabowo. </div>
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It seems that I really dislike Prabowo … the truth is yes … I
am afraid of what this country will become shall he become a president. </div>
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During my career as a reporter throughout 2012, I frequently
chatted with victims of human rights abuse. I heard stories of students and
activists who were abducted and ‘forced to disappear.’ Their stories really
stuck in my head. And Prabowo is allegedly involved in various human rights
abuse during the New Order regime. Even though it is never been proven, I believe
allegations, and strong ones, would not appear for no reasons. I, for whatever
reasons, do not want to be led by a man who has bad reputations (and Prabowo is
indeed notorious out there. Some countries including US and Australia blacklisted
him until now for his allegations)</div>
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If not Jokowi, then Prabowo will win. That is why I change
my mind. I support Jokowi’s ticket for presidency. I prefer to be led by Jokowi
who, so far, does not really have bad records except for abandoning his post
two times. What is worse can happen? If chosen as a president, Jokowi, like it
or not, will have to finish his 5-year terms. </div>
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Jokowi, I believe, will draw so many criticisms from his
contenders and haters. They, for example, started to say that Jokowi is only a
puppet whose string is pulled by Megawati. They all argue that Megawati has not
relinquished her presidential ambition. </div>
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Responding to this criticism, I will argue that it is up to
the public to watch over Jokowi as well as Megawati shall he become the nation’s
seventh president. People’s power as the history has narrated has been proven
as the most effective way to watchdog the government. Public should remain critical
to Jokowi as much loveable as he is. People should keep an eye on him so that,
if chosen as a president, he will still be the same Jokowi as we all know: a humble
leader who is known for his strictness and yet softer approach to embrace all
classes of society. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://stat.ks.kidsklik.com/statics/files/2013/02/13620629022103021330.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://stat.ks.kidsklik.com/statics/files/2013/02/13620629022103021330.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Credit: <a href="http://politik.kompasiana.com/2013/10/24/faktanya-jokowi-memang-musuh-bersama--603396.html">Lucky2000, blogger Kompasiana</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0Jakarta, DKI Jakarta, Indonesia-6.2087634 106.84559899999999-6.4613213999999992 106.5228755 -5.9562054 107.16832249999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-23173137506625193792014-02-11T13:59:00.003+07:002015-10-31T01:10:27.834+07:00Movie Review | The Lego Movie Delivers not only Laugh but also Wisdom <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Lego, the ubiquitous colored plastic brick toys, has paved
its way to the big screen. And guess what? Their first ever 3D animated movie
should be on your must-watch list.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpTK_OtEQb80o0I6AE1F0paLPwE2Q8B9hyFU-IuhH8MVrmer3FgcHalok-mI3uits1rwI-B-C_i_Tpui1DsuAkvc3ITj8QkBBeCAoLjTSZrUwGJ1j6VpceIt-waemAMJiPZVK-0cnCSM4/s1600/The_Lego_Movie_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpTK_OtEQb80o0I6AE1F0paLPwE2Q8B9hyFU-IuhH8MVrmer3FgcHalok-mI3uits1rwI-B-C_i_Tpui1DsuAkvc3ITj8QkBBeCAoLjTSZrUwGJ1j6VpceIt-waemAMJiPZVK-0cnCSM4/s320/The_Lego_Movie_poster.jpg" width="216" /></a><a href="http://thelegomovie.warnerbros.com/">The Lego Movie</a> follows the life of Emmet (voice of <a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/chris_pratt/">ChrisPratt</a>), a yellow-skinned construction worker, who finds a piece of relic that
is sought by everyone. In the movie opening, sorcerer Vituvius (<a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/morgan_freeman/">Morgan Freeman</a>)
prophesizes that anyone finding the relic would save the world from the Lord
Business (<a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/will_ferrell/">Will Ferrel</a>). Emmet should fulfill his destiny to become “The Special
One”, a master builder destined to save the world. Accompanied by his faithful
companions, Wyldstyle (<a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/elizabeth_banks/">Elizabeth Bank</a>), Batman (<a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/will_arnett/">Will Arnett</a>) and Vituvius, Emmet
embarks on an adventurous journey that will forever change not only his life
but also the world. During the adventure, Emmet and his friends must avoid from
being captured by the Lord Business and his trusted servant, Bad Cop (<a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/liam_neeson/">LiamNeeson</a>). </div>
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One hundred and forty minutes run fast when I watched The
Lego Movie. </div>
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The opening scenes of the movie unlock the door to my past
memory of playing Lego®. Yes, as a kid raised in the 90s, Lego® was must-have toys! I recalled days when I constructed various shapes of castles,
robots or space-ships from dozens blocks of Lego ® my parents bought me. And such
reminiscing emotion lasts till the very last scene.</div>
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So does that mean people who have no memories of playing
Lego ® will not enjoy The Lego Movie? My dear reader, even if you never play
Lego ®, trust me, you will still enjoy if not love the movie!</div>
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I wrote no hyperbolism when I said that I could not stop laughing
or just raising my eye brows throughout the movie. The movie is funny! Each
scene seems to conceal potential laugh-trigger. <br />
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<a href="http://www.intofilm.org/images/764/scaledcropped/651x366/resources/764/the-lego-movie-iff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.intofilm.org/images/764/scaledcropped/651x366/resources/764/the-lego-movie-iff.jpg" height="358" width="640" /></a></div>
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For example, in one scene, Emmet has to address a bunch of master builders which consist of
famous icons from Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Gandalf, Dumbledore, to
Abraham Lincoln (surely, all in their Lego forms)! How can he - a simple construction worker - convince these master that he is their prophesized leader. Surely,
it will not be fun if I spoil here whether or not he is successful to convince
them. </div>
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Besides all of the laughter and joys, The Lego Movie
surprisingly also hides some profound messages. The movie beautifully
tells you the meaning of “becoming special” and “becoming creative” in the
life. Some scenes on the last part of the movie have even made my eyes teary
due to its significance and meanings to my own life. </div>
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I have no other words than saying The Lego Movie is a film
that anyone can enjoy. I thank the movie’s directors, Phill Lord and Christopher
Miller, for creating such a beautiful,
fun, entertaining and profound movie. </div>
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<b>Score: 4.5 of 5</b></div>
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-77964274694605800402014-01-09T15:47:00.003+07:002015-10-22T23:22:57.443+07:00Movie Review | When Laskar Pelangi loses its magic<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I still recalled a day when <i>Laskar Pelangi</i>, a 2008
film inspired by Andrea Hirata’s best-selling novel of the same title, became
the talk of the town. The same happened when <i>Sang Pemimpi</i>, the
second adaptation to the second Laskar Pelangi novel was released in 2010. Therefore, hopes were high that the third sequel of <i>Laskar Pelangi</i> would follow their steps.</div>
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<a href="http://www.21cineplex.com/slowmotion/ini-dia-poster-dan-trailer-perdana-film-edensor,4295.htm" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcY08q5VKZAusWEsyO3jBVEVwypaxmNVBnglfFIL5XMYxJu2U_saaZwYydVnnTab07Wrqc_B-01yOkEEVCkE4jWhshb0ZZeqUr55nPBJwUTnOG1HPmcAl9kA8uiKcf0SxeElXzKpLAEB8/s1600/Edensor.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>
Produced by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mira_Lesmana">Mira Lesmana</a> and directed by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riri_Riza">Riri Reza</a>, <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laskar_Pelangi">LaskarPelangi</a></i> and <i><a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sang_Pemimpi_(film)">Sang </a><a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sang_Pemimpi_(film)">Pemimp</a>i</i> have definitely secured their places in
Indonesia’s film history as key films that will be discussed in years to come.
They are a good example of movie adaptation. Not only did they enjoy commercial
success, they were also considered as acclaimed cinematic products. </div>
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Mira and Riri are indeed well-known for their magic hands. Their
initial works – <i><a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuldesak_(film)">Kuldesak</a> </i>(1998)<i>, <a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petualangan_Sherina">Petualangan Sherina </a></i>(2000) and <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ada_Apa_dengan_Cinta%3F">AdaApa dengan Cinta?</a> </i>(2002)- have brought Indonesia’s film industry to a renaissance
era. </div>
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However, the movie geniuses are absent in the third installment
of <i>Laskar Pelangi</i>. </div>
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<a href="http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2013/12/29/laskar-pelangi-2-edensor-a-dream-confused.html">The Jakarta Post reported that Mizan, Laskar Pelangi’scinematic copyright owner, wanted the third movie be immediately released</a>.
However, Mira and Riri, according to the
Post, were still busy with another project.</div>
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As replacement, <a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benni_Setiawan">Benni Setiawan</a>, an award winning director,
was hired as the new director as well as the scriptwriter for the third movie
entitled –oddly as– <a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edensor_(film)">Laskar Pelangi 2: Edensor</a>. (Confused why it is labeled 2
instead of 3? Well so am I). Benni was known for his works including Madre
(2013), 3 Hati, Dua Dunia, Satu Cinta (2010) and Bukan Cinta Biasa (2006). </div>
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In <i>Edensor</i>, Ikal (Lukman Sardi) and his distant
cousin Arai (Abimana Aryasatya) have acquired scholarships to study in the
University of Paris-Sorbonne. Ikal studies economics while Arai biology. </div>
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Living a modest life, Ikal and Arai want to financially help
their families in Belitung. As they cannot rely on their scholarship funds,
they then find side jobs from being waiters until being street musicians. </div>
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They have ordinary lives there: They make friends from
various countries. Ikal even set his eye on a German girl named Katya (Astrid Roos).
His feeling luckily is not unrequited. Ikal, however, is involved in an inner
conflict as he undergoes a relationship with a woman who has a very different
racial, cultural and religious background. </div>
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As Ikal’s closest friend, Arai warns his cousin that their
aim is to study instead of focusing on love. Thus, Arai scolds Ikal when his
grades are failing; Ikal's academic life is disturbed by his romantic life.
Arai and Ikal, then, are awkwardly involved in a cold war (yeah, you cannot
really do much if you live in a same room). </div>
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The first 45 minutes of the movie, at least, tells about that
theme: shallow average college life. The rest 45 minutes, disappointingly,
still continues that shallow narration. </div>
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I cannot remember how many times I checked my mobile phone
when I watched the movie. It was so boring! I felt that 90 minutes ran so slow.
Benni could make it into a 60-minute movie if he wanted. The movie, in my
opinion, is full of unimportant scenes. I felt like I was watching a sinetron
instead of a movie back then. </div>
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Then, another disappointment is located on the narration. By
far, it is the worst Laskar Pelangi movie in terms of its narration. The first
and the second movie have good narration schemes. But sadly, Edensor fails to
maintain it. For instance, the conflict in Edensor is … wait, is there really a
conflict in the movie? I think I can just skip the first 40 minutes of the movie
and can still understand the movie’s ending. I seriously wanted to push the
fast forward button when I watched <i>Edensor</i>. </div>
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Despite all of the disappointment, however, I should praise
Idris Sardi and Abimana Aryasatya’s multi talented skill. Many scenes require
them to speak in French (one of the most difficult language in the world).
They, in my eyes, have succeeded to speak French. They have also enlivened
Ikal-Arai’s bromance so that I as the audience can feel the sincere friendship
between them. </div>
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The magic of the
first and second movie of <i>Laskar Pelangi </i>is undoubtedly lost in <i>Edensor</i>.
