''Janji Joni'' (English: ''Joni's Promise'') is a

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

Indonesian

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...

film written and directed by

Joko Anwar Joko Anwar (born 3 January 1976) is an Indonesian film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. Prior to becoming a filmmaker, he worked as a journalist and film critic. Anwar first rose to prominence for co-writing Nia Dinata's 2003 hit ' ...

in his directorial debut. Starring

Nicholas Saputra Nicholas Saputra Schubring (born 24 February 1984) is an Indonesian actor and film producer. He first rose to prominence as Rangga in the 2002 hit film '' Ada Apa dengan Cinta?'', a role he reprised in ''Ada Apa Dengan Cinta? 2'' in 2016. He ha ...

Mariana Renata Mariana Renata Dantec (born 31 December 1983, Paris), better known by Mariana Renata and Mariana Dantec, is a French-Indonesian model and actress. She is best known for her roles in the films ''Janji Joni'' (2005), ''The Matchmaker'' (2006), and ...

, Rachel Maryam, and

Surya Saputra Surya Saputra (born in Jakarta, Indonesia on July 5, 1975) is an Indonesian actor, singer, and model. He is the husband of Indonesian actress and singer, Cynthia Lamusu. He is also a former member of the Indonesian pop group Cool Colors. Care ...

, the film was a commercial and critical success, earning Anwar his first

Citra Award for Best Director The Citra Award for Best Director (Indonesian: ) is an award given at the annual Indonesian Film Festival (FFI) to Indonesian film directors in recognition for their achievement in the previous year. The Citra Awards, described by ''Screen Intern ...

nomination. The film features multiple cameo appearances from well-known celebrities.

Synopsis

Joni works as a film/reel delivery man in

Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...

. One day, while waiting for the next pick-up, Joni meets a charming girl who is going to catch a film with her boyfriend Otto. The girl would only reveal her name to Joni if he successfully delivers the reels on time. However, things do not turn out well on that day as Joni faces obstacles such as the city's notorious traffic and various people that may disrupt his task.

Cast

Notable cameos

Production

According to producer

Nia Dinata Nurkurniati Aisyah Dewi (born 4 March 1970 in Jakarta, Indonesia), better known as Nia Dinata, is an Indonesian film director. Her movies are known for tackling subjects controversial or "risky" in Indonesia such as homosexuality, migrant workers ...

, the shooting process for ''Janji Joni'' was very challenging due to unpredictable weather and also having to shoot secretly in certain areas due to the production team not having permits from local authorities. This was coupled with intimidation from local thugs who demanded payment in order for the crew to be able to shoot in certain locations. Overall, the shooting took place over 20 days.

Release

''Janji Joni'' received theatrical release on April 28, 2005 in Indonesia followed by Malaysia on September 1, 2005 and Singapore on November 9, 2006. It was screened at several international film festivals, including

Busan International Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (''also'' Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festi ...

Deauville Asian Film Festival The Deauville Asian Film Festival (the Festival du film asiatique de Deauville) takes place annually in Deauville, France since 1999 and focuses on Asian cinema. A film competition was added to the festival in 2000 and a video competition in 2002. ...

, and

Bangkok International Film Festival The Bangkok International Film Festival (BKKIFF) ( th, เทศกาลภาพยนตร์นานาชาติกรุงเทพฯ) is an international film festival held annually in Bangkok, Thailand, since 2003. In addition to fi ...

. A book containing Anwar's screenplay and production was published by Metafor titled ''Janji Joni: Skenario dan Catatan''.

Reception

Writing for ''Tempo'',

Leila Chudori Leila Salikha Chudori (born December 12, 1962) is an Indonesian journalist and writer. She won the Southeast Asian Writers Award in 2020. Biography Leila Salikha Chudori was born December 12, 1962, in Jakarta and grew up there. She is the daug ...

praised the film, calling it "intelligent and calculated" while noting Anwar's "smart and sharp" directing style and singling out the performances of Nicholas Saputra and Surya Saputra. In 2019, fourteen years since the film's release, Panos Katzothanasis reviewed the film for ''Asian Movie Pulse'' and called the film "unique" with "extremely intelligent, pointy, and ironic sense of humor" while noting that it "thrives in context, intelligent irony, and overall entertainment and is definitely among the best in Joko Anwar’s oeuvre.''"'' Katzothanasis singled out Nicholas Saputra and Sujiwo Tejo as stand-out performances in the film. ''Tempo'' magazine named ''Janji Joni'' its pick for best film of the year.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Official site
* {{Authority control 2005 films 2000s Indonesian-language films 2005 romantic comedy films Films shot in Indonesia Films set in Indonesia Indonesian romantic comedy films 2005 directorial debut films Films directed by Joko Anwar