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Audio Format: DD 2.0
Video Format: Fullscreen
Languages: Malay, Thai
Subtitles: English
Region Code: ALL, PAL
Year Made: 2007
Running Time: 72
Release Date: 06/05/2008
Asia's low-budget docu specialist Amir Muhammad returns to the subject of aging Malay communists sidelined by English colonialism, with less successful results, in "Village People Radio Show." A follow-up to his 2005 effort "The Last Communist," which depicted the rebellious arc of Malay left-winger Chin Peng, the latest pic visits more Islam-inclined and consequently even less popular Malay renegades still living in exile. Despite a catchy Western title and worthy tone, "Village" has insufficient material to gather auds outside political or vid-themed fests.
Helmer delves into the idyllic Thai jungle to interview exiled vets of the banned Communist Party of Malaya. Both Islamic and communist, aging guerrillas speak of their glory years standing up to Japanese and British regimes during and after WWII, respectively. Little factual support and the withholding of talking heads' identities until the end make auds work extra hard for little reward. Intermittent bookending device of a Thai radio adaptation of Shakespeare's "Winter's Tale" to provide poignant comic relief is less charming than the novelty tunes employed in "The Last Communist." Helming is uninspired, but tech credits, while low-budget, do deliver.
n the propaganda war against the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM), much was made of the fact that the party comprised ethnic Chinese who adopted an atheistic political philosophy. This tactic proved effective as the country was mainly Malay and Muslim. However, a large and influential division of the CPM comprised Malay-Muslims. This documentary is a portrait of life in a tranquil South Thailand village, complete with mosque, where the retired members live in exile. Recollections of the decades-long guerrilla war are interspersed with a fictional Thai radio drama.
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