Mat Kilau (2022) User Reviews

pretty meh but seriously what's with the ending?

[dukeeeletooo · 5/10 · 26 July 2022]

All the weaknesses have been mentioned here by other reviews. Screenwriting, jump cuts, camera works etc etc.

My main complaint is how SY ended his film. It just end abruptly, like TOO abrupt. I'm all for film that ended on cliffhanger but there's literally certain style and technique to leave an impact to the viewer not just fade to black just after nothing remarkable happened before that. When the credits kicks in I'm just like "That's it?". Poor way to end a film that supposed to be an historical epic.

Disappointed

[personalacc-87247 · 4/10 · 4 August 2022]

This is literally the worst film from the Director, his previous films were watchable and enjoyable. This one fails so badly till you legit have to force yourself to watch till the end. Could've improved a lot of things but they've decided to leave it that day!

Overall watch at your own risk, skip this if you want to.

Syamsul needs a better writer

[zelomatobap · 5/10 · 27 June 2022]

The thing about Syamsul is he's a visionary directory, talented but he clearly needs to focus more on the writing department or just get someone who's better at this.

Mat Kilau has its moment that you can truely feels its sheer epic scale and heightened your spirit of nationalism. The fight sequences were fairly good and really embodied the greatness of Silat. To summarize, Mat Kilau is fast, action packed and straightforward formulaic biography that able to cater most Malaysians taste.

Now the writing... The script is just lackluster and have Syamsul's trademark all over it. It's very preachy and loud telling you "Get up and fight for your country and religion!". Is that bad? No, not at all. I understand the intention of sending some messages to the viewer (and it clearly worked). But the gripe of having this kind of script is that it makes the character seems unnatural and very one dimensional.

The pacing problem . It moves from scene to scene way too fast that makes me lost the sense of time. And leaves the story unable to breath on its own. This is likely a screenplay issue than editing.

Mat Kilau, the titular role is very one dimensional and there isn't any interesting arcs to this character even though Adi Putra nails the character well enough. Even the character played by Beto Kusyairi has more depth to it.

Some side plots and minor characters are hugely underdeveloped that they suddenly appeared near the end of the film. I don't understand if Syamsul intended it to be a surprise or something but the outcome are meh without any of those build up.

Overall, its a decent watch. Good effort by the team. Go watch and support Mat Kilau at the theatres.

What is the fuss about this film???

[iz-one · 3/10 · 4 July 2022]

I decided to give it a go and try watching this movie with my family...and i just don't understand why people making a fuss about this movie... first of all screenwriting can do better... should hire someone who is actually good in doing scriptwriting ... Shamsul Yusuf should just stick to directing... you don't need to show that you can do everything but the outcome is like those tv malay drama series.......

the transition between scenes is just mediocre... its like you watching a snippet of scenes and end up gluing it together... there is no continuity on the entire movie .... jumping all over here and there....

The shaky camera works should be less.. you should learn by watching from the experts like steven spielberg's "private ryan" or any from paul. Greengrass films...oh and the kicking and puching sound during the martial arts silat sequence should be more realistic...not some recycle sound from your old KL gangster film.... lousy sound.

Should hire a proper sound designer and a good foley artist....

oh and the set designer should do more proper study on the surroundings... for example there is a scene where the landscape is showing the people doing the. Gold panning and it shows the tent is all so clean and so white.... bear in mind that scenes is at a gold mining area with all the muds etc but yet the tent is so clean.... and even the villagers costume as well as the Mat kilau crew is using a well clean , iron straight from the boutique quality..... does not feel that the villagers are living in poverty.....

the ending scene is like you suddenly realize that you are running out of money and just simply cut short the film.. there is no proper ending/ summary to this film.... even the character of Captain Syers by Geoff Andre Feyaerts during the final retreat scene is not properly develop...should develop showing the frustration / or the vengeance feeling towards the rebels and showing his vows to come again if there is any plan to do a sequel.........

i left the cinema with WTF!!! Why people say it is an awesome movie... i have seen better malay films......

if there is a sequel shamsul yusof should and.studio kembara should do more proper study and not some so so film like this.

