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Misbach Yusa Biran

Misbach Yusa Biran

Writing

Biography

Misbach Yusa Biran was an Indonesian film historian, director, and screenwriter. He was the head of Sinematek Indonesia since October 1975 up until his death. Misbach passed away in April 2012.

Known For

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Drawing from the novel, lenong (play) and the previous film (Njai Dasima I), this new film version has heightened erotic scenes considered the boldest for its time. But as mentioned by the director, the eroticism is meant to reveal the psychological aspects of the characters. Unlike the previous version, that mainly highlights conflict between love and witchcraft, this one features social and psychological conflicts. For example, how Dasima feels like an outsider with Edward Williams’s friends, or how she prefers leaving their house to live with her maid in the village. It also shows more background of the Samiun and Hayati characters - Samiun is a black market trader with a lot of debts and Hayati is a woman obsessed with gambling to get rich. When his debts are due and he is unable to pay, Samiun asks his friend, Puasa, to “rob” him while he is returning to their village with Dasima.

Samiun dan Dasima

1970
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Rafiq is a dangdut singer who comes to Jakarta to advance his career. Parto, his friend from the same village tries to represent him to different recording companies. But they differ because of Rafiq’s naivete and Parto’s city-style plus Parto’s insistence on pop music, and Rafiq’s dedication to dangdut. So their conflict is resolved by a music expert and student, Norma, who is researching dangdut music, and who eventually becomes Rafiq’s girlfriend. But the person who manages to get Rafiq a record deal is Lily, whom Rafiq meets when working in a car shop. Finally, Rafiq gains Norma’s hand when her parents approve their relationship.

Karena Dia

1979
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Rainang tries to terrorize a corrupt village leader, Ciming, so that he would resign. But Marsan accidentally kills Ciming. As team leader, Rainang is willing to take responsibility (punishment by exile) while Marsan is appointed as the new village leader and Rausin (Rainang’s son) is sent to the Islamic boarding school. When Rausin returns to Kemayoran, the village leader, Marsan, is now a corrupt man. The Dutch reprimand him as the villagers no longer want to sell rice to them. The village leader then assigns Beureum, an assassin, to get rid of Rausin. But Toha and Cicih, the female warrior, support him. Rainang, who is thought to have passed away, appears and intervenes, and in the end, kills Marsan.

The Tiger of Kemayoran

1965
Hanya Satu Jalan
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Two businessmen, Burhan and Benny, are rivals and Burhan hires Joko, an ex-convict who is trying to reform. Joko is asked to investigate Benny, through Leila, a hostess that Benny usually goes to. But then Joko and Leila fall in love and things do not go as planned. A accident happens and Leila is shot by Joko. Burhan dies in a car accident while Benny runs away out of the country. The reason of enmity between Burhan and Benny is unclear, nor that of Leila’s role, who knows so much about Benny’s secrets.

Hanya Satu Jalan

1972
Krakatau
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Somad and Biang Terona are sent by their master at Krakatau martial arts school to look for the rebellious student, Bodin, who is Somad’s real father. Bodin manages to marry the wife of a landlord and takes over the wealth but he becomes a dictator. His son, Tirta, also manages to displace Surya as inheritor of Bodin’s wealth. Surya is the son of Tirta’s mother with her previous husband. Finally, Biang Terona defeats Bodin, and Somad reveals that Bodin is his father. The film ends with the eruption of the Krakatau Volcano.

Krakatau

1977
Irisan-irisan Hati
8.0

Even though he is not a "left wing" student, Nurhadi, nicknamed Hadi, insists on becoming a volunteer in the fight against Malaysia. Wati, his lover, tries to stop him, but fails. She pretends to be pregnant so that Hadi marries her. But Hadi still goes to Malaysia. Hadi’s group is detected by a Malaysian patrol, when they are about to land in Malaysia, which leads to a firefight. Everyone dies except Hadi, who is found unconscious by Latifah at the beach. Hadi is taken care of by Latifah and his father, Somad. He claims that he is a fisherman who has been stranded and is named Mohamad Noor. The confrontation between Indonesia and Malaysia then ends. Wati still believes that her husband is alive and goes to Malaysia to find him. She finds Hadi already married to a pregnant Latifah. Wati goes home in disappointment.

Irisan-irisan Hati

1988
Cinta Suci Zahrana
8.0

Siti Zahrana’s academical success makes her parents worried. Zahrana hasn’t married by her early thirties. There have been many men who solicited her, but she has refused them all politely. Zahrana’s conflicting issues spring up: to follow her parents’ wish or to pursue her own dreams. Actually she has relented once. She turns down a teaching post at Gadjah Mada University. The reason, her parents who live in Semarang don’t want her to be away. So Zahrana teaches at a Semarang university and stays with them. Then she also passes up a doctoral scholarship opportunity from China.

Cinta Suci Zahrana

2012
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On the trail to catch the killer of his brother, Achmad easily defeats a bandit who challenges him. This impresses Citra, a child, who since then follows Achmad wherever he goes. When they come to a village threatened by robbers, Achmad stops and tries to solve the problem. One of the tough guys of the village, Wirya, notices Achmad and is impressed by him and Achmad’s religious devotion. He becomes friends with Achmad and asks him to agree to his condition not to bother Aisah, a village girl, who is actually in love with Achmad. Then the robbers launch a major attack, which Achmad repels. From the defeated chief, Achmad finds out that Wirya is the killer of his brother. Wirya admits killing Achmad’s brother, for committing crime and adultery.