It has lost its spell that binds people to pay attention to it. The third film
has hurt my expectation of <i>Laskar </i>Pelangi film adaptations so bad. </div>
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<b>Score: 1.5/5 <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
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<b>(SPOILER ALERT! CONTINUE READING IF YOU WANT. YOU’VE BEEN
WARNED)<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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The ending scene is so unimportant as it featured Andrea
Hirata himself sitting in his own Museum Kata in Belitung. Who asked him to
appear in the film? His whole appearance in the movie has no relevancy. The
movie is about him. Ikal is Andrea. Why should he himself appear? I still cannot
understand why that ending scene was set in the first place. </div>
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-57317371844823886222014-01-07T10:33:00.001+07:002014-02-11T14:01:19.816+07:00An adventure to the past<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Known as the city of malls, probably only few people know that Jakarta actually also houses dozens of museums. A <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_museums_and_cultural_institutions_in_Indonesia">wikipedia post</a> lists more than 30 museums in the city! So, if you have been bored to visit shopping centers, you probably want to visit those museums.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZT-ot9lKzQxjuzGuQKHG3_nrpwF7tE-sHNQpviq7Gr8Xqvo73enchiMOAZbj97PYTfyHGrWusHwWrI0xPy6k5MoTJ1j6r-2dTgA_TVNQLeSviudq6B4bY8ckLlDb9iTrMdOJ_C6hSHrs/s1600/WP_20140105_002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZT-ot9lKzQxjuzGuQKHG3_nrpwF7tE-sHNQpviq7Gr8Xqvo73enchiMOAZbj97PYTfyHGrWusHwWrI0xPy6k5MoTJ1j6r-2dTgA_TVNQLeSviudq6B4bY8ckLlDb9iTrMdOJ_C6hSHrs/s1600/WP_20140105_002.jpg" height="178" title="Museum Nasional" width="320" /></a>I have made a vow that I will visit museums more often this year. So far I have visited five museums. Why visiting museums? it's cheap and you can learn lots of things.<br />
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For starter, last Sunday, I visited <a href="http://www.museumnasional.or.id/">the National Museum</a> located in Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat No. 18. The museum, which is also known as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_Gajah">Museum Gajah</a> (thanks to an elephant statue in front of its building), is located just across the Monas shelter of Transjakarta bus.<br />
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With an entrance fee of Rp 5,000, you can see thousands of artifacts dated from pre-historical era.<br />
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After paying the fee, you can start your journey by exploring statues from Hinduism and Buddhism era. These statues mainly come from Central Java areas. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k482/Ris_Qi/15ff853f-239b-4ddf-8a32-2aac553ec5de.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k482/Ris_Qi/15ff853f-239b-4ddf-8a32-2aac553ec5de.jpg" height="221" title="Silently watching you" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Silent witnesses</b>: These statues have witnessed various facets in Indonesia's history</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k482/Ris_Qi/60361cd8-1f28-4dcf-a81d-9dfbc20e34ff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k482/Ris_Qi/60361cd8-1f28-4dcf-a81d-9dfbc20e34ff.jpg" height="640" width="354" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Ancient legacy</b>: One of many ancient inscriptions documenting the nation's early history</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>The God of Destruction</b>: A statue of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva">Shiva</a>, the most respected God in Hinduism </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k482/Ris_Qi/cbf8478e-c6ad-438c-906a-50285f804849.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k482/Ris_Qi/cbf8478e-c6ad-438c-906a-50285f804849.jpg" height="640" width="353" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>King of all king</b>: King Adityawarman of Malay Kingdom is represented as <a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Awalokiteswara" style="background-color: white; background-image: none; color: #0b0080; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19.1875px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" title="Awalokiteswara">Awalokiteswara</a>. This is the highest statue in the museum. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Ancient beauty</b>: Various portrayal of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durga">Durga</a>, the wife and protector of Shiva</td></tr>
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After exploring the statues, then you will witness this iconic view of the National Museum's inside yard. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Dream yard</b>: the inside yard houses various Lingga - Yoni artefacts as well as Andini Cow </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Dream yard, the other view</b>: A lovely view from this side, showcasing the building's Dutch style</td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: left;">The museum also has a room documenting the nation's textile history. However, I decided just to stroll around the area because I will explore more the nation's textile history in the Textile Museum next month. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9lzWbxU5bHwMb1MNLV04m8IG8oJjY9C-W_nsRFcBi3LhcFrziCA2A8lObs8D5HRdDqExbr-CZZxrBYb1NZi1ZCL2zM14Uq-G402SM-IHs71GlwZoPNMj4FgcgeEwGS1tjoykRlauvs7Y/s1600/WP_20140105_025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9lzWbxU5bHwMb1MNLV04m8IG8oJjY9C-W_nsRFcBi3LhcFrziCA2A8lObs8D5HRdDqExbr-CZZxrBYb1NZi1ZCL2zM14Uq-G402SM-IHs71GlwZoPNMj4FgcgeEwGS1tjoykRlauvs7Y/s1600/WP_20140105_025.jpg" height="320" width="178" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Fancy fan</b>: The fan is used by Balinese for ceremonial events</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs2LAix8nYOXcEZB2YQSOXPR0gDU0Y39ZPLXX3QMtcOXNqc41K_-JYs49qz0uT2yQYOV6twX0257YRmzP1qOMfayfbWcOt5Lri1H9322uzm-IQ9oYBTiTOD8GzoIQkg14XslzEMx-La8Q/s1600/WP_20140105_023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs2LAix8nYOXcEZB2YQSOXPR0gDU0Y39ZPLXX3QMtcOXNqc41K_-JYs49qz0uT2yQYOV6twX0257YRmzP1qOMfayfbWcOt5Lri1H9322uzm-IQ9oYBTiTOD8GzoIQkg14XslzEMx-La8Q/s1600/WP_20140105_023.jpg" height="320" width="178" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>God of Prosperity</b>: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dewi_Sri">Dewi Sri</a> figure, made of lontar leaves! </td></tr>
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The museum also has collections of models of Indonesia's traditional houses from various ethnicities.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Call me vintage</b>: This one is from Papua</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwk0gMDRjEP7X_WZGBtRMYoxzM1XW5BhyphenhyphenjHvuYFHGubYvR6Jk2c9Ym7a9u7qFSSpKPfO93PaTez-EVXZPovUUmTdZl4WN0CwdxWIt-4Y2dAIQtGcwEK4v-YChd1TlXbvJvme-oqYnhRK4/s1600/WP_20140105_033.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwk0gMDRjEP7X_WZGBtRMYoxzM1XW5BhyphenhyphenjHvuYFHGubYvR6Jk2c9Ym7a9u7qFSSpKPfO93PaTez-EVXZPovUUmTdZl4WN0CwdxWIt-4Y2dAIQtGcwEK4v-YChd1TlXbvJvme-oqYnhRK4/s1600/WP_20140105_033.jpg" height="178" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Everyone's favorite: </b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumah_Gadang">Rumah gadang</a> of Minangkabau tribe</td></tr>
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How to decorate your house? The Museum also offers its explanation. If we remember our deceased grandparents by placing their pictures, then how did they do it in the past? </div>
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<b>Forget me not</b>: The people of Papua stored their ancestors' skulls to respect them. </div>
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The National Museum also has collections from historical eras. It has information about man's evolution. It also has skeletons of pre-historical people. The skeletons (of course it is just a replica) is showcased in a glass coffin so that we can see right trough it. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>RRrrrrR</b>: RRRrrrrrrRRRRrrrRrRr</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Rest in Peace</b>: Don't disturb me. </td></tr>
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Besides replicas of skeletons, the Museum also has collections of ceramics as well as golds (real golds) and silvers from various eras in Indonesia. </div>
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If you want to visit the National Museum, it opens at 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. on Tuesdays - Fridays and at 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. It closes on Mondays and the national holidays. You can get there by using Transjakarta bus, stopping at the Monas shelter. </div>
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<b>Photos by Rizqi Arifuddin | Photo effects by Photobucket.com</b></div>
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-28646549795377952102013-12-31T00:00:00.000+07:002015-10-31T01:15:15.563+07:00A note on 2 years of living in Jakarta<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaIC-1Nrf3fo-jL76_-hh3rZJrWS9lQP5BcIn-kNocEgiuG-vTcUfMRnJUW3mFxOnG3KnmROlghp1WCypg7kcogTWYpOouFqSosSFv7T2LTZy1WBZ_7AwvWx8ZAIJjGOQoaZo7zkl3S-s/s1600/Jakarta-skyline-Indonesia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaIC-1Nrf3fo-jL76_-hh3rZJrWS9lQP5BcIn-kNocEgiuG-vTcUfMRnJUW3mFxOnG3KnmROlghp1WCypg7kcogTWYpOouFqSosSFv7T2LTZy1WBZ_7AwvWx8ZAIJjGOQoaZo7zkl3S-s/s640/Jakarta-skyline-Indonesia.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.layoverguide.com/2014/01/layover-in-jakarta-indonesia-2.html">The Skyline</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Two years have passed since I decided to live in Jakarta. I
still remember an overly dramatic scene when my family and my closest friends
bid me good bye on December 29, 2011 at the Solo Balapan train station. Recalling
the scene, I should win an award for that.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I remember that when I
was still a sophomore student, I told myself not to go to Jakarta after
graduating. But then, after graduation, I realized that my hometown, as much as
I love it, had nothing much for me to offer. </div>
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<br /></div>
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“What can you do with that degree?” the question I quoted
from <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1022603/">“500 Days of Summer”</a> really suited me back then. I was, and am, an
idealist; I want to have a job that suits my education. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://pressclips.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/hal-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://pressclips.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/hal-1.jpg" height="200" width="125" /></a></div>
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After graduating, I applied for several jobs in
Jakarta. I got calls for interviews several times (which made me happy to know
that my resume could actually sell me *blaaaah*). Then, I was called for an interview at The
Jakarta Post, the most famous English newspaper in the country. </div>
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</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
I had no journalistic background before. Frankly, I was not
interested to be a journalist. Even, I was educated to
criticize media. I thought "how can I work for the media if I was trained to be critical to media?"<br />
<br />
However, I always know that I love writing (in fact, that was how I answered my interviewers when they asked me "why do you want to work here"). When the Post offered me the
opportunity to work with them, I accepted it, believing that I could learn so
many things from them. </div>
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<br /></div>
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And it turned out that the job was really great that made me
feel so small. I came into loving the job, believe it or not! I learned so many things: politics, law, human rights and life lessons that I never received before. However, despite
my growing interest to the job, forces beyond my control forced me to end the
work as a reporter on New Years’ eve of 2012. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I was jobless again for two months. I enjoyed my freedom
though. Working as a reporter, when I recalled, is really tough. You came home
late at night. Sometimes, you work from 5 a.m. (yeah, I left my home at 5 a.m.
