Twisted kind of love

PEOPLE sometimes do the craziest things in the name of love. That is what audiences will get to watch in Sejoli, a Malaysian romantic comedy that will open in cinemas on Feb 20.
The story centres on Gina (Maya Karin) who goes to Phuket, Thailand, to nurse her broken heart after her boyfriend, Hardy (Remy Ishak), dumps her.
There, she meets Jo (Bront Palarae), a man who has been dumped by his girlfriend, Nita (Izara Aishah).
The two dislike each other on sight. But later, to their horror, they discover that their former partners, Hardy and Nita, are now planning to get married to each other.
Jo and Gina then agree to put their hatred aside and pool their resources to sabotage the wedding.
Both are determined to get back at their respective former partners, with hilarious results.
Directing this romantic comedy is Osman Ali (below), who is fully aware that themes like this have been tackled in the past in Hollywood with films such as French Kiss, but he adds not in Malaysia.
“Here, we hope to give a fresh approach to the story ... [though] that may sound a little clichéd,” he says. “But we do not want Sejoli to be stereotyped.”
The 40-year-old director admits that he’s a little worried that Sejoli – made with a budget of RM1.3 million –may not do well at the box office.
“Of late, you find local movies doing rather badly in their box-office collection,” he says. “Even the good ones are having difficulty drawing in the crowd.”
He cites several factors for this bleak situation.
“Perhaps, they have watched a few bad Malaysian movies and that may have dampened their interest to watch another one. So, we should emphasise on making quality movies instead of just increasing the quantity.”
He also feels that TV channel Astro First may have indirectly contributed to the situation.
“Astro First will air some of the movies on the small screen two weeks after the movie has been screened in the cinemas,” he says.
“As a result, viewers may … [prefer] to wait for the movie to be screened on Astro First.
“Subscribing to Astro First is much cheaper than buying tickets [for the movie] at the cinemas. The cost of living is going up and people are becoming selective on what they spend their money on.”
Osman, 40, who launched his career with serious films such Malaikat Di Jendela and Puaka Tebing Biru about a decade ago, won critical acclaim for his work but unfortunately, none of them turned out to be box-office hits.
Over the years, he has moved on to more mainstream movies with commercial value such as the romantic hit comedy Cun, and the drama, Ombak Rindu.
“To survive, you need to go with the flow and make movies that have mass appeal,” he says. “When your movies have that critical mass appeal, it becomes easier for you to get investors for your next film.”
But Osman has not abandoned his dream of making more artistically-creative films. He is currently working on such a script and hopes to start shooting by next year.
“A filmmaker should be versatile and dabble in all genres,” he says.
He cites his favourite director Mani Ratnam (from the Indian film industry) as an example of someone who is versatile in making both artistic as well as commercial films.
He is also excited about his next film, which is a musical. “I love watching musicals. But I’ve never dared to make one until now.”
Entitled Sinaran, it will feature songs by veteran artiste Sheila Majid, who has a hit with the same name.
“Sheila will be making a cameo appearance in the film,” says Osman who is delighted to have managed to get the legendary singer to appear in his movie.
The musical will feature actors from three countries – Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.
The story is about a group of friends who learn about life, love, friendship and conflict.
Shooting starts on March 15 in Singapore, with some scenes filmed at the Universal Studios in Sentosa.