Extremely Overrated

[shamielfikri · 1/10 · 19 July 2022]

Poor writing and storyline. Fake acting. Childish narrative on antagonist. Historically inaccurate doesnt mean the story have to be unrealistic.

Though response from the local shows that malaysian simply judge local film by fighting act and cast presentation.

Indonesian's Rudie Habibie for example does spent their plot on fighting and choreography. But good character arc, less fighting, less screaming, less preaching.

Another collection of trash from the Yusuf's.

Syamsul Yusuf need a better screenwriter

[SyafiqTheWanted · 7/10 · 28 June 2022]

The storyline needs to be improved again, what I see in this movie is that there is no continuity from scene to scene, it's like there is nothing to do between the scenes. Secondly, the main hero character, Mat Kilau, has no backstory and character development and that needs to be improved. Third, the use of the Malay language needs to be further improved and the script needs to be further improved. Finally, the camera movement needs to be improved again and what I saw in this movie, the camera movement is a bit chaotic, and shaky.

What i like from this movie is Cinematography and action sequence also THIS MOVIE IS GOOD BUT IT CAN BE BETTER. THANK YOU.

I HAVE SOME ADVICE TO THE DIRECTOR.

[ansonclockerlau · 5/10 · 11 July 2022]

After I watched this movie, I needs more happiness. I FEEL THERE'S LESS FACTOR TO CHEERS!

Some people like this movie, but others criticised the tone and its presentation. To me, I felt the movies have many things that make me leap into the cliff. But I don't blame the director and audience, but I blame myself for watching this action flick. The story is okay, and the action sequences are exemplary yet cool, but those need some improvement like music, camera angle, dialogues and casting. Before I watched this flick, I wonder how the majority of Malay friends flock to the cinema, maybe eagerly supporting the movie industry to thrive to the highest standards. My point is, why this flick is the currently highest Malaysian film of all time? Oh, perhaps it's the message, the history, the Malays pride, and some religion's messages. Maybe I was wrong, by the way.

Malaysian films like Ola Bola, Sepet, movies of P. Ramlee etc, give me hope and excitement, on the other hand, this film feels weird and kind of out of place. The film is pretty good actually, but when it comes to the message and the target audiences, the director needs to consider himself to unite the nation.

Mat Kilau: Kebangkitan Pahlawan is surely a milestone for local creators, but I hope I could watch some more creative and cheerful films to deal with the problemata. To those people who want to try, I'd say: Frater et Sorrores, quidam veritas verba sanat.

The Epic Malaysian's Historical Film!!!

[aimaxs · 10/10 · 26 June 2022]

I was stunned to watch this movie. The storytelling that pierces the heart, the great acting plays with emotions, the intense fighting scenes, the cast of dialogue that is very touching. That is what I experienced while watching the undeniable film, the epic Malay film, MAT KILAU: KEBANGKITAN PAHLAWAN directed by the best Asia Pacific director Syamsul Yusuf. All the cast is great. It's fun to see Dato' Adi Putra back in action again. Beto Kusyairy's acting is the most solid, stealing my attention. I want Fattah Amin to act again in an action movie. I cheered, cried, cheered, and cried throughout this movie. Oops, I want to watch again! I'm still can't move on with this film. The film's is still being carried home. My siblings have already taken a Silat's step. Hahahah. The movie is worth it. My Rating 10/10.

Entertaining

[SyamRawk · 7/10 · 29 June 2022]

Very good high budget Malaysia movies. Yes of course still have a few deficiency such as props and script writing. Good action fighting scenes. Great way to show Silat martial art to the world. Overall well done.

It has potential but needs depth, breathing space & texture

[CaffeineJunky · 3/10 · 9 July 2022]

This movie is shallow, peppered with preachy scripts and cliches.

It needs a better writer... Character building is almost non-existent. The protagonist appeared out of nowhere, was thrown into a leadership role and started preaching about nationalism and religion. This is followed by a cliche drama where another character is envious of the chosen leader.

The preaching doesn't end there. It kept reminding you that the British were evil and tried to convince the viewers how important nationalism & religion were to them. This was done over and over again

This makes the protagonist one dimensional and they wasted such a good talent on this. Some of the minor characters have better development than the protagonist.

It needs breathing room... Some of the scenes jump around too fast, it seems as though they were rushing it in the editing room. Perhaps to include more preaching into the scenes?