twice in 2012). However, despite the tough work, I love my colleagues!</div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/421638_10150689046436772_1948815243_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/421638_10150689046436772_1948815243_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New friendship :)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<span style="text-align: left;">My job hunting then led me to AMINEF, the Fulbright commission
in Indonesia. I was accepted to work in March. I had no clue about the working
nature of the job I applied. After one-two months of learning, I was able to
seize the pace.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.thepresidentpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Aminef-300x115.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.thepresidentpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Aminef-300x115.jpg" /></a></div>
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My current job is really different from my first job. I had
a fixed working schedule and holiday (yey!!). I get chances to meet Fulbright
scholars from US (who knows that they might lead me to my future). However, I am
still learning to love my job (I still love writing! I miss it. That is why blog post doubles this year compared to last year). </div>
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<br />
I am grateful that during my 2 years of living in Jakarta, I have jobs that suited my education background. </div>
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<br /></div>
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This year also marked a point in my love life history. I
fell in love with someone again after so many years, but at the same time, I was
quickly brokenhearted (lols). Unrequited love always sucks! But alas, I thanked
for the feeling. I never knew I still had it in me.<br />
<br />
Despite my hatred to Jakarta's traffic jam, I still thank this city for harboring me for two years. Thank you Jakarta for giving me new friendship. Thank you Jakarta for introducing me to some sides of lives - good and bad - that I never encountered in my hometown. Thank you Jakarta for giving life skills (Hey I am now a master to make omelette and toast! Check my instagram <a href="http://instagram.com/p/hXHgxGMGd3/">here</a> if you don't believe me).<br />
<br />
I am still looking forward to living in here for ...... (i don't know how long I will stay here). I am still looking forward to achieving my dreams here.<br />
<br />
Well, that is my note of my two-year stay in the capital city. I will never cast my Solonese background from me, but one thing for sure, Jakartan values have also been incorporated in me as well. Anyhow, in this last day of December, I want to wish you all a happy new year. May
good fortunes come to you in 2014! </div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-73273523529711002932013-12-19T11:02:00.000+07:002014-01-07T10:37:20.766+07:00A Christmas present to a Muslim <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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First of all … I am a Muslim (not a very devout one, but
still I am a Muslim). </div>
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<br /></div>
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I don’t believe that Jesus is God’s son because <a href="http://quran.com/112">according to Al Ikhlas verse 3 “God neither begets nor is born.”</a> I, however, believe that Jesus
(<a href="http://wikiislam.net/wiki/Isa_al-Masih">frequently mentioned in Al Quran as Isa al Masih</a>) is a messenger of God, just
like Abraham and Muhammad (pbuh). I know my Christian friends will not be angry
by reading these lines. This is the part where we are different right? If not,
then there will be no Christian and Muslim, right? (More diverse more festive;
what’s so good about black and white?)</div>
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<br /></div>
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Therefore, there lies my ideological foundation of my
religion. Up to now, despite various temptations, nothing has succeeded in
making me discard that.</div>
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<br /></div>
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As Christmas is approaching, the Muslim world is brewing with
<a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/can-a-muslim-say-happy-christmas-to-his-friends-1827628.html">annual</a>, <a href="http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/archive/can-muslims-wish-christians-merry-christmas/">ongoing</a>, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/shamim-chowdhury/why-as-a-muslim-i-celebrate-christmas_b_2344084.html">never ending</a> and <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/17/muslim-christmas-celebrations_n_1154229.html">relentless </a>(I think I am running out of
adjectives here [each adjective leads to different stories]) debates about <a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2012/12/23/christmas-fatwa-sparks-debate">whether Muslims are allowed to extend Christmas greetingsto their Christian friends</a>.</div>
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<br /></div>
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It’s funny though. Despite various fatwas forbidding Muslims
to extend X-Mas greetings, many Muslims still ‘participate’ in Christmas
celebrations. How come? </div>
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<br /></div>
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Well, have you gone to malls lately? In Jakarta, there is no
mall which is absent with Christmas decorations. They were so festive that I love
it (please note, I am still a Muslim. I just like the decorations. Am I allowed
to do that? Or not? oh well) The Christmas nuance – decorated Christmas trees and artificial snows (made of cottons, I guess)
– is oddly enjoyed not only by Christian visitors! Some Muslims enjoy them too!
</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtTUpPrzxPo6jwbdlG8T_zLzlJKs1RU1tUIMrPvV9c-Bs98ivIRUSBQ89N99cduhalyDtngpFtOHH1NxE3mLrXgiPNMQKqfCPvVRMY603eF38vZR88fCbxspycdmx9o8zCLEPBzbsT6IQ/s1600/christmas-reuters-indonesia-640x480.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtTUpPrzxPo6jwbdlG8T_zLzlJKs1RU1tUIMrPvV9c-Bs98ivIRUSBQ89N99cduhalyDtngpFtOHH1NxE3mLrXgiPNMQKqfCPvVRMY603eF38vZR88fCbxspycdmx9o8zCLEPBzbsT6IQ/s1600/christmas-reuters-indonesia-640x480.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a><br />
I swear that I watched a woman donning head scarf
standing in a crowd of Christmas carol performance(Dang, I did not take a
photo). Some (also Muslim women, indicated by their attires) just narcissistically
took photos in front of Christmas trees (The photo on the left is from Al Arabiya. Read its story <a href="http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/12/20/256199.html">here</a>). While some others joined an adventure to get branded
goods in best prices (hail Christmas and New Year discounts!). The shoppers –dominated
by women (no sexism intended) – bought various clothing for their husbands,
male family members, their children and themselves.</div>
<br />
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Can such actions be branded in the participation of
Christmas celebration? Well, let God decide it… I am not interested to join in
the debates in this post. I do not think I have adequate theological knowledge
on the matter. Please humbly forgive me for that. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Now, I am working in an office which is dominated by
Christians. Even, in my section, I am the only Muslim here. And guess what? I
am really appreciated by them. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Every time we have luncheon or dinner together in a fancy
restaurant, my colleagues will always remind me to get halal food. They even always
warn me if the served dishes contain haram food. Some will remind me not to
forget my weekly Friday prayer. </div>
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<br /></div>
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This week, they invited me to a Christmas treat. And I willingly
joined them. (Why not? it’s just a gathering which coincidentally happens next
to Christmas time. Therefore it is labeled so.)<br />
<br /></div>
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As usual, we had dinner at a restaurant. Also as always, I was
warned about which dishes contain haram ingredients. By the end of the day, my colleague <a href="https://www.facebook.com/leah.b.smith.14?fref=ts">Leah Smith</a> gave me a Christmas present. And it is very beautiful.</div>
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<br /></div>
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So here is my Christmas present …..</div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://distilleryimage10.ak.instagram.com/11020c5067e411e3af700e4ed2f7725a_8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://distilleryimage10.ak.instagram.com/11020c5067e411e3af700e4ed2f7725a_8.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quranic Christmas present: </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Lovely isn’t it? She handwrote the Arabic writings and the
Indonesian translation of the verse. She made the frames by herself. I was so honored to be given the present. Thank
you Leah for giving it to me! I really apreciate all of your efforts!</div>
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<br /></div>
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So, will I extend Christmas greetings to them? Yeah sure! I will
extend the greeting as a sincere gesture of a friend to a friend. I still
believe that my basic ideology aforementioned on the second line will not be tainted
just because of the greeting. I think
God really knows my intention of conveying such greetings. (I meant no harm to
you God, please not :) ). This gesture is to help me maintain my good relationship with my Christian friends. <br />
<br />
The very last of all ... Religion is about me and my Creator right? </div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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<b>Ps: please do not leave theological comments or debates in
this post . If you insist, you better drop your comments <a href="http://www.rmol.co/read/2012/12/21/90874/Said-Aqil-Siradj:-Warga-NU-Tidak-Luntur-Imannya-Walau-Ucapkan-Selamat-Natal">here</a>. Thanks!!</b></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-63861764824413318002013-12-16T14:51:00.001+07:002014-01-09T16:24:54.899+07:00Movie Review | Soekarno, unveiling the humane side of the President<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://www.21cineplex.com/soekarno-movie,3322,03SOEO.htm" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj16zMSCOLhyphenhyphenVF7CvXmnHcfz481duk3NjktZxu4Kock6kbHyf3U3BgAxsnz8GJ3-jLNaZywaXY1106YRYth-SbU4kwDaU4CjUgU0xA9STZ5bkL4WJVgSqYfUH6_ESKMAmfcs54Un3JBCQ/s320/138371855385767_300x430.jpg" height="320" title="Soekarno Movie Poster" width="223" /></a>Who does not know about Soekarno? He is the very first
president of Indonesia. He is the one who proclaimed Indonesia’s independence.
He is Indonesia’s greatest hero. He is simply great. At least, that is how I
remembered Soekarno, based on the history lessons I received since elementary
school.</div>
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<br /></div>
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However, apparently, that is not how Hanung Bramantyo remembered
him as reflected<a href="http://www.filmsukarno.com/"> in his latest movie, Soekarno, </a>which narrates various stages about
the life of the first president.<br />
<br /></div>
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As a boy, Koesno Sosrodiharjo frequently falls sick more
than others. Therefore, his parents decide to change his name into Soekarno, inspired by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karna">Adipati Karna, a noble character in Mahabarata narratives</a>. </div>
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Now bearing the name of Soekarno, the boy is then sent to
live with Tjokroaminoto, one of the founders of<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarekat_Islam"> Sarekat Islam (an Islamic tradeorganization which holds an important role in Indonesian history)</a>. Through
Tjokroaminoto, young Soekarno learns nationalism. However, according to the
movie, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukarno">Soekarno’s </a>sense of nationalism is fully awakened after a Dutch opposed his
daughter’s relationship with Soekarno.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.filmsukarno.com/gallery.php?&page=3" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl_Ge3ca6eDDqSOdMAn_6xAVaIDGMC3dTw6y3NlOrtRxUokyUCTchSYVXgncgdjd442gaP8OVvmesFP3qJqCwlasFrftDUAELXEeC28IwsAi-qnt0Q8qBCEBFNeIixZXSE3PJ-Mw_1IZU/s320/film-soekarno-2.jpg" height="180" title="King Speech: Soekarno gave his speech in a PNI gathering" width="320" /></a>With the flaming spirit of nationalism, Soekarno then hones
his oratory skill to an astounding level. In fact, Soekarno (<a href="http://celebrity.okezone.com/read/2013/09/13/206/865842/redirect">played by Ario Bayu, despite oppositions from Soekarno's real life children</a>) is known as the
best orator Indonesia ever has. No one in Indonesia is yet to be in his league.
His political movement then starts by joining the <a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Partai_Nasional_Indonesia">Indonesian National (PNI) Party</a>
through which he advocates and spreads his idea of independence. He then became
a famous figure.<br />
<br /></div>
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Fearing Soekarno’s growing influence, the Dutch Collonial
government arrests him and hands him imprisonment sentence in 1930, separating
him from <a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inggit_Garnasih">his second wife Inggit Garnasih</a>. Soekarno and Inggit, accompanied by
their adopted children, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukarno#Independence_struggle">were then exiled by the Dutch Colonial government to Endebefore being transferred to Bengkulu. </a></div>
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Now entering his 30s, <a href="http://global.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/572207/Sukarno">Soekarno</a> becomes a teacher in an
Islamic school in his exile in Bengkulu, incorporating his ideal of independence
to his students. Among his students is <a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatmawati">Fatmawati</a>, with whom he falls in love. Soekarno’s
almost 20-year old relationship with Inggit is challenged as he grows fonder of
the young girl.</div>
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Soekarno is then torn between his nation’s political
conflict as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_occupation_of_Indonesia">Japanese invasion </a>draws closer and his personal conflict, making
Fatmawati as his second wife after Inggit. The dual conflicts set the mood for the
last half of the movie which runs for a total of 137 minutes. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.filmsukarno.com/gallery.php?&page=1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZQydtakYha_KpM49io1Lj4-gy_0fQRl9McyZU6R6vT1R2ztpI8eiHEqxZI1G-55ibJn3juDD4bzGSU54nszmJ-PqI7JQ1-BDP25ibgQiEbmLkV_UAxmpII9THArEhuGRAKJ3_vX9fRm4/s320/IS7C0849-web+(Copy).jpg" height="213" title="Flambouyant Guy: Soekarno flirted with Fatmawati" width="320" /></a>Despite its slow pace, the movie and Hanung as the director still
deserve acknowledgement. Unlike Habibie & Ainun, Hanung’s movie on the
romantic life of Indonesia’s third president, Soekarno is surprisingly fairly
okay to watch. I like the way Soekarno brings audience into the old Indonesia.