Menjusuri Djedjak Berdarah

1967
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Two sisters, Hanifah and Latifah/Ipah have different attitudes toward life in Jakarta. While Hanifah is content working as a teacher, Ipah, who works as a shopkeeper, is obsessed with living a high life. She leaves her boyfriend, Adi, feeling that her sister’s way of thinking is too conservative, and changes her name to Eva. Eva then becomes a runway model and gets famous. She has an affair with an older man named Abas, gets pregnant, has an abortion and becomes a high class prostitute. Meanwhile, her ex-boyfriend, Adi, has an affair with Lily, Abas’ wife. One day, she meets again with Adi who is looking for a prostitute for his friend. Offended, Eva stabs Adi. She is then sentenced to 18 years in prison. Her father and her sister, Hanifah, come to the court and give her a mukena (a kind of hijab used by female Muslims for praying) before she goes to prison.

Dan Bunga-bunga Berguguran

1970
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Kusumo lives happily with his wife and his two kids; Tati and Toto, in Surabaya. Their happiness is interrupted when Kusumo meets Maryati; a widow from Yogya. They meet when she falls victim to some pickpockets when she is shopping. They decide to marry and Kusumo leaves his family, without telling them anything. Sulaiman; a friend of Kusumo, brings him back to his senses and succeeds in persuading Kusumo to return to Surabaya. On the way, Kusumo crashes his car. When his first wife visits him in hospital, he asks for forgiveness before he dies.

Mendung Sendja Hari

1960
Exalted Guest
8.0

An impending visit from a VIP causes chaos and confusion in the small, isolated village of Sukaslamet. Things take a hilarious turn when the herbal medicine seller is mistaken for the exalted guest and is accorded a ceremonial welcome in the most elaborate Javanese style.

Exalted Guest

1955
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Herman, a customs officer assigned to eradicate smuggling, often loses his temper. When a smuggler’s ship is reported, he immediately orders a search-and-destroy but it’s a reckless act that results in the easy escape of other ships. Then Herman is posted to the mainland as punishment. Here, he reunites with an old friend, Rusli, who offers him a bribe. Herman is now a suspect as several of smuggling ships are able to escape. But it is Herman’s strategy to gain Rusli’s trust so that he can eradicate smuggling at its root. He is reposted back to sea.

Langkah-langkah Dipersimpangan

1965
Lagu Untukmu
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Containing eight songs, the film is like TV variety show of music and singers. Charma, an architecture student, falls in love with Anita. Thanks to advice from Bagio Sumarto, an old artist, Charma manages to win Anita, even though her mother, who has a royal lineage, considers that an artist would lower the family’s prestige. It was a strange assumption, present at the time of the film’s production. Charma then helps Bagio realise his dream of building a village for artists by staging a big successful show. And Anita turns out to be the daughter of Bagio who has long been separated from his wife.

Lagu Untukmu

1973
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Hamsah is always preoccupied with his business while his wife is busy with her social life. Their daughters; Tuti and Lina, are neglected by them. Lina suffers the most as she is paralyzed, and the doctor does not think that she will improve. So a private teacher is hired for Lina, a university student named Arman. They get along well as Arman is also suffering from the loss of his mother and sister, who died during the revolution. The seeds of love begin to grow, but it happens that Tuti likes him too. Then Arman resolves problem by reuniting Tuti with her ex-boyfriend, Anwar. In the end, Hamzah and his wife realise their mistakes, while Lina and Arman find their “private palace.”

Istana yang Hilang

1960
Naga Merah
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A anti-narcotics police captain trails a drug dealer to the Philippines.

Naga Merah

1976
Ayahku
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Agus leaves his wife and the three children. After many years, Agus wants to return but he has to apologise to his wife and children, namely Anwar, Dani and Aini. But Anwar, the oldest son, who has been supporting his family all these years, rejects him.

Ayahku

1987
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When army intelligence detects an underground movement, Operation X is carried out. Lieutenant Hadi receives a secret mission to penetrate into the underground movement. In order to keep it secret, Hadi breaks up with his girlfriend, Savitri, for the time being. Spies kidnap Savitri as their hostage when Hadi’s dual role is suspected. But then the army moves in to smash the underground movement and rescue Savitri.

Operasi X

1968
Bandung Lautan Api
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Set on 24 March 1946 in Bandung, when the city was engulfed in explosions as if it was a sea of fire, the battle scenes between Indonesian and Dutch dominate the film. The main plot line is the conflict of Nani, a Red Cross nurse, who loves Priyatna, an ex PETA fighter. Meanwhile, Hidayat, the commander of Priyatna’s troop, also likes Nani. It is a small story, within a war, that ends with the death of Hidayat.

Bandung Lautan Api

1974
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No description available.

Djumpa Diperjalanan

1961
The Little Stars
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When their children fail to come home, their parents start to worry. Due to their own neglect and unfulfilled promises, the children, Maria and Suzy, are getting some help from an old man, their former teacher, to go to the zoo and other entertainment centers by themselves. When the police are called, the kids are quickly found and returned to the parents, but the teacher is so heavily shaken by this experience that he admits himself to a mental asylum.

The Little Stars

1963