Need some realism.... The costumes are inaccurate. Modern clothing and clothing items were used and its so obvious, it will throw historians & anthropologist into a fit.

The British soldiers are filled with entirely 'Punjabis'. Obviously, this wasn't the case in reality.

To create epic fight scenes, they have Yayan Ruhian. But it seems they wrote his character as an after thought.

Conclusion... If you don't care about good storytelling, character development, screenplay and accuracy, you will most likely like this movie.

If you appreciate good filmmaking and who goes to film festivals, you will want to skip this.

World Class Movie

[checkmate_nc · 10/10 · 27 June 2022]

The cinematography is superb with the help of very experienced production team. The plot was so unpredictable and some scene will make you cry. Thank you to coreography lead by Yayan Ruhian (Hollywood actor and stuntman) which provide very energetic and impactful fighting scene.

Recommended to watch and hopefully there will be Mat Kilau 2.

We have wait for this for a long long time

[fluffset · 7/10 · 26 June 2022]

Malaysia have a lot of brave history fight for independence but we keep doing horror and comedy movie. Thanks to Dali brothers we can see this kind of movie in the cinema. Even though it is not too historical, just full of action pack with a glimpse of history. Its nice to have this kind of movie sometimes. Hope more to come.

There is still room for improvements in many aspects!

[ajleong-98725 · 4/10 · 3 July 2022]

The storyline is very straightforward and thin, without much depth. It is about the exploitation of British colonisers, and how the people stand up to fight for their land.

The pacing is weak. It moves too fast from one scene to another (jumping scenes), making the story hard to breathe or digest at times.

There are plenty of action scenes. BUT they are mostly "repetitive", e.g. Fighting with the soldiers and the same "villain" again and again, making the actions flat. Perhaps a real super-villain shall be saved for the very END, so that audiences could be impressed by the REAL FIGHT! However, it's just made fights for the sake of fighting!

Besides, the camera movement is just too shaky that I give up on the action scenes, or rather feel uncomfy towards the action scenes (headache and dizzy). It's alright to have "shaky camera" technique at times, like some Hollywood movies, BUT NOT overdone throughout the entire movie from the beginning to the end.

The character development is seriously weak. There is NOTHING about Mat Kilau, other than he is a leader and good in silat. Also, we could hardly understand much about the characters of the FIVE 'brother fighters'. The emotional and sentimental value is just NOT there enough to touch anyone. As such, I could hardly feel anything, even though TWO of them died or anyone died in the movie.

There is a scene whereby the villagers (at last) came to defend the land and fight against the British. I supposed the director wanted to make an "Avengers Assemble" kind of goose-bump scene, BUT it failed badly. And perhaps due to budget constraints, everything just ended abruptly.

It leaves room for improvement in many aspects, as said above. Oh ya, it's kind of violent with slaughtering and bloody scenes, so pls beware if you were to bring children to the movie.

Funny flow, funny camera work, funny everything.

[thejimming · 4/10 · 5 July 2022]

Don't get me wrong. I love the spirit and I know what kind of message that SY has been trying to deliver. But man... it is badly made.

1. Script

• One guy throw a line and not even a 0.01s, another guy throws his line almost cutting the first line. No momentum, no space to feel anything. Give them some time. You're not rushing. Though the pronunciations are clear, I already forgot the first guy's line 3 seconds ago.

2. Action Scenes.

• Love the superb choreography. But the camera work? It's not helping. Yes, we can see them punching and yes, we can see them flying but does the camera work helps? Oh I kid you not, it does not work. The intention of shaky cameras is to make the audience feel like you're there in a fight. Not in a 4x4 back seat heading towards Sabah rural school.

3. Editing Sequence.

• Jump cuts, here and there. Cutting the screen time for the sake of intensity? This is no KL Gangster.

4. Background Music.

• Oh my God, loud here and there. Over 95% of the film are filled with soundtracks. This is a Malay epic film and how come there's no Malay-feel soundtracks? Rembat Hollywood's soundtrack is it? At least go full silence on 'supposedly intense' fight scene. Make people feel engaged to the fight.