The setting, costumes, make-up and properties are appropriately constructed. There are no obstructions like in Habibie
& Ainun <a href="http://hiburan.kompasiana.com/film/2013/01/22/iklan-iklan-pengganggu-cerita-terselipdi-film-layar-lebar-habibie-ainun-527627.html">(I still remember how I detest various commercial products inserted in inappropriate manners in the move)</a> that cause rifts in the setting of time. </div>
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Then, the movie also deserves recognition because it offers us
about the unseen face of Soekarno. It is true that there have been books,
articles and other resources which discussed about the human nature side of
Soekarno <a href="http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/06/20/when-a-man-loves-a-woman.html">(read: he is a heterosexual man who loves so many women)</a>. But only
limited and specific number of people wanted to access them. The movie, on the
other hand, appeals to more people. Movie theorists have also frequently said
that movie is the best tool to promote an ideology. Therefore, this movie, in my opinion, participates in introducing Soekarno's unseen sides to broader generations. </div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
The unseen human side of Indonesia’s first president is
constructed through various scenes that showcase Soekarno as a lady-killer.
This human side of Soekarno is never narrated in Indonesia’s history subjects. Frankly, until I was at senior high school, i still naively considered Fatmawati as
the only wife of Soekarno and considered that he was always faithful and madly in
love with her. <a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inggit_Garnasih">Try to hit his Wikipedia entry! It states that after marrying Fatmawati, Soekarno married six more women</a>. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Hanung, through this movie, has demystified Soekarno. The
all-good image of Indonesia's founding father is brought down to earth. He is
just a mere man, like the rest of us, the movie suggests. However, Soekarno is also
not like the rest of us. He is Indonesia’s finding father. The movie beautifully showcases how he always holds his idealism although many people around him sound
different voices.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Do my sense of nationalism increase after watching this
movie? Well, I do not know for sure. But one thing I am certain is I get to know better one of the founding fathers of this country.</div>
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------</div>
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Score: 7/10</div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com7Karet, Setiabudi, Kota Jakarta Selatan, DKI Jakarta, Indonesia-6.2117912368816857 106.82078964833636-6.2127832368816858 106.81952364833636 -6.2107992368816856 106.82205564833636tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-14590756249344766802013-12-01T13:19:00.004+07:002013-12-19T11:03:03.498+07:00A Colorful Saturday at Monas!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="text-align: left;">Yesterday was probably the most amazing and precious Saturday during my almost-two year stay in Jakarta. Instead of obeying to Jakartans' weekend ritual (read: visiting shopping centers. FYI, there are more than 70 shopping centers in Jakarta), I chose to visit <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Monument_(Indonesia)">the National Monument</a>, widely known as Monas, located in the heart of the capital city. It is just 20 - 30 minutes by riding my motorcycle from my boarding house. I went there after a friend of mine told me that there would be several festivals being held at Monas. </span></div>
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Well, for your information, I rarely went to Monas. First, I usually avoid open space area during the day. The heat in Jakarta is unbearable. Second, it is rainy season. Lately, there has been no day without rain here in Jakarta.<br />
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But, it turned out that my trip to Monas was quite wonderful. <span style="text-align: left;">Below are some pictures of my visit to the monument. Pictures tell a thousand words right? </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Entering Monas . . . </span></b></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Shady and breezy: </b>The 80-acre park homes so many trees. Visitors usually rent mats to sit in the shady areas. This path will lead you to Monas Tower.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Artwork along the way:</b> You probably want to get a temporary tattoo along the path...</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>The Golden Guardian: "</b>Take a picture with me. I don't bite." </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3mXXnh2IF03YK3c1hyphenhyphenbz-4KW_Oq5NFFW3g-4W5MbNlssPlg68-TVXGR30k1WvSxZA9gMlhOUZftHapJOFmb3UmdOwGZRNwyfncoWstp9VdM7ScYEyUieW2PFZ3bAIF8zrUhLACwcIrsg/s1600/WP_20131130_006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3mXXnh2IF03YK3c1hyphenhyphenbz-4KW_Oq5NFFW3g-4W5MbNlssPlg68-TVXGR30k1WvSxZA9gMlhOUZftHapJOFmb3UmdOwGZRNwyfncoWstp9VdM7ScYEyUieW2PFZ3bAIF8zrUhLACwcIrsg/s640/WP_20131130_006.jpg" width="358" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Daily Patriarchy:</b> The Monas Tower's design is inspired by Hinduism's Lingga - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoni">Yoni </a>structure that signifies fertility and male power.</span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Watching kites soaring in the sky . . .</span></b></div>
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Last year, when I was a reporter, I made a story of the 2012 Jakarta International Kites Festival in Ancol beach, North Jakarta. You can read my story entitled "Flying kites for unity in Jakarta fest" in the Jakarta Post's website <a href="http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/07/02/flying-kites-unity-jakarta-fest.html">here</a>. I still remember how fun it was to make the story. Therefore, when I knew that the same festival was held in Monas, I was very eager to watch it. </div>
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Here are some kites that I managed to capture at the Jakarta International Kites Festival 2013. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Welcome:</b> The 2013 Jakarta International Kites Festival</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>I love Jakarta</b>: if it has no traffic congestion and if it has more trees</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Fly me up:</b> Kites in various colors and shapes brightened Monas' sky on Saturday (collage by <a href="http://www.benfunky.com/">www.benfunky.com</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>I believe i can fly: </b>I heard the fishes chanting R. Kelly's massive hit </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>The devil tamer: </b>This male participant from USA (if i am not mistaken) tried to fly this unique kite. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Dark figures approaching:</b> The kites flew over Monas ground ... wait, weren't those dementors??? They did look like those happiness-sucking creatures in this photo... (no camera /application effect is applied in this photo. It's just a trick my uncle ever taught me)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Wait for me:</b>pparently, the horse also wanted to join the fishes above dancing in the sky</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Peeking into Indonesia's diverse culture ... </span></h1>
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Done enjoying the kites (and the breeze that made me sleepy), I went to another festival in the Monas park. The festival was called Gebyar Budaya Nusantara (The Cultural Festival Across Archipelago) in which I can take a glimpse into some cultures of various areas in Indonesia. I finally can taste the famous 'Es Pisang Ijo' from Makassar!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>At last: </b>I finally tried the ubiquitous Es Pisang Ijo from Makassar. Well, it is OK for me. Do not want another try though. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Diversity is beauty: </b>the festival showcased various arts including Reog from Ponorogo, Palang Pintu from Betawi and various dances from across the archipelago. </span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">A late afternoon at Monas ... </span></b></div>
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The third festival started at 7 p.m., meaning that I would have to spend sometimes at the park. There are so many activities that you can do to kill the times at Monas! </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>From ball to book: </b>Some choose to play basketballs or soccer. Some choose to fly kites (yeah, you can actually fly kites in jakarta). Some, or just me, choose to read books while listening to musics. You may just wander around the park! </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl8qcHPlsz3v2ZcMO0ksyGK7zOAt4Vz1U8PPgmSlnCuA6A_FukPA3rNOuLJlGior1qvlwhYWYg1OfCFsSKGjreEgYNGYtl_I06xBin5tLogG-hNW724Omh70EkKs9Dr0KuDaERzcoB7L4/s1600/WP_20131130_077.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl8qcHPlsz3v2ZcMO0ksyGK7zOAt4Vz1U8PPgmSlnCuA6A_FukPA3rNOuLJlGior1qvlwhYWYg1OfCFsSKGjreEgYNGYtl_I06xBin5tLogG-hNW724Omh70EkKs9Dr0KuDaERzcoB7L4/s640/WP_20131130_077.jpg" width="356" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Waiting for the dusk: </b>when you are lucky, you may get a beautiful sunset scenery. Alas, I was unlucky yesterday. It was cloudy! </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="font-size: large;">And the darkness falls ... </span></b></div>
<div>
Is Monas quieter after sunset? hell no ... more people showed up at the park to enjoy their Saturday evening. Some spots of the park also instantly transformed into night markets.</div>
<div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLuByDl14VoaxzIucElYotFuU3iSgy5DjToogwNgQyQps9npGFU8Zv8wiHFQwH0eohNF8vc4o54a8LuHrwssDHmGVVGq672dXRgJ_Bd6KVsOvM3bbml7SzNAs29zVKuvbEUPgsxD9ykI8/s1600/WP_20131130_083.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLuByDl14VoaxzIucElYotFuU3iSgy5DjToogwNgQyQps9npGFU8Zv8wiHFQwH0eohNF8vc4o54a8LuHrwssDHmGVVGq672dXRgJ_Bd6KVsOvM3bbml7SzNAs29zVKuvbEUPgsxD9ykI8/s400/WP_20131130_083.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Giant gold candle: </b>The gold-cloaked peak of Monas started to glow after the night falls </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /></div>
<div>
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSkZ-D3k922g-aFosdIHmPCCnrisCZpK8_B3rPYaHsHUaxF5UT78EVyWEOQKD-BlI38LguUvaAVlF9x2hZfN5NBvfYtx9GMWvztjobJhtqvLfM-UrVGbm28AntmnHVCMLRcw2PUuc1oZg/s1600/hfyyyyy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSkZ-D3k922g-aFosdIHmPCCnrisCZpK8_B3rPYaHsHUaxF5UT78EVyWEOQKD-BlI38LguUvaAVlF9x2hZfN5NBvfYtx9GMWvztjobJhtqvLfM-UrVGbm28AntmnHVCMLRcw2PUuc1oZg/s400/hfyyyyy.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Festivity overload:</span></b><span style="font-size: small;"> The darkness does not stop people from flocking to Monas</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k482/Ris_Qi/6a98457c-ba79-4891-8db9-983ad42ebe7b.jpg?t=1385866483" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k482/Ris_Qi/6a98457c-ba79-4891-8db9-983ad42ebe7b.jpg?t=1385866483" width="466" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Rainbow boxes:</b> these glowing in the dark digital clocks are sold at IDR 35,000 each</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<b><br /></b>
<b><br /></b>
<b><br /></b>
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Enjoying the dance ... </span></b></div>
<div>
And the last spot I visited in Monas last evening was the International Folk Dance Festival which featured 9 countries including South Korea, Russia, Poland, Austria and Bangladesh. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
However, I could not take good quality pictures with my phone (too bad). Nevertheless, here are some of them. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIaI5RntI_2FXXcNgnDaB-VAQ3PCenStoH7BDFBhwi8H6ESEM_ymZDKKWgH4hKiPgr15589oSlMlIslDU8DueWk2bMvY51E2AgBTsSgxPDweBu997fOzOpAoqu_1obe97M3QOqHbOJxB4/s1600/WP_20131130_104.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIaI5RntI_2FXXcNgnDaB-VAQ3PCenStoH7BDFBhwi8H6ESEM_ymZDKKWgH4hKiPgr15589oSlMlIslDU8DueWk2bMvY51E2AgBTsSgxPDweBu997fOzOpAoqu_1obe97M3QOqHbOJxB4/s400/WP_20131130_104.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Graciously moving: </b>The ladies from South Korea move really graciously. Their slow paced movement reminded me of Javanese style dance. Their costumes were really amazing. It was like watching historical Korean movies. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj79-YbhB4R8Blgw5uOk4XSTei1ZEZfOJ94cXOMiJ57Uu129-X9Z4EqeT-nsrxO6N_73-7rzY32zl983E3Jy1XwGHr0W8OkiMDTbGJOupoYmp8oHTaUAnmbqAASiDnXaVWOKG2QGAjBhzE/s1600/WP_20131130_109.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj79-YbhB4R8Blgw5uOk4XSTei1ZEZfOJ94cXOMiJ57Uu129-X9Z4EqeT-nsrxO6N_73-7rzY32zl983E3Jy1XwGHr0W8OkiMDTbGJOupoYmp8oHTaUAnmbqAASiDnXaVWOKG2QGAjBhzE/s400/WP_20131130_109.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Russian fairy princess: </b>These girls were really amazing! They danced as if they had wheels on their feet. They were like flying. It was the best dance for the night, in my opinion. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
