15/06/2025

ON SUNDAY JUNE 15, 2025 II theSunday Special

+VũU VKOG /CNC[UKCPU TGEQIPKUGF FCFU CU OQTG VJCP LWUV DCEMITQWPF ƓIWTGU ť as real emotional people with experiences worth telling BY AQILAH NAJWA JAMALUDDIN The quiet place of fathers in Malaysian stories

DERXW IDLOXUH ,W¶V DERXW WKH YDVWQHVV RI D father’s heart. Hassan’s love is pure, even when it leads to painful consequences. He represents the type of father who would give everything for his child, including his pride. In a time when parenting conversations RIWHQ VZLQJ EHWZHHQ EHLQJ WRR VWULFW RU WRR indulgent, Anakku Sazali stands as a time OHVV WDOH RI KRZ ORYH ZLWKRXW ERXQGDULHV can sometimes hurt more than help. But more than that, it shows us the emotional WROO WKDW IDWKHUKRRG FDQ WDNH WKH JXLOW WKH VDFUL¿FH WKH VLOHQW VWUHQJWK W DWFKLQJ WKLV ¿OP WRGD\ LV OLNH RSHQLQJ DQ ROG SKRWR DOEXP ,W PD\ EH LQ EODFN DQG ZKLWH EXW WKH HPRWLRQV DUH YLYLG It teaches modern audiences that while discipline is important, so too is presence. So too is empathy. So too is choosing your child over your ego. Villavan : For the dads who live through us What happens when a father dies too soon? When justice is denied and memory is all that remains? Villavan: The Vigilante turns this grief into purpose, showing how GHHS WKH ORYH EHWZHHQ D IDWKHU DQG VRQ FDQ run even after death. T KH ¿OP IROORZV 9LQRG D \RXQJ PDQ KDXQWHG E\ WKH PXUGHU RI KLV IDWKHU )XHOOHG E\ DQJXLVK DQG D ¿HUFH VHQVH RI GXW\ KH EHFRPHV D PDVNHG YLJLODQWH GRQQLQJ D %DWPDQ VW\OH SHUVRQD WR WUDFN GRZQ WKRVH UHVSRQVLEOH :KDW XQIROGV LV D EORRG\ WUDLO RI UHYHQJH EXW DOVR D meditation on loss and legacy. At its core, Villavan LV DERXW WKH NLQG of love that refuses to fade. The type of devotion that pushes someone to the edge. 9LQRG¶V DFWLRQV WKRXJK H[WUHPH VWHP from a simple truth. He loved his father and could not accept a world where his memory is disrespected. T KLV ¿OP VKLIWV WKH WUDGLWLRQDO OHQV ,W¶V QRW DERXW ZKDW WKH IDWKHU GLG ZKLOH KH ZDV DOLYH ,W¶V DERXW WKH VSDFH KH OHIW EHKLQG ,W¶V DERXW KRZ D FKLOG DUPHG ZLWK RQO\ memories, can still feel guided, still feel FORVH VWLOO DFW RQ EHKDOI RI D ERQG WKDW HYHQ death cannot sever. In doing so, Villavan reminds us that fathers are more than their physical pres ence. They live on in values and vengeance in the quiet moments when a child still ZKLVSHUV WKHLU QDPH EHIRUH EHG

F ATHERS . We don’t see enough of them on screen, especially not in a way that truly captures the complexities and contradictions RI IDWKHUKRRG 0DOD\VLDQ ¿OPV have long explored themes of mother KRRG ¿OLDO SLHW\ DQG IDPLO\ GXW\ EXW WKH IDWKHU ¿JXUH RIWHQ WDNHV D EDFN VHDW LI KH appears at all). Yet when he does, there’s something deeply profound in how these stories unfold. I Q D FXOWXUH ZKHUH SDWHUQDO D̆ HFWLRQ LV RIWHQ DVVXPHG EXW VHOGRP H[SUHVVHG Malaysian cinema quietly carves space for dads to enter the spotlight. These DUH QRW MXVW VWRLF EUHDGZLQQHUV LQ WKH EDFNJURXQG 7KHVH DUH IDWKHUV ZKR IHHO FKDQJH ¿JKW SURWHFW DQG ORYH S RPHWLPHV LQ ÀDZHG ZD\V VRPHWLPHV TXLHWO\ EXW DOZD\V GHHSO\ H HUH ZH ORRN FORVHU DW IRXU 0DOD\VLDQ films presenting a different shade of IDWKHUKRRG 7KH\ UHÀHFW IDWKHUV¶ PDQ\ UROHV DQG R̆ HU D SRZHUIXO UHPLQGHU RI why their stories matter. Anakku Sazali : For the unwavering dads N R OLVW RI 0DOD\VLDQ ¿OPV DERXW IDWKHU hood is complete without Anakku Sazali . 7KLV EODFN DQG ZKLWH FODVVLF IURP remains a masterclass in emotional sto U\WHOOLQJ DQFKRUHG E\ WKH OHJHQGDU\ 3 5DPOHH ZKR SOD\V ERWK IDWKHU DQG VRQ

Hassan is a widower who dotes on his only child, Sazali. He raises him with unconditional love and gives him every WKLQJ KH SRVVLEO\ FDQ &RPIRUW D̆ HFWLRQ and leniency. But as Sazali grows up, +DVVDQ¶V SHUPLVVLYHQHVV EDFN¿UHV 6D]DOL EHFRPHV DUURJDQW DQG UHFNOHVV XQDEOH to distinguish right from wrong. While WKH VWRU\ HQGV WUDJLFDOO\ WKH ¿OP LV QRW

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