5. Ending.

• Believe there are 5 stages in storytelling structures, no? Bla bla bla, silat this and that, Adi Putra gave his speech after a fight and it ends. That's it? Even iklans by agency have an ending, man.

Overall, I'd say this is a good try la. Take this comment as a feedback into account and consider.

Overrated

[muqrii · 1/10 · 10 September 2022]

This kind of film embodies the extreme lack of taste that is widespread in the Malaysian film industry. Action packed, but all meaningless and cringe The writing is awful. If anyone remembers KL Gangster (Also directed by the woeful Syamsul Yusof), this film is basically the historic version of it. Almost zero meaningful story. It seemed like the great casts flocked only for the idea of making a Mat Kilau film, not a film about Mat Kilau.

It's a great shame when a notable hero in history is used as a main character in a cheap watermelon action movie just to ramp up marketing and drive up sales. But who to blame again? It's the lack of taste among Malaysians, more so malays, that glorify this film as if it has any story telling of the actual history behind Mat Kilau. Anyone who has zero idea who Mat Kilau was, will learn absolutely nothing after watching this film.

The cinemas all over Malaysia were packed for over a month just for this film. Endless showtimes of Mat Kilau conquered it. Thor was cancelled and barely anyone complained.

It's good that the film is celebrated like no other. But it's bad that it's for this tasteless film. Wake up la Malays, This film is awful and crap. Nothing to bangga about. It's dark times in Malaysian film industry and FINAS is a big blame for it.

Last but not least, screw Syamsul Yusof, Zero talent and apparently he had the nerve to compare himself to Quentin Tarantino. With your budget, that guy would stomp your project inside a week. Go get your rempit girl you left your wife for. Your art is a great shame of this country.

A 'based on' real story

[greekdx · 6/10 · 26 September 2022]

This story of Mat Kilau refers to a legendary warrior hero of the late 19th century who fought against the English empire. The local general is quite brutal against the inhabitants of Pahang Continuous discords between the local people help him to get even more arrogant for money and power and making continuous atrocities against them in order to take what he thinks to deserve . Killing or murdering bullying and the same. This was helped also with two men from the today Indonesia excellent in martial arts and exceptionally strong. His soldiers are Sikhs ie Indians with the help of

This is surely an exaggeration. When I was in Nigeria sometime ago and knew that English authorities are a bit demanding but not doing atrocities against the locals.

Mat Kilau is a smart person with good verbiage and was given the lead of the local people to uprise against the English. The unity and faith to the God are also the keys to make them united.

The only problem is the very long fight scenes with silat the Malaysian version of Kung Fu with a few very violent scenes. Its clear that the narrator has not so much to show otherwise the movie could last around 40-45 minutes Think of around 50% with fights and 10% referring to religious beliefs (Islam ) and remain of story 'based of' , no the real.

The movie has also a good filming , lots of vague points , much of exaggeration but still gets quite good.

People give too much credit for this one.

[AusViViX · 1/10 · 17 September 2022]

People will despise you if you dislike this film. I get it. I get the point of the movie in the first place. But, at the end of the day, it's a film, and critics will always exist. Even though it is a historical film and may be meaningful to some, there will always be people who focus on the details of the film rather than just enjoying it. As for me, as a "Melayu" myself, I want this film to be as immersive as possible, especially given the historical setting. This demonstrates that Malaysian film quality lags far behind of other countries. Even if the story isn't based on genuine events, it doesn't have to be implausible just because it's historically false!

This film lacked a great deal of attention to detail. All credits only go to the cast. The cast was incredible and delivered a powerful performance in this film, but the rest was a colossal waste of potential. If the director had not found the right cast in the first place, this film would have been a flop.

The script is basic. They need to put in more effort on this front. The Malay accent is less accurate than it was in the 1980s. Consider P. Ramlee's films as an example. The fight scenes are good, but the camera work is terrible plus the sound design is overused.

This film doesn't even give me the classic 80s vibes that foreign films do. The British actors too, their acting is terrible! I cant stand it at all

The story is good; I wouldn't call it bad.

It takes the whole immersion away from this movie with the Sikhs' actors as British soldiers. It would be so great if they cast a real British actor for the soldiers, just to add more immersion to the story.

Although it is enjoyable to watch, it is not even close to being considered mastery, despite what everyone says. It does not have very much depth to it.