And that's a wrap. I really enjoyed my Monas trip yesterday! Even if without those festivals, you can still find some interesting things to do there. It is a cheap way to hang out in the capital. </div>
<div>
<b><br /></b>
<b><br /></b>
<b>------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</b></div>
<div>
<b>All pictures are taken by myself with <a href="http://www.nokia.com/global/products/phone/lumia520/">Lumia 520</a>. Finishing touch for some pictures are done at <a href="http://www.photobucket.com/">Photobucket </a>and <a href="http://www.benfunky.com/">Benfunky</a>. </b></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com2Kemanggisan, Palmerah, Kota Jakarta Barat, DKI Jakarta, Indonesia-6.1996268874967422 106.79509162902832-6.200613387496742 106.79383112902832 -6.1986403874967424 106.79635212902832tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-76448168144606607912013-11-27T10:54:00.000+07:002013-12-01T13:21:51.323+07:00Movie Review | The Girl on Fire Back in Catching Fire <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJl5e-p261Elqjnj1e840-INLUy5Jv2gJdbBBiFo0JmUXzxWBpqQHZavePuS7Ptc6OfIZIJZsgOF1hmvl_Dbf3XTreCQ_w6txEe42Am7lsRcRbv2YhW4QO0N7JMe3gEtF_TRxiY7A1LU/s1600/hungergamesfirelogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJl5e-p261Elqjnj1e840-INLUy5Jv2gJdbBBiFo0JmUXzxWBpqQHZavePuS7Ptc6OfIZIJZsgOF1hmvl_Dbf3XTreCQ_w6txEe42Am7lsRcRbv2YhW4QO0N7JMe3gEtF_TRxiY7A1LU/s400/hungergamesfirelogo.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.hollywoodgothique.com/wp-content/uploads/hungergamesfirelogo.jpg">The Hunger Games: Catching Fire</a> </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Last night, two and a half hour just slipped out of my
notice when I watched the second installment of <a href="http://www.thehungergamesexplorer.com/us/">The Hunger Games Trilogy: Catching Fire</a>. The cliffhanger ending of the movie, which according to critics
<a href="http://cinefantastiqueonline.com/2013/11/the-hunger-games-catching-fire-review/">resemble the spirit of The Empire Strikes Back</a>, makes me ‘hungry’ for more. I demanded
that the third and the fourth movie be released right away! Yes, <a href="http://screenrant.com/hunger-games-mockingjay-movies-release-dates-sandy-186360/">the third installment of the trilogy novel, Mockingjay, is going to be made into twomovies</a>, following the trend set by Harry Potter and Twilight series.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/25/jennifer-lawrence-wins-oscars-night_n_2758275.html">Winning Oscar </a>does not make <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2225369/bio">Jennifer Lawrence</a> reluctant to
embrace her character as Katniss Everdeen. Instead, as usual, Lawrence gives
all her best acting to portray Katniss who in this movie starts to be the
beacon of hope for people of Panem.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In Catching Fire, Katniss is caught in a dilemma. Her
heartbreaking and breathtaking fictive romance with Peeta Mellark, played by
<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1242688/">Josh Hutcherson</a>, in the 74<sup>th</sup> Hunger Games has stirred uprisings in
Panem. People of Panem see Katniss as a symbol who wants to resist the authoritarian
regime of President Snow. They start to fight back. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In a bid to comfort the flourishing uneasiness, the
President asks Katniss, who will embark on a 12 day journey to visit 12
Districts in the country, to display her loyalty to Snow and Panem. Snow warns
that failure to do so will bring severe consequences to her. Katniss is caught
in a tug of war between her rebellious side and her desire to protect the ones
she loves. The dilemma sets the mood for the first half of the movie. </div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijqLhdj-K3XTdgcWgA0hc7lDUcyqtEwSLaiiTHuKwbPc679NPUMNtCTfjRGjOKa6nNUUMNq4xOU3uPY1y0KcAnpT55DfbUmcVr6GmYOun9L6L_5PR2hgvkUO-5tIU6ZQdEl-_88fdgWLk/s1600/asadwee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijqLhdj-K3XTdgcWgA0hc7lDUcyqtEwSLaiiTHuKwbPc679NPUMNtCTfjRGjOKa6nNUUMNq4xOU3uPY1y0KcAnpT55DfbUmcVr6GmYOun9L6L_5PR2hgvkUO-5tIU6ZQdEl-_88fdgWLk/s400/asadwee.jpg" width="268" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13.333333969116211px;"><a href="http://images.huffingtonpost.com/2013-03-06-hungergamescatchingfirecapitolportraitjenniferlawrencedazzlesinwhite.jpg">Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen, the Mockingjay</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The movie intensifies as President Snow announces the third
Quarter Quell: The 75<sup>th</sup> Hunger Games. <a href="http://thehungergames.wikia.com/wiki/Quarter_Quell">Every 25 years, Panem’sgovernment holds a Quarter Quell, which is designed to make populace of Panem remember the defeat of the districts to Capitol</a>. Each quell is designed with
special celebration, which according to Snow, is formulated by the founding
fathers of the Hunger Games. The 75<sup>th</sup> Hunger Games is special
because it will change the lives of not only Katniss but also Panem as a whole.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
As the game is on, I was intertwined to the tributes’
emotions. My eyes were transfixed to the screen. Probably, I only covered my
eyes once or two when some brutal scenes were displayed. The movie is overall far
beyond gory movies. FYI, I am not a fan of gory or sadistic movie. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Despite its long running, the Hunger Games: Catching Fire is
not boring. Even, as I mentioned earlier, I did not realize that I have sit in
the movie theater for almost 190 minutes. Even I will voluntarily sit longer if
the movie is followed directly by the third and the fourth movie. I am hungry
for more hunger games movies! Catching Fire’s well crafted storyline has bound
me to watch it till the end. Not once did I yawn during the whole movie! </div>
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<br /></div>
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As someone who has read the book, I will definitely say that
this movie is not disappointing. <a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/harry_potter_and_the_half_blood_prince/">Unlike the adaption of Harry Potter and theHalf-Blood Prince</a>, which I personally resent so much, the adaptation of Catching Fire is
really well done. It is not faithful (I have for so long neglected the idea
that a movie adaptation should be faithful to its raw material) but I really
like some alterations that are made for the movie. The movie director is able
to smartly choose details from the raw material that need to be inserted in the
movie. Well done <a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/francis_lawrence/">Francis Lawrence</a>. </div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYzgKuEurYGGqmUmR4bCrixuzv4GkVi5stJweebe2uLTI26TkViyI9ysk3xoFUfsYpzUBwaUbn8i-YCQO7kp6cDHUxdl5nFjdbonesXCR4RGFQ_jBiqMEHg-fofiutoPl_nho1zTqa3bc/s1600/catching+fire+boys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYzgKuEurYGGqmUmR4bCrixuzv4GkVi5stJweebe2uLTI26TkViyI9ysk3xoFUfsYpzUBwaUbn8i-YCQO7kp6cDHUxdl5nFjdbonesXCR4RGFQ_jBiqMEHg-fofiutoPl_nho1zTqa3bc/s400/catching+fire+boys.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://content.hollywire.com/sites/default/files/styles/main_image_teaser/public/2013/03/07/hunger-games-catching-fire-gale-peeta-finnick-character-posters-claflin-hutcherson-hemsworth.jpg?itok=72n_lNUr&c=fcf57beae432a8a55035e94ef6f7b203">R to L: Finnick Odair, Gale Howthorne and Peeta Mellark </a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And the last thing that I like about the movie is because it
features Jennifer Lawrence. The lady always gives all of her best when it comes
to acting: be it as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_Linings_Playbook">a widow</a>, as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-Men:_Days_of_Future_Past">a shape shifting mutant</a> or as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katniss_Everdeen#Film_adaptation">an extremely skilledarcher</a>. I always love Jennifer Lawrence because I cannot think of anyone else that
could have portrayed Katniss Everdeen. Jennifer Larence is Katniss Everdeen. Her
emotion, fear, dilemma, relentlessness, uneasiness and anger equals to Katniss’
that I perceive in the novel. She is really into it. In consequence, her acting
definitely overshadows most of her male co-stars: Josh Hutcherson, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2955013/">LiamHemsworth</a> (as Gale Howthorne) and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3510471/">Sam Claflin</a> (as Finnick Odair). Lawrence indeed
is in an entirely different league than them.</div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
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So, if you have not watched it, you better be sorry because
you will probably miss one of the best action-fantasy movies of the year. Yes,
by far, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is the best action-fantasy movie I watched
in 2013.</div>
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<b>Score: 8/10 </b></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com8Karet, Setiabudi, Kota Jakarta Selatan, DKI Jakarta, Indonesia-6.21033516227668 106.8218864465598-6.21132716227668 106.8206204465598 -6.20934316227668 106.8231524465598tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-18530896934732309552013-11-25T12:00:00.000+07:002013-11-27T11:01:42.895+07:00Movie Review | Stream of Tears in Wedding Dress<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
Last Saturday, I got a runny nose -kind of severe, as I recalled-
not because of sick, but because I watched a Korean movie entitled <a href="http://asianwiki.com/Wedding_Dress">WeddingDress</a>. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKuXLOR_ff8ea9XKiIr_HUJqnm4G_37lqaRKXw56sGJ-SXvqw5TTk6xSit6v9gcaZUDsgCta56FLugJABFP5Veo7a5l9uWZos5bNFHZFjjODdMTJAmaV2NJYzaCG93zrWO-YFetrbGoK0/s1600/1326700997165551742.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKuXLOR_ff8ea9XKiIr_HUJqnm4G_37lqaRKXw56sGJ-SXvqw5TTk6xSit6v9gcaZUDsgCta56FLugJABFP5Veo7a5l9uWZos5bNFHZFjjODdMTJAmaV2NJYzaCG93zrWO-YFetrbGoK0/s320/1326700997165551742.jpg" width="224" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://hiburan.kompasiana.com/film/2012/01/16/film-korea-wedding-dress-430970.html">Wedding Dress Movie Poster (link contains spoiler)</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have frequently watched Korean movies. In my opinion, they
are much better than Indonesian movies. Not that I dislike my country (I just
dislike Indonesia’s movies), but yeah, Korean movies have a wide range of
preference. You can watch <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architecture_101">cheesy-funny-romantic movie</a> that make you feel happy and smile all the time. Or try to watch a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spellbound_(2011_film)">horror-romanticmovie</a> that makes you laugh and scared. You can also find <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thieves">cool action movie</a>! <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miracle_in_Cell_No._7">Some movies even make me cry a lot</a>. I really mean it when I say some
Korean movies really make me cry so badly. Wedding Dress is one that makes me
cry. I am a boy and I cry. So what? I don’t buy the ubiquitous saying ‘Boys don’t
cry’. </div>
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Wedding Dress narrates the life of a single mother, Go-eun,
played by <a href="http://asianwiki.com/Song_Yoon-A">Song Yun Ah</a>. Her husband dies already, leaving her only with her
young daughter, So-ra, nicely played by <a href="http://asianwiki.com/Kim_Hyang-Gi">Kim Hyang-gi</a>. As a breadwinner, Go-eun
works as a wedding dress designer. </div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE-Te1_RUf-VVe75QU8XQ-OFxA-NBACoJNPstBLUx_GH5FBz4Uuz2lbiw7FfhMdCyegcHDLyqDV-eocDd_HxUribgjBvCMU7cVlvf53OhVS75TjFfkvA2iKFkahWDA1EIFVAOreAH5DP4/s1600/Wedding_Dress-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE-Te1_RUf-VVe75QU8XQ-OFxA-NBACoJNPstBLUx_GH5FBz4Uuz2lbiw7FfhMdCyegcHDLyqDV-eocDd_HxUribgjBvCMU7cVlvf53OhVS75TjFfkvA2iKFkahWDA1EIFVAOreAH5DP4/s320/Wedding_Dress-001.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://asianwiki.com/Wedding_Dress">Family time</a>: Song Yun Ah and Kim Hyang gi as mother and daughter in Wedding Dress</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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</div>
For most of the times, Go-eun’s business makes her have rare
quality time with So-ra. Feeling abandoned by her mother, So-ra turns to be a
cold kid, who has few friends if not no friend. It all changes when Go-eun’s
condition gets worsened due to a stomach cancer. The doctor says she only has
limited number of days to live. Knowing her mother’s condition, So-ra then
tries to fulfill her mother’s wishes one by one secretly.<br />
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Simple story it is. However, its simplicity is the movie’s
strength. The simple narration and theme makes us able to focus on the
characters. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I can focus on the relationship between Go-eun and So-ra.
