''Tamu Agung'' (''Exalted Guest'') is a 1955 Indonesian dramatic comedy film directed by

Usmar Ismail Usmar Ismail (20 March 1921 – 2 January 1971) was an Indonesian film director, author, journalist and revolutionary of Minangkabau descent. He was widely regarded as the native Indonesian pioneer of the cinema of Indonesia. Biography ...

. It stars Cassin Abbas, Nina Amora, M. Pandji Anom, and

Chitra Dewi Rara Patma Dewi Tjitrohadiseikusumo (26 January 1930 – 28 October 2008), best known under her stage name Chitra Dewi, was an Indonesian film actress and director. She was noted for her roles in Usmar Ismail's films of the 1950s, appearing i ...

. The satirical political comedy, about the anticipation of the visit of a dignitary to a small isolated village in East Java, was critically acclaimed, although was disliked by the government. The film, produced under the

Perfini Perfini (''Perusahaan Film Nasional Indonesia'', ''Indonesia National Film Company'') was an Indonesian film production company, based in Jakarta. It was most productive in Indonesian cinema in the 1950s. Its most notable directors were Usmar Is ...

banner, was shot by cinematographer Max Tera. This movie is set in the modern day (the 1950s).

Plot

The village of Sukaslamet is scheduled to receive an honoured guest from afar. Midi, a villager, is sent to the city to escort him. Distracted and confused by the lively city, Midi comes across a salesman offering a "potent" hair-growing tonic, which – unknown to Midi – is actually ineffective. To speed the onset of the tonic's effects, Midi arranges for a car to take him and the salesman back to Sukaslamet. There, the salesman is welcomed as the honored guest, and he takes advantage of the warm welcome. However, his fun is cut short when the actual guest arrives in the village, and the salesman is driven out of the village.

Production

''Tamu Agung'' was directed by

for his company

;

Misbach Yusa Biran Misbach Yusa Biran (11 September 1933 – 11 April 2012) was an Indonesian writer, director and columnist who pioneered the Indonesian film archives. Personal life Biran was born in Rangkasbitung, in the Lebak Regency, to a Minangkabau f ...

served as assistant director. Cinematography of this

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

film was completed by Max Tera, with R Husein as a second cameraman. Artistic direction was handled by R Hibnu DJ, Ardi Ahmad, and Djajeng Winoto, with make-up by Hanida Arifin. Music was provided by Sjaiful Bachri. Soemardjono served as editor, with Janis Badar as his assistant. The film starred Cassin Abbas, Nina Amora, M. Pandji Anom,

, Kuntjung, Tina Melinda, Hassan Sanusi, Sulastri, and Udjang.

Reception

''Tamu Agung'' was a commercial failure upon release on 21 May 1955, making only Rp. 147,301 during its run, the lowest of any Perfini production to that point. However, it received considerable acclaim from critics, and although it was frowned upon by

Sukarno Sukarno). (; born Koesno Sosrodihardjo, ; 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967. Sukarno was the leader of ...

's government, they did not ban it. The film was screened at the 1956

Asia Film Festival The Asia-Pacific Film Festival (abbreviated APFF) is an annual film festival hosted by the Federation of Motion Picture Producers in Asia-Pacific. The festival was first held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1954. History The festival was first held in Tok ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

, winning Best Comedy.

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...

writes that the film "brilliantly interweaves modern political discourse (including a militant feminism that appears to have emerged with the Indonesian revolution) with archaic Javanese rhetoric, taken from the narratives of the Wayang (traditional Javanese shadow play)." Author William Van der Heide considers the film to have an ideological view of development, and notes that the film delivers a scathing critique of government corruption and party politics and that the "exalted guest" is in fact a "little-disguised caricature of President Sukarno".

References

External links

* {{Usmar Ismail 1955 films Indonesian comedy-drama films Indonesian satirical films 1950s political films 1955 comedy-drama films Films directed by Usmar Ismail Indonesian-language films Indonesian black-and-white films