If this is the level of quality that local people like and get excited about, Malaysia's film industry will continue to regress.

And all the fuss and chaos from a few months ago is just too much. They give too much credit for this one. Be true to yourself. It is not Syamsul Yusof's greatest film.

The best movie in malaysia

[danishiqmal-36561 · 10/10 · 26 June 2022]

One of the best movie in history of malaysia. This kind of movie that i have being waiting in history of malaysia film. Excellent job to our Asia best director "Syamsul Yusoff". Please make more movie like this and more excellent movie.

A Cultural Wave

[vicewsssixteen · 7/10 · 12 July 2022]

A dramatisation of true historical events that intrigued the crowd that it intended to & more.

The plot progression is crazy, you move from one scene to another keeping the viewers engaged.

While the performance from the protagonists are amazing, it was dragged down by the stark contrast of the weak performance by one of the main antagonists, Captain Syers.

The dialogues ranges from amazing & inspirational to repetitive & monotonous. Some fits the theme & plot very well, while others are too declarative (in storytelling) or out of nowhere (Freemason & New World Order, what?)

Non-stop action & you won't get enough of the Silat choreographies. While it left some Silat enthusiasts wanting more, it has attracted many younger generations.

A very interesting theme, engaging story, good acting, successful social engagement.

It has all the right factors to be good enough for it to take the Malaysian film industry AND Malaysians by storm.

This movie not only brought a breath of fresh air for Malaysian's expectations of local films, but a step towards the rise of a nation. For that it deserves +1.

people will hated you because you hated this. This movie is untouchable

[m-ms-98261 · 4/10 · 29 June 2022]

Theres a whole debate in a movie fan group over this film. Believe or not you can't give any negative opinion over this film because people regarded this as a sort of masterpiece and people will tell you in the face that you have to make your own movie before you can give any criticism for Mat Kilau.

Tbh im never a fan of SY's works. He's like Zack Snyder except that he is way worse than him. He's all about style no substance but he got lot of fans that backed him up.

I still paid the tickets to see this. Hoping that Syamsul will surprise me because the trailer and the hype is kind of promising. But no. This is like KL Gangster except that now Jai is Mat Kilau. I wouldn't call Mat Kilau as a historical film or biography. It's more like Syamsul only use the name to deliver his own ideology or message just like he did in his movies before. The formula doesn't work here, it really doesnt. The actors kept shouting motivational quotes to your ear from beginning to end. Are there even real script here? This is the best he can do? I heard that the writers wrote the script with the messsage comes to their mind first. This is where the problem begins. The writers didnt even bother to create something that normal person would say.

Did any of the cast and crew watch the movie before release it on cinema? Did any of them even realise how disjointed the movie feels? The transition is freakin awful. It felt like some kind of rough cut that supposed to sit in editing room.

2022 Malaysia Epic Movie!

[ainnadhirahfuad · 10/10 · 27 June 2022]

Kuddos to Syamsul Yusoff.

Hope this film will encourage more directors dare to step/invest into work on historical inspired film.

I hope this film will encourage love for the country especially among young generation as the journey to achieve independence was not easy.

Alfatihah utk Mat Kilau bin Imam Rasu.

Almost an epic

[omarariff · 7/10 · 3 July 2022]

Intrigued by the box office hype, I knew I had to watch this flick. Below are my comments:

1. Storyline

The movie centres on the gradual imposition of British rule in Pahang. The situation escalates when taxes are imposed on commerce and culminates in the rebellion by the Malay masses led by Mat Kilau and friends.

It would have made a more complete story if the background of Mat Kilau and his warrior friends had been included. The instrumental role of Tok Gajah in rallying the masses could have give added strength to the plot.

My rating: 6/10

2. Cinematography

The quality of cinematography is very impressive, as good as a Hollywood production.

Nevertheless, the deliberate "jerking" of fight scenes was rather off putting. The fight scenes are definitely a boon for avid martial arts fans. One of the reasons why I stopped watching the Transformers franchise is the endless mind numbing fight scenes.

My rating: 7/10

3. Sound Editing

The overall sound editing is highly commendable.

The amplified sound of punches and kicks is really unnecessary. Luckily, it wasn't in the same category of Tamil movies.