They can explore their feeling so that as an audience I can feel the strong
bond between their mother-daughter relationships in the movie. Their
relationship feels so natural. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The movie, moreover, showcases the marvelous acting of Kim
Hyang-gi, who at the time of the filming, was only 10 years old. As So-ra, she
has to explore her character. There are numerous scenes in which So-ra’s emotion
is turned upside down in a matter of seconds. In one second she has to laugh,
in another second she has to cry badly. Her laughter and cry are all naturally.
This girl can nail it! I am personally amazed at the maturity of So-ra despite
her young age.</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="344" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4WEu9akHATY" width="459"></iframe></div>
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If you love movies about parting ways with the ones they love <a href="http://forum.indowebster.com/showthread.php?t=84731&page=5&p=6566549&viewfull=1#post6566549">then watch it</a>. If you love movies about real life story, then watch it. It will be outrageous if you watch this movie but not cry.
You have to at least get teary eyes. I myself spent dozens sheets of tissue! This
is very recommended to watch.<br />
<br />
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<br />
<br />
<b>Score: 7.5/10</b></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com3Karet, Setiabudi, Kota Jakarta Selatan, DKI Jakarta, Indonesia-6.2118469737602542 106.82093649666058-6.2158144737602541 106.81587249666057 -6.2078794737602543 106.82600049666058tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-85674189217825730692013-11-15T16:52:00.003+07:002015-11-01T11:21:13.707+07:00Mister International in Indonesia: Where are the protests?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I still remember not a day went by in September without <a href="http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/jakarta/protests-against-miss-world-continue-as-contestants-arrive/">news</a>
on various mass organizations staging protests on Miss World 2013 held in
Indonesia. They demanded that the beauty pageant be cancelled, citing that it
is not appropriate with Indonesian culture.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/indonesia-moves-miss-world-final-to-bali-after-protests/">Following the rains of demonstrations and protests, theorganizer cancelled the beauty pageant’s venues in Jakarta and held it solely inBali Island</a>. </div>
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<br /></div>
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But, apparently, Indonesia will host another international
beauty pageant! </div>
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<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilN2t3yYLF0RkMlptqalPKV05CKxeHIDcYm4-1zK6cIqsMQpit2tH6SP1q1gvOgZ_rGjWubtAklknVqGkKRyyjWJ3Yxd1wREpIGyJexKTYiDPMIYC-doTsIyPXAJxmNB1uc-4CnpKXARo/s1600/f176bb12324ff2093186a3327e93fe3f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilN2t3yYLF0RkMlptqalPKV05CKxeHIDcYm4-1zK6cIqsMQpit2tH6SP1q1gvOgZ_rGjWubtAklknVqGkKRyyjWJ3Yxd1wREpIGyJexKTYiDPMIYC-doTsIyPXAJxmNB1uc-4CnpKXARo/s320/f176bb12324ff2093186a3327e93fe3f.jpg" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.vnbeauties.com/t52538-topic">Mister International 2012Ali Hammoud</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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On my way home from my office, I always pass a billboard informing
me about<a href="http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mister_International_2013"> Mister International 2013</a> slated to be held in Jakarta on Wednesday, November
27, 2013. But something is missing. There is no news about people protesting
the show. Where are they? </div>
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<br /></div>
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Those who disagreed about Miss World held in Indonesia
argued that it is not aligned with Indonesian culture. They mostly disagreed
with the bikini contests, which is a part of the competition. <a href="http://beautypageants.indiatimes.com/articleshow/22289202.cms">The eventorganizer, however, had tried to make Miss World 2013 more respectful toIndonesian culture by eliminating the bikini contest</a>. This, according to the
protestors, was not enough. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The protestors of Miss World 2013, borrowing Feminists’
arguments, believed that women are degraded in such contests. They argued that women
were commodified in such contests. </div>
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Now, I want to question: why are there no protestors for
Mister International 2013? </div>
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<br /></div>
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Mister International in Indonesia is the 8<sup>th</sup>
installment of this male beauty pageant. Last year, it was held in the Philippines.
The contestants, as those at various beauty pageants, have to undergo various
stages before going to the final round. If Miss World requires its contestants
to wear bikinis in one of its competition session, Mister International is unsurprisingly
not different. It requires its contestants to wear swimsuit in one of its
sessions. I do not know whether or not the organizer of Mister International
2013 will scrap the swimsuit session.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Now once again, where are the protesters? Males only in
Speedo? No one wants to protest that? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Miss World was rejected by some groups in Indonesia because
of its bikini session –which actually was scrapped. <a href="http://www.tempo.co/read/news/2013/08/24/110506946/MUI-Yakin-Miss-World-Umbar-Aurat">Indonesian Ulema Council(MUI) argued that based on Islamic teaching women were not supposed to revealtheir body parts</a>. They should conceal their awrah (intimate parts), the council
said. </div>
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</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn__8p2wM6e9jdzyfdb-lFBAh4SeczIOQXQ5S8bTTvrSC3kkNvHZdYfVAo7mgUtRt2gsy8RWHfU4eHaMbGIT_ghsqnQltWm0yUHUyTR2brFqkB6X6YDfQHkbS8LunKSNYE0aoIVnIh1vo/s1600/img_9004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn__8p2wM6e9jdzyfdb-lFBAh4SeczIOQXQ5S8bTTvrSC3kkNvHZdYfVAo7mgUtRt2gsy8RWHfU4eHaMbGIT_ghsqnQltWm0yUHUyTR2brFqkB6X6YDfQHkbS8LunKSNYE0aoIVnIh1vo/s400/img_9004.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.georgettetan.com/2008/01/mister-international-2007-swimwear/">Mister International 2011's Swimwear Contest </a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
According to Hanafi’s interpretations, female awrah includes
her entire body, excluding her face and her palms. Some interpret that female
should also conceal their face. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intimate_parts_(Islam)">The awrah, however, is different when femaleare with fellow Muslim females, non-Muslim females, their husbands, close-malerelatives, male children and non-male relative. </a></div>
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<br /></div>
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Then, the question remains as to what are male’s awrah? </div>
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<br /></div>
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Unsurprisingly, male’s awrah, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intimate_parts_(Islam)#Men">according to Sunni interpretations</a>,
only “refers to the part of the body from the navel (not inclusive) to the
knees.” Yeah, I know, very simple compared to females’ awrah.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
According to the definition, Mister World, therefore, is not
different from Miss World. It exploits intimate body parts! Can those people
accept images of males only wearing a piece of cloth covering their groin? But,
at the same time, they are irritated with images of females in their bikinis? </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Well, certainly, some feminists may provide insights on this
dichotomy between Miss World and Mister International in Indonesia. As much as I
am tempted to comment on this matter with feminist perspective, I choose to
step aside. I just want to share how I perceive about the inequality this
society posits on its approach to beauty pageants. If they argue that such contests are not
appropriate with people’s custom and culture, then why don’t they protest them
all? </div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 7pt; line-height: 115%;">.</span></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-31168825638182242242013-11-07T09:31:00.001+07:002013-11-15T16:54:32.737+07:00New Ms. Marvel is a Muslim!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfmQgEBHzHe9VNvLKpYvHQt5Nj_2FK3rTGTd5rYnVcgaxp6jUGrxnCZ_8IC7Cd9V_BKqtCPba2E7VBfc8Ka_uluqTkM3WgpGFaH2krKnta7fUPCHgG9f_Gkxm5HO3u28rjzS1wGgsgrc/s1600/kamala.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfmQgEBHzHe9VNvLKpYvHQt5Nj_2FK3rTGTd5rYnVcgaxp6jUGrxnCZ_8IC7Cd9V_BKqtCPba2E7VBfc8Ka_uluqTkM3WgpGFaH2krKnta7fUPCHgG9f_Gkxm5HO3u28rjzS1wGgsgrc/s320/kamala.jpg" width="210" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Between Muslim and American Identity <br />
Kamala Khan, New Ms. Marvel.<br />
source: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/05/marvel-muslim-girl-superhero_n_4220999.html">huffingtonpost</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I woke up this morning with a big surprise. As a part of my
daily routines, I always check on my Feedly account and at around 8 am I read a
post in Hufftington Post about a new character in Marvel universe. Marvel will
welcome Kamala Khan, a Muslim woman and Pakistan immigrant to the US, as the
new Ms. Marvel.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Yes, it’s a Muslim woman who is bestowed the title of Ms.
Marvel. As someone who really loves superhero universe and American Studies,
this event is a pivotal key in the ‘outgoing’ superpower country’s culture. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ms. Marvel is a fiction character in Marvel comic books.
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ms._Marvel">Carol Danvers </a>is the most notable character donning the mantle of Ms. Marvel.
The hero has various abilities including superhuman strength, speed, stamina,
durability, energy projection, energy absorption and flight. Therefore, Ms.
