KL Gangster (Malaysia) (2011)

A flashy, fast-paced, violent gangster movie with all the right moves. Almost. 


The Skinny: Ex-convict Malek chooses the life of honest living upon release from a 5 year prison stint, only to be drawn back into the violent life of gangster-living. To complicate matters, his younger brother is keen to draw him into an epic showdown between two rival gangs in their bid to control the city of KL. 


The Helmer: Syamsul Yusof -  KL Gangster (2011), Khurafat: Perjanjian Syaitan (2011), Evolusi: KL Drift 2 (2010), Bohsia: Jangan Pilih Jalan Hitam (2009), Evolusi: KL Drift (2008). 


The Casts: Aaron Aziz, Syamsul Yusof, Azizan, Ridzuan Hashim, Adyputra


The Review: The short but impressive directing / writing history of the young Syamsul Yusof is something to marvel at, having gone beyond the range of his father's melodrama to jump both feet forward into cracking good actioneers. His choice to dabble into all things KL, be it illegal racers, gangsters or young women with loose morals is a smart move as it does appeal to the urban Malays, something which does not happen on a daily basis. This movie displays pretty decent fight scenes and quite awesome stunts. All very nice and satisfying for those in dire need of local eye-candy. Okay, now the bad news: its all flash and bang with poor scripting and ineffective acting. Why must the players be shouting ALL the time? Continuity is pretty hodge-podge with an ending that hangs conveniently on a narrated outcome. If only there was more depth to the story and a bit more human development of the key characters. However, it is an improvement from his previous films, and for him to improve further his scripts MUST be polished further. What begins as a great opening scene, kinda deteriorates into a series of set-pieces designed to get flashy bite-sized action scenes. What gets me is the posing done by all except for Aaron Aziz; each character is two-dimensionally simple with no second degree depth. Which is a pity as the storyline, although pretty much done to death (ex-con wanna go straight but is pulled back into a life of crime), is still very much compelling. 


Trailer