Blind Pig Who Wants to Fly

Review

On July 17, Rooftop Films and International Film Festival of Rotterdam presented one of the most controversial films that have ever come out of Indonesia. Screened at the American Can Factory, BLIND PIG WHO WANTS TO FLY (BABI BUTA YANG INGIN TERBANG tells the story of Linda (Ladya Cheryll) and her quirky family. Linda is a Chinese-Indonesian, she likes firecrackers and sometimes she eats them with bread. Linda’s mother, Salma, is a national badminton player, married to a blind dentist, Halim (Pong Harjatmo) who dreams of becoming a US citizen. Linda has a life-long friend, Cahyono (Carlo Genta) who secretly wants to be Japanese. Meanwhile, Yahya (FORBIDDEN DOOR’S Joko Anwar) and Helmi, a gay couple, deals with their relationship. Until today, the film has yet to see a wide commercial release back in its homecountry, Indonesia.
This film is a little bit crazy, if you haven’t realized just by reading the little descriptions of the characters. First of all, the film is non-linear. It consists of events that occur to these characters throughout years of their lives. Most of these events, however, happen during a very troubling time in Indonesia’s history. Linda and Cahyono grew up during Soeharto’s regime, a time in which the practice of Chinese culture was basically banned in Indonesia. At that time, people of Chinese descend had to change their names to non-Chinese names. They also had to report themselves to the government, and the census department monitored them. As young adults Linda and Cahyono grow in times of political unrest that eventually leads to the May 1998 riots, where Chinese-Indonesians were targeted.

We are presented with a cast of characters that are all facing crisis of identity. Linda serves a thread that binds the character vignettes together. Through visual metaphors, culture specific symbolisms, and the heavy use of repetition, BLIND PIG portrays the conflicts of culture that boil inside many of Indonesia’s minority for decades. To an extent, BLIND PIG reminds me of Harmonie Korine’s GUMMO. Both films share a similar surreal, haunting quality. Thankfully, BLIND PIG has a lot more humor than boggling nihilism that is so prominent in GUMMO. I have to say footage from the riots, edited together with star and heart swipes, synced to Stevie Wonder’s I Just Called to Say I Love You is amazing. I felt awkward being the few who laughed so hard though. Yeah, BLIND PIG’s absurd, over the top humor is fucking great.

BLIND PIG weaves in between time periods. They all feature the same characters, but we witness different events happening at different times of their lives. The narrative may be non-linear, but these sequences are not random. Edwin is full aware of his decisions as a director. Repeating shots accentuate events in the film, providing us with a sense of familiarity and routine through the fragmented vignettes.

Oh, did I say culture specific symbolism? Yeah, I did. I am Chinese-Indonesian, and I lived through similar circumstances that Linda and Cahyono grew up in. Not to an extreme, since I grew up in a more Chinese friendly environment, but I did grow up through the riots. I remember all the panicking, my parents scrambling to pack our shit as they constantly look out to see the smokes of burning buildings get close. The pig is an obvious symbol for the Chinese-Indonesian. Pork is commonly consumed by Chinese-Indonesians, we put that stuff in everything. However, the majority of the country sees pork as taboo since they are Muslim. There’s other things, like the firecrackers, the dumplings, and badminton. All these things refer to specific cultural things, but Edwin twists their meanings in a way to support his argument and storytelling. One of my favorite ones is Helmi, one of the gay men. He wears a government official’s uniform and his estate alludes to his prominence. Helmi is sleeping with Yahya (a media mogul type), and has doubts of penetrating Yahya anally.

“Do you’ll hurt my pride if you do it?” Yahya asks Helmi seductively.

This little detail eventually leads up to the most awkward threesome I’ve ever seen, but it made a lot of sense metaphorically. It makes it clear too, that these characters are not really people. They each embody a certain idea or statement about the Chinese-Indonesian issue, and thus to be considered accordingly.

The thing is, these details make sense almost only to Indonesians, or at least people who have some background information about Indonesia and things that been going on there. Although they may seem almost trivial to an oblivious viewer, these little details are essential to creating a coherent statement out of the film. I guess that’s why they hand in programs at the screening detailing things within the film, giving people at least some background. BLIND PIG is almost like HAYNES’ I’M NOT THERE in the sense that it’s a puzzle with a specific audience in mind.

I can go on and on about this movie, but ultimately BLIND PIG is a movie made for Indonesia by an Indonesian. It’s a love song in a wild, twisted way. The film has definitely done what it was intended to do. Edwin has been screening BLIND PIG guerila style back home. His team has been showing the film at universities and community centres across Jakarta, and the film has sparked a debate. It is clear that Edwin refuses to settle with the issue simply being swept under the rug. Hopefully, the film will help provide further conversations about Indonesia, the national identity, and the Chinese-Indonesian issue. Especially since Indonesia is currently going through some sort of identity crisis.

Check out their website for more details about the movie and screening dates, or add BABI BUTA YANG INGIN TERBANG on facebook.

Originally written for IN*TANDEM Magazine.