Marvel, in my opinion, is one the most powerful character in Marvel Universe. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<br /></div>
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Now, what can Kamala Khan do as Ms. Marvel? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Unfortunately, Miss Khan will not be endowed with all the greatness
of Ms. Marvel’s Carol Danvers. Khan will only be given a shape shifting power,
through which she can resize any part of her body. She eventually will be able
to mimic Mystique’s power, shifting into another person. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfltzy6P2nUYzyWIRS_LKLeYWFEaeaOCZDRNiz12a3dJ6bnqJJ_LiDE-n0SRcc3XPryUQqYU9zP_C8HskcAhAnndPDwbVHvpbCas2zNXeA8UraIeztoeGtGUQY-ZMpk1w9XXSKLhSfTI/s1600/ms+marvel.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDfltzy6P2nUYzyWIRS_LKLeYWFEaeaOCZDRNiz12a3dJ6bnqJJ_LiDE-n0SRcc3XPryUQqYU9zP_C8HskcAhAnndPDwbVHvpbCas2zNXeA8UraIeztoeGtGUQY-ZMpk1w9XXSKLhSfTI/s200/ms+marvel.png" width="144" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Carol Denver as Ms. Marvel<br />
source: <a href="http://www.comicvine.com/forums/battles-7/ms-marvel-vs-star-sapphire-674272/">comicvine</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Writer G. Willow Wilson and artist Adrian Alphona was quoted
as saying in <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/meet-the-new-ms-marvel-muslim-teen-kamala-khan-from-jersey/article15291975/">The Globe and Mail</a> that Ms. Marvel will reflect on Khan’s
interpersonal life: dealing with superpowers, family expectations and
adolescence. Meanwhile, new Ms. Marvel’s
editor Sana Amanat says that the monthly comic book will “explore the
Muslim-American diaspora from an authentic perspective.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In my opinion, the series reflect so much about the lives in
contemporary America. The fact that Marvel gives a green light to publish a
Muslim (and female) superhero in its own title contains various significance.</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCqA73J4j0R6690zvDous9AOIjqQiVoXjk6C8aIICPt1MnCW9E2hYL5TTJFGwQXHYhuNqn7ShIaEDsjmk7vr9HhYF7GURWAa0DiVZLMvTRnLFnrMy3wR8heM3QgrtzUxllw13qM7UNXLQ/s1600/shimon+baz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCqA73J4j0R6690zvDous9AOIjqQiVoXjk6C8aIICPt1MnCW9E2hYL5TTJFGwQXHYhuNqn7ShIaEDsjmk7vr9HhYF7GURWAa0DiVZLMvTRnLFnrMy3wR8heM3QgrtzUxllw13qM7UNXLQ/s200/shimon+baz.jpg" width="129" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Muslim Green Lantern<br />
Member of Justice League<br />
source: <a href="http://comicbook.com/blog/2012/09/05/arab-green-lantern-simon-baz-gets-action-figure/">comicbook.com</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Both major comic book publishers in US, Marvel and D.C.
comics, already feature Muslim characters. Marvel in 2002 introduced <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust_(comics)">Dust</a>, a
female fictional mutant character in X Men universe having the power to
transform her body into a cloud of dust. She is notable for her appearance,
wearing traditional niqab. DC, meanwhile, in 2012 introduced <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/green-lantern-0-introduces-new-muslim-arab-american-super-hero-major-milestone-comics-article-1.1151433">Shimon Baz</a>,
Arab-American, as the newest human to wear Green Lantern suit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBaHHmZ1Dz8te_bvAhjRAFIj91wdQC3pgoZHETu5IXo3tMjZEMBTHIZz0YLwB9AsO-Mu1sX8jrrkjnmowgad8jU9uS1GgMbLTMf2NNgRXSex_f6BwlFSmLw1zi_o3xQBGYGMmAUr_M2pg/s1600/Dust.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBaHHmZ1Dz8te_bvAhjRAFIj91wdQC3pgoZHETu5IXo3tMjZEMBTHIZz0YLwB9AsO-Mu1sX8jrrkjnmowgad8jU9uS1GgMbLTMf2NNgRXSex_f6BwlFSmLw1zi_o3xQBGYGMmAUr_M2pg/s320/Dust.jpg" width="208" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soraya Qadir as Dust. Current member of Young X Man<br />
source: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust_(comics)">wikipedia</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With Kamala Khan holds her own title, I want to argue the US
society has tried to respond to the growing complexities of world issues.
Islam, for as long as I can remember, is usually portrayed negatively in US
popular culture. Those affiliated with Islam –in here, I am referring to Arab
race – is often portrayed as terrorists in Hollywood’s movies and tv series.
But now, it seems that the US is ready to embrace the diversity of Islamic
world, suggested with the appearance of Dust, Shimon Baz and Kamala Khan. They
are ready to be presented the fact that not all Muslims are bad guys. They are
ready to embrace the complexity of postmodern values (which are currently
unfolding vastly in the Western world). </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Muslim world should probably thank to the masterminds behind
Kamala Khan and other Muslim superheroes, which happen to be Muslims as well. They
fight with their own jihad to make US society knows about the other side of
Islam, ones that they will never see if they just rely on most of their news
channels. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To be Muslim and American is complex. Noted political
scientist Samuel Hartington has argued that the world is currently having a
clash of civilization between the Western values and Islam. So, in the light of
Hartington’s argument, Kamala Khan is born. It will be interesting to read how
Marvel will construct Kamala as Ms. Marvel. It will be interesting to read how
she will navigate between her Muslim, female and American identity. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-32714067740871923202013-10-24T10:56:00.000+07:002013-10-24T10:58:32.266+07:00Movie Review | Gravity: More Than Just a Space Film<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXisP4BRpLdJ0hhkNAa6OLeZ4VsQxAS5-KuSrghhcgccExUy30d43KuZ5u6Gq7Dkop-4wb4VVcMvRhfun2UYSkvDSw-hQZc8MLzmCYh27-uJTbs5L1FMKHYpJVP2BfUUY5P4KtpFjQSX4/s1600/gravity-movie-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXisP4BRpLdJ0hhkNAa6OLeZ4VsQxAS5-KuSrghhcgccExUy30d43KuZ5u6Gq7Dkop-4wb4VVcMvRhfun2UYSkvDSw-hQZc8MLzmCYh27-uJTbs5L1FMKHYpJVP2BfUUY5P4KtpFjQSX4/s320/gravity-movie-poster.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://actionflickchick.com/superaction/gravity-teaser-trailer/">Gravity Movie Poster </a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
“I think that movie is boring. It only features two actors. What’s so cool about that!” said an acquaintance of mine, commenting on a movie entitled <a href="http://gravitymovie.warnerbros.com/">Gravity</a>. But I have an entirely different opinion.<br />
<br />
You probably have seen countless movies about space. But I bet you have never really experienced what it feels like to be in space. This, in my opinion, is what Gravity has to offer.<br />
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Joining space shuttle Explorer, Dr. Ryan Stone, a Mission specialist nicely played by Sandra Bullock, is hired by NASA to service the Hubble Space Telescope. Accompanied by veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski, starred by George Clooney, Dr. Stone floats away in the space, trying to service the telescope. It will be outrageous if you are not stunned by a jaw dropping view of the blue Earth, which shades the work field of Dr. Stone and Kowalski.<br />
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However, all of sudden, the Mission Control in Houston warns of a high-speed space debris, created by a defunct Russian satellite destroyed by the country’s missile. The Mission Control considers that the debris may endanger the space mission and therefore aborts Explorer’s mission. The warning, however, is too late. A pile of high-speed debris flies towards Dr. Stone and Kowalski, who have yet to enter Explorer. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjOPhq1pkZCknJvNXV3s-JnYpwh2fRgwazn9aJG3BUFQvQu0oyFVD1aakj8P0DcngC7uXcLOxXW-ELCDJt3qLVGwWwyW_SkuVnE8uRNAOW7kpu-DqfD5YMjhP1AbMiugn43qIulO9TOc/s1600/Gravity+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjOPhq1pkZCknJvNXV3s-JnYpwh2fRgwazn9aJG3BUFQvQu0oyFVD1aakj8P0DcngC7uXcLOxXW-ELCDJt3qLVGwWwyW_SkuVnE8uRNAOW7kpu-DqfD5YMjhP1AbMiugn43qIulO9TOc/s1600/Gravity+2.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fansshare.com/news/first-poster-for-gravity-starring-sandra-bullock-george-clooney/">Dont Let Go: Movie Tagline</a></td></tr>
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As the debris hit them, the communication with the Mission Control is cut. The debris has sent Explorer into pieces. After the debris’s attack has ceased, Dr. Stone and Kowalski then learn that they are the sole survivors of Explorer.<br />
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Drifted in the nothingness of space, Dr. Stone and Kowalski have to survive in order to find a shuttle to carry them back to Earth.<br />
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“I think it’s the best space photography ever done, I think it’s the best space film ever done, and it’s the movie I’ve been hungry to see for an awful long time,” said James Cameron, the director of acclaimed movie “Avatar” in his interview with <a href="http://variety.com/2013/film/news/alfonso-cuaron-returns-to-the-bigscreen-after-seven-years-with-gravity-1200596518/">variety.com.</a><br />
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Cameron, in my opinion, spoke the truth. Gravity is indeed the best space film.<br />
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In my movie repertoire, space films usually narrate about possible causes of Earth’s destruction. You probably still remember Armageddon or Independence Day. Others just talk about the science-fiction world of space, like in Star Wars or Star Trek. So, I think, Alfonso Cuaron is very smart to make a space film that tells about humans.<br />
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Wait a second; did I just say <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_Cuar%C3%B3n">Alfonso Cuaron</a>? Yes, the director of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is the mastermind behind Gravity.<br />
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Aside from astonishing effects – that makes you think you really are in a space –, Gravity should thank to Sandra Bullock for her astounding acting. Not to mention, it should also credit George Clooney for his minor yet important role on the movie.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZQ8T0MEeEc2hSzjKw4RzjDqA-AbO44eKdXsvGDuQ5q87IvbUtTFEri826zODZIxccSib3ewWl6MpPkqyPD86sZ4kj-CfkC0K6ALpMbLm0_flElYDzhyphenhyphenXR7e7zwh96EqPNys8HT7kKUDM/s1600/gravity_film_still_a_l.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZQ8T0MEeEc2hSzjKw4RzjDqA-AbO44eKdXsvGDuQ5q87IvbUtTFEri826zODZIxccSib3ewWl6MpPkqyPD86sZ4kj-CfkC0K6ALpMbLm0_flElYDzhyphenhyphenXR7e7zwh96EqPNys8HT7kKUDM/s400/gravity_film_still_a_l.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://comicbook.com/blog/2013/09/22/gravity-a-stunning-film-that-needs-a-physics-textbook/">Dr. Ryan and Kowalski fixing the Hubble Telescope</a></td></tr>
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Thanks to Bullock, who is now entering her 50s (You will not be able to guess her actual age if you only watch the movie), I can really relate to human’s experience and emotion that the movie tries to convey. I was literally drawn into Dr. Ryan’s fears when she was drifted in space. I shared the same fears. I could relate to her depression after knowing that she might have no chance to land her feet on the ground again. <br />
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Besides its exceptional narration, Gravity is also so full of metaphors if you want to explore it. Floating in the nothingness can be interpreted differently by the movie’s spectators, for those who want to think about it deeply. Therefore, in my opinion, Gravity belongs to a kind of movie that makes you reflect on your own life story.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ2lVHvpnCg297uNQvFsv5tohxUKs3FM7AU1IP_H4JkehQCg2l1URwO_HD9EdnLPMfTTcMssHKZCUBMwWvdzHYYfagEFPuhd_AvjEyILxDUR3VvCd1g1jbGxm1L0T5S_tynUN-yLCileo/s1600/gravity-movie-review-sandra-bullock-shiop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ2lVHvpnCg297uNQvFsv5tohxUKs3FM7AU1IP_H4JkehQCg2l1URwO_HD9EdnLPMfTTcMssHKZCUBMwWvdzHYYfagEFPuhd_AvjEyILxDUR3VvCd1g1jbGxm1L0T5S_tynUN-yLCileo/s320/gravity-movie-review-sandra-bullock-shiop.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/gravity-review/">Dr. Ryan in space ship</a></td></tr>
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In the end of this post, I want to revisit my acquaintance’s comment earlier on the top of the post. What’s wrong with only two major stars? The more the merrier does not apply to this movie. Gravity is as good as it with only two major characters. In fact, Cuaron has led us to understand the characters of Dr. Ryan and Kowalski in depth right from the start. <br />
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Gravity, in short, is beyond a film about space as Gravity pulls you toward your inner life journey.<br />
