''La Luna'' is a 2023 Singaporean-

Malaysian Malaysian may refer to: * Something from or related to Malaysia, a country in Southeast Asia * Malaysian Malay, a dialect of Malay language spoken mainly in Malaysia * Malaysian people, people who are identified with the country of Malaysia regard ...

Malay language Malay (; ms, Bahasa Melayu, links=no, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , Rejang script, Rencong: ) is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language that is an official language of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, and that is also spo ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

romance film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...

written, screenplay, story and directed by M. Raihan Halim. The film stars

Shaheizy Sam Shaheizy Sam bin Abdul Samad (born 4 September 1982) is a Malaysian actor, singer, rapper, and producer who was known as a young star in the 1990s before rising to fame in the film ''Bohsia: Jangan Pilih Jalan Hitam'' in 2009, and ''Adnan Semp ...

and

Sharifah Amani Sharifah Amani binti Syed Zainal Rashid Al-Yahya (born 10 June 1986), better known by her stage name Sharifah Amani, is a Malaysian actress. She is the best known for her role as Orked in Yasmin Ahmad's 'Orked' trilogy (''Sepet, Gubra'' and ''M ...

as well as other cast members. The film was released on 9 November 2023 in Malaysia, 16 November in Singapore and 6 December 2023 on Indonesia.

Plot

Tells about a woman (played by

) who opened a lingerie store named La Luna in a lonely, lazy yet lifeless village, Kampong Bras Basah. There, she meets a widower

police officer A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

(

) who has a teenage daughter. The villagers welcome this La Luna shop but it is fiercely opposed by the iron nailed village head (Wan Hanafi Su) who wants to destroy the business at all costs.

Cast

as Salihin Arshad *

as Hanie Abdullah * Wan Hanafi Su as Tok Hassan * Hisyam Hamid as Pa'at * Nadiya Nissa as Yam * Nam Ron as Ayob * Farah Ahmad as Enah * Iedil Dzuhrie Alaudin as

Ustaz Ustād or ostād (abbreviated as Ust., Ut. or Ud.; from Persian ) is an honorific title used in West Asia, North Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia. It is used in various languages such as Persian, , Azerbaijani, Urdu, Hindi, Bengali, Marathi ...

Fauzi * Wafiy Ilhan as Yazid * Syumaila Salihin as Azura Salihin * Bella Rahim as Peah * Elza Irdalynna as Jenab * Nizam Hashim as Eunos

Production

This film was produced by 4 companies from Singapore through Clover Films and Papahan Films, Malaysia (ACT 2 Pictures by

Adrian Teh Adrian Teh Kean Kok (born 1984) is a Malaysians, Malaysian film producer and director. Career Adrian Teh is one of the renowned director and producer in Malaysia. He founded and presided over the Chinese Film Association of Malaysia in 2012, a ...

) and Hong Kong (One Cool Film).

Development

Raihan Halim, the director of the film written the story and screenplay alone. Raihan told Cinema Online, He also told to Malaysiakini that this film has its own unique style even though he admitted this film have a bit naughty.

One Cool Film

Due to massive improvement in Malaysian film, Hong Kong film company-based One Cool Film interested to invest in this film which their collaborate with 3 other companies. Lim Teck, creator of Clover Films was grateful with the support from One Cool Film and also give some opinions and improvements in the film. One Cool Film later on opened their operation in Malaysia launched on 20 April with ''The Locksmith'' as its first feature filmed in the country and this film as its first Singapore-Malaysia co-production.

Filming

The film's

principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...

wrap up after 22 days which the shooting take place in Perak.

Release

This film released on 9 November 2023 with Skop Productions holding distribution rights for Malaysian market while in Singapore,

Golden Village Pictures Golden Village is a cinema operator based in Singapore, fully owned by Orange Sky Golden Harvest of Hong Kong. It was initially set up as a 50:50 joint venture between Golden Harvest (predecessor of Orange Sky Golden Harvest) and Village Ro ...

responsible for their market thus released on 16 November 2023. This film managed to break into some of the

film festivals A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upon ...

through

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

on Tokyo International Film Festival and

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

through Jakarta Film Week and

Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival The Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival (JAFF) is an annual film festival held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The festival has partnered with the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema since its inaugural edition in 2006. It aims to introduce Asian c ...

Reception

Critical response

The film receive positive review from critics. Noel Wong, writing for '' Free Malaysia Today'', wrote: "A good chunk of laughs are derived from the sexual repression of the villagers, thanks to Tok Hassan’s oppressive rules. Hanie’s arrival, therefore, brings a breath of fresh air to the village’s bedrooms".

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, id=tt27731806, title=La Luna 2023 films Malaysian comedy films Malaysian romantic drama films Singaporean comedy films Singaporean romantic comedy films