KALA the Movie : MYSTERY OF THE FIRST'S PRESIDENT HIDDEN TREASURY

By Ari Satriyo Wibowo

Ratu Adil (literally means Queen of Justice ) or Satrio Piningit (the Hidden Knight) was first mentioned by Jayabaya, the Javanese king from the 12th century who is the Javanese equivalent of Nostradamus. In his book called Pralembang Joyoboyo, the king hinted that a messianic figure would appear amidst extreme chaos and lead the nation out of the dark. Several national leaders had claimed themselves to be Ratu Adil. But the people are still waiting for the one. He will be come and using the legacy from the first president's treasury to boost the wealthy of the nation.

But the country until now is in turmoil, marred by natural disasters, corruption and lawlessness. Some people take justice into their own hands, while others yearn for the promised leader to arrive.

A cop named Eros is investigating a case of five men who are burnt to death in public after somebody screams “thief” at them. A journalist named Janus is also covering the story. Soon enough, the two are drawn into a maze of mysteries and murders.

Somewhere along the line, Janus discovers a secret, and everyone he tells it to finds tragic death. When Eros comes across the secret too, they realize that angel of death will go after one of them, unless they find the promised leader first.

Janus is having a bad day. His wife divorces him and he loses his job as a journalist due to his narcolepsy. But his last assignment drags him into a labyrinth of mystery and murders as he holds a dangerous secret worth dying for: the truth about the long-waited figure who will lead the country out of chaos.

Eros maybe the only trusted police officer. But he is actually hiding something. He is the ultimate anti-hero who is soon forced to face his destiny if he wants stay alive.

Ranti. As the whole family turns up dead under eerie circumstances, Ranti runs from grave danger. She is not breaking the law by working in a seedy club, but she holds the key to a secret everybody’s willing to kill for.

Sari. When she realizes that being married to Janus will never make her dream of a better life comes true, Sari seeks a shortcut. But there are two ends to it: wealth or death.

Writer/Director Joko Anwar win rave reviews and commercial success with his debut feature Janji Joni (Joni's Promise), a lightweight comedy adventure about a guy who shuffles film reels between theaters. His second film KALA takes a much darker turn, telling a story of an unspecified period in an unnamed country. For this movie, Joko enlists the help of his long-time collaborator, cinematographer Ipung Rahmat Syaiful and a band of award-winning crew. KALA was shot within 31 days in 27 locations in four cities, on a US$600,000 budget. "We slept for only four hours everyday. But the crew's morale was incredibly high," Joko said. "Everybody saw it as an adventure. It was pure joy."Most of the locations were in and old city (Kota Lama) of Semarang, Central, where old colonials building remained untouched.Twenty-six year-old Fachri Albar as Janus has already mesmerized Indonesian audience with his role as transsexual in Jakarta Undercover, a thriller that opens in May which also written by Joko Ario Bayu, 22, plays a much older character, a jaded homicide investigator named Eros. This is his first leading role. International model Fahrani, here in her first big screen debut as Ranti, caught Joko's attention in a television movie. Shanty who was widely praised for her performance in Berbagi Suami (Love for Share) plays the femme fatale named Sari. KALA also marks the big screen debut performance for Tipi Jabrik, a professional surfer who has appeared in several TV commercials.Adding to the already impressive casts are veteran actors and cult icons of the 80s: Frans Tumbuan and August Melasz. For the first time, Frans plays an antagonist character while August acts as protagonist. Indonesian poet/stage director Yose Rizal Manua plays a character which is best kept secret.KALA is the first venture into feature films for MD Pictures, a company owned by Dhamoo and Manoj Punjabi. The former is already known as cult films producer in the 80s.