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-34005141224049894132013-10-03T09:15:00.000+07:002013-10-03T09:20:27.640+07:00More Doubts Shroud Indonesia in Light of Top Justice’s Arrest<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://images.detik.com/customthumb/2013/10/03/10/024827_mkakilmoechtararisaputra2.jpg?w=460" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="216" src="http://images.detik.com/customthumb/2013/10/03/10/024827_mkakilmoechtararisaputra2.jpg?w=460" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://news.detik.com/read/2013/10/03/024635/2376176/10/akil-mochtar-sempat-bantah-keras-adanya-korupsi-kelembagaan-di-mk">Akil Mochtar</a></td></tr>
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A shocking news surprised me when I woke up in the morning today. Akil Mohtar, the Constitutional Court’s Chief Justice, was arrested by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in a raid early on Thursday morning.<br />
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Akil, who was elected as Chief Justice in August 2013, allegedly received briberies to settle election dispute in Gunung Mas regency. Former Golkar Party politician Akil was arrested along with Golkar Party lawmaker Chairun Nisa and businessman CHN at the chief’s official house in South Jakarta. Shortly, Gunung Mas regent Hambit Bintih and another businessman DH was apprehended in a hotel in Central Jakarta.<br />
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The anti-graft body’s investigators confiscated money worthy of SGD 324,000 (IDR 3 billion) from Akil’s house. <br />
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The Constitutional Court, so far, has always been considered as the cleanest body in the judicial branch in Indonesia. This highest court deals with constitutional disputes and those about regional, local or national election disputes.<br />
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In my opinion, the arrest has delivered a very fatal blow to Indonesia’s judicial system and Indonesian governmental system in general. Former Constitutional Court Chief Justice Mahfud MD has been known for building up the image of his former office as a clean body. Now, his successor has just shattered the image to pieces.<br />
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“Now we don’t know who we can trust,” said one of my colleagues at the office when we discussed the arrest.<br />
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My friend is right. Corruption has invaded nearly all aspects of Indonesian government. Be it police, lawyers, lawmakers, justices, ministers and now even a Constitutional Court Chief Justice, they do not seem to be able to turn their faces away from corrupt practices. We don’t know who we can trust now.<br />
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Most often we do not want to be involved with police because for many Indonesians, dealing with police means you have to own a mass amount of money. If you don’t have money, then no one will stand by you. That is the prevailing norm and belief in Indonesian society. The lack of clean governmental system has made Indonesian citizens doubt that they will never get justice. Justice is something you can buy in this country. <br />
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Now the question remains. Is there anything we cannot do now? Now that is a question that you and I need to find the answers … For a cleaner and better Indonesia, we should start implementing ‘clean and healthy’ lifestyle to ourselves.<br />
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-86268980126594644122013-07-10T08:35:00.000+07:002013-12-19T11:06:25.798+07:00Superheroes on Indonesia’s streets unveiled<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
When I wander across streets in Indonesia, oftentimes, I find people that I think as superheroes. How come? Probably these pictures may describe what I think.<br />
<img src="http://l.yimg.com/g/images/spaceout.gif" /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHCRkNbL4bVA5BKCL6gto60MDxiSf6jpo-NEOSUq2Q0SvO14hV8dOiQMv2HwIiIEWfVUiMmgDx7xE2lDjJrZ04hDuyBlugnqf06xQU5Qj4XS5D2L-4vuXLrf6bMzI2s6QRlW1NelxZE_I/s1600/sdawed.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHCRkNbL4bVA5BKCL6gto60MDxiSf6jpo-NEOSUq2Q0SvO14hV8dOiQMv2HwIiIEWfVUiMmgDx7xE2lDjJrZ04hDuyBlugnqf06xQU5Qj4XS5D2L-4vuXLrf6bMzI2s6QRlW1NelxZE_I/s400/sdawed.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">Credit goes to </span><a href="http://www.flickriver.com/photos/bambang_bakti/4955621839/" style="text-align: start;">Pak Subaktyo</a><span style="text-align: start;"> </span></span></td></tr>
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Above picture is taken from a blog. As you can see, the picture shows a motorcycle fully loaded – if not overload – with things that appear to be 28 white sacks. I don’t know how much each sack weighs. But, still, it is still very dangerous! Can’t you see the driver? Yes, you can only see his legs!! Then what about him? Can he see what is on his back through side mirrors? Definitely not! Then, I suppose he has some superpower to see through the back of his head (and through the pile of the white sacks)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQvZnunppvL88NChp1U-YQQhtNTWoDhaBePaYa7RO9cU4iEnEi-" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQvZnunppvL88NChp1U-YQQhtNTWoDhaBePaYa7RO9cU4iEnEi-" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: start;">Retrieved from </span><a href="http://www.kaskus.co.id/thread/50d71187ea74b4a510000040/jujur-ane-emosi-liat-bocah-yg-bawa-motor/" style="text-align: start;">kaskus.co.id</a><span style="text-align: start;"> </span></span></td></tr>
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What about these two girls? Well it is just a common scenery you will find in various streets across in Indonesia. You will often find people riding motorcycle while texting, making a phone call or chatting through various chat messengers.<br />
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I still remember a season in Oprah, where she always asked her guest stars to sign a petition saying not to use mobile phones while driving cars. Well, Oprah, you better go to Indonesia and see what you think about these two girls (and a bunch – if not thousands – of Indonesians).<br />
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So, do the girls in the above picture have superpower? They probably don’t have it. But, they are more likely superheroes which are equipped with cool gadgets. Yes! They are Batman-typical superheroes. Gone are superpowers if you have a motorcycle which has automatic driving mode! That must be it. Can I have one too?<br />
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One night I waited a friend outside of his office in Palmerah, West Jakarta. I stopped near an electronic shop and was startled by a scene in front of my eyes. Well, I saw a man purchasing a brand new refrigerator. There was nothing exceptional until I realize his hidden superpower.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt6zdNwcMZJzN8zbFlASr3Rs7ybQR7ZHOs6cXVtwVpDeMkt_xCCala22nz5GePHIauWIQujEg5APNBm8r6GCOzxmq2KKm9APDedPpDYo8G101l0xRmh3gqytWlev91CJpe7pqKdLBN1xM/s1600/1044335_10201391686024058_488383383_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt6zdNwcMZJzN8zbFlASr3Rs7ybQR7ZHOs6cXVtwVpDeMkt_xCCala22nz5GePHIauWIQujEg5APNBm8r6GCOzxmq2KKm9APDedPpDYo8G101l0xRmh3gqytWlev91CJpe7pqKdLBN1xM/s400/1044335_10201391686024058_488383383_n.jpg" width="222" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by me</td></tr>
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He rented no car to bring his refrigerator back home. But, he loaded it to his motorcycle. The last time I check, my motorcycle’s length is nearly the same as a medium size refrigerator. But, somehow, he managed to load it to his motorcycle! How awesome (or not) was it??<br />
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Did he realize that what he did would disrupt the aerodynamic design of his motorcycle? He will easily fall if suddenly a strong wind blows from either his right or left side. If I were him, then I would prefer renting a car to using my motorcycle to load that refrigerator. Unless, he is like Avatar Aang who has the power to bend air, he should feel afraid to be so careless. Oh yes, he must be an air bender in disguise. That is why he is not afraid!<br />
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Well, those are some superheroes that I find on Indonesia’s streets. Have you also encountered other types of superheroes? Share them!</div>
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Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738570450832600428.post-4020993157921640022013-06-24T14:11:00.000+07:002015-11-01T11:18:04.817+07:00A Book about Life, Manuscript Found In Accra | Book Review<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://love-life-relationships.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/manuscript-found-in-accra-paul-coelho.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://love-life-relationships.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/manuscript-found-in-accra-paul-coelho.jpg" height="320" width="206" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://love-life-relationships.com/tag/manuscript-found-in-accra/" target="_blank">Book Cover</a> </td></tr>
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Relieving. This one word may best describe what I feel about Paulo Coelho’s latest novel, Manuscript Found in Accra. Coelho has once again captivated my heart though his writings.<br />
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I came across Coelho’s works unintentionally. I still vividly remember an American woman giving her copy of the Alchemist to me when we flew together to US in 2011. Through that book, I came to the marvelous works of Coelho.<br />
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Manuscript Found in Accra tells about a story happening in Jerusalem in 1099. One night, the townspeople are engulfed in fear as the crusaders are about to attack the city, which is regarded as a holy city to Jewish, Christians and Muslims alike. The townspeople, regardless the difference of age, gender and religion, gather in a corner of the town. Suddenly, an unknown man, called himself as the Copt, appears out of nowhere. He then spreads his wisdoms to the townspeople who ask him about life, death, love, fear and any thinkable human’s life aspects. </div>
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“Tell us about solitude,” said a young woman who had been about to marry the son of one of the richest men in the city but was now obliged to flee.<br />
And he answered.<br />
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Without solitude love will not stay long by your side. Because love needs to rest, so that it can journey through the heavens and reveal itself in other forms.<br />
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In solitude, they will discover the love that might otherwise have arrived unnoticed. In solitude, they will understand and respect the love that left them. In solitude, they will be able to decide whether it is worth asking that lost love to come back or if they should simply let it go and set off along a new path. </blockquote>
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The above lines are taken from the novel. A town resident, a young woman, asks the Copt about ‘solitude’ and he answers the question with wisdoms that can be reflected to your own experience in life. Throughout the novel, conversations between townspeople and the Copt occur in that way: a person asks the Copt about something, and then he answers it. <br />
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Some readers may feel disappointed with such construction because they consider the novel too preachy. But for me, I feel like the Copt’s answers have answered some of my life’s problem and burden. It’s true that when I was reading it, I was having a personal problem and in grief deeply. But, the novel has somehow given answers to my problems and relieved me. <br />
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Manuscript Found in Accra makes me think that it really depends on yourself when you see your life. The novel gives me alternative answers to various aspects of life problems. Even, the novel has taught me that ‘life problems’ will be more difficult if you consider them as problems. See other hidden parts of your problem, then you will call them as problems no more. <br />
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For those very reasons then I highly suggest you to read the book. On top of that, you can actually take out one or some lines from the novel that can be used to motivate you because as typical Coelho, the novel is abundant with inspirational and motivational quotes. Read the book slowly, feel every word Coelho has written and reflect it on your life!</div>
Rizqi Arifuddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14849849102018734313noreply@blogger.com1