My rating: 8/10

4. Script

The script was well written, replete with classical Malay sayings. Strong emphasis is placed on the inseparable bond between Malay and Islam.

With other Malay movies and dramas, the script leans very heavily on formal Malay rather than the layman version.

The scriptwriter inadvertently had Mat Kilau utter "emosi", a word which is definitely not in use in that era.

It is quite puzzling that the characters do not use local Pahang dialect in their dialogue. One could be forgiven for thinking that the characters lived in Selangor.

My rating: 6/10

5. Costume

Credit to the wardrobe Manager for dressing the entire cast in period costume. My only grouse is how new the clothes donned by the cast looked. Definitely not your day to day use attire.

My rating: 7/10

6. Musical score

The musical score used throughout the film brings fresh energy to the scenes. Of course, having a full orchestra backing in the musical score could have taken the film to dizzying heights.

My rating: 7/10

7. Acting performance

Adi Putra (Mat Kilau) and Yayan Ruhian (Tago) are easily the stand out performers. It would be easy to imagine Adi Putra donning a Batman suit and speak in a husky tone ala the Dark Knight.

Yayan potrays the badass mercenary to a tee. Perhaps Tago ought to have remained unassociated with Borneo. He definitely didn't sound Borneoan. Sounding very Indonesian, naturally, could negatively impact at the Indonesian box office.

One of the royal court characters spoke very much like a performer in a play. Again, most characters didn't sound natural, as mentioned earlier.

My rating: 7/10

Overall rating: 7/10

In summary, the movie is worth the ticket price. Syabas to the filmmakers for producing a first class film. Let's dream big. Mat Kilau has the potential of reaching out to an international audience if the suggestion for improvements are made and turning the dialogue into English.

Could the runaway success of Mat Kilau signal the start of a legendary Malay warrior franchise? How about bringing the struggle of Dol Said of Naning to the big screen?

I sincerely wish that one day a collaboration between Malaysian and Portuguese film makers will tell the story of the fall of the Melaka empire. 1511, anyone?

Unwatchable. shut it after the first 5 mins

[navinbalan · 1/10 · 20 September 2022]

This movie is like a local drama. Have you tried watching one?

The local simple, village folks might love it, as it is made for simple people. It sells the idea of a warrior of the Malay people, which many are waiting to "buy". Even as it is not historically accurate, the least it can have is depth, which it doesn't.

The story is pretty weak. The dialogues are laughable. Its like watching a 10 year old write a script. They wanted to capture an original camera action, but it turns your stomach when you watch it.

I forced myself to watch it (just to see what was the fuss about), and it was a complete waste of my time. I would never again watch it or suggest you to watch it, unless you have nothing except for this show on, even then, I would suggest you to switch off your tv and go do something else.

Different Story

[datimbinnojan · 1/10 · 20 August 2022]

When I read about Mat Kilau in internet that he was found a hundred years later, I thought this movie is about his journey after quarreling with the British, his secret how he can survive, his love story, his "war" with himself ... but it is not. The dialogue between the casts are too fast, jump jump lompat lompat like there is no space to bernafas. Perhaps I am wrong then I compared to other Malaysian movies ... yup I am sure the dialogue is too fast so I cannot catch the mimic of the casts.

A very overrated movie by the locals.

[adamsyamir · 1/10 · 16 September 2022]

The movie didn't even have a decent storyline to begin with. There's no realism for example a man bare handedly defeated six guys with rifles is just totally childish and ridiculous writing. And how the bullets never land on them except for that one time in the ending where they didn't got killed when they ran recklessly towards an army with cannons(the cannonballs just magically teleported behind them). And how there's always some bad guys in the background with rifle just stand there without shotting. The inconsistency of the story when awang make a deal with british and break it that night making the deal made by him to conceal their intentions seem worthless. The beautifully prepared sets being wasted over bad cinematography. Talented actors being wasted over bad script. Time that could had been use for character development are wasted over a long meaningless fight scene. Make me feel nothing when the pregnant wife got killed as she is soo underdeveloped to make me care about the character at all. Beside good choreography of fighting this movie is lacked of emotion, plot, character development, good writing and even have no beautifully shot scene.