Opera Jawa (12A)
- Consumer Advice: Contains moderate violence
- Run time: 2 hours
- Language: Indonesian
- Genre: Musical
- Release date: 7th September 2007
- Starring: Martinus Miroto, Artika Sari Devi, Eko Supriyanto
- Directed by: Garin Nugroho
- Distributor: Yume Pictures
Plot Synopsis
Inspired by the famous story “The Abduction of Sita” from the great classic of ancient Indian and South East-Asian literature The Ramayana, OPERA JAWA is a musical like no other in cinema. It tells of a passionate love triangle that leads inexorably to conflict, violence and death.
Setio and his wife Siti, run a pottery business in a small village where Ludiro, a powerful and ruthless butcher, controls all the trading activities. When the couple’s business collapses, Ludiro, who has always been in love with Siti, seizes his chance, abducts and tries to seduce her. Inevitably the two men begin to fight over Siti...
This is a musical film, supported by Indonesian gamelan maestros, choreographers, dancers, and installation artists. This collaborative film with gamelan music tells the story of a battle to attain a truth which is pursued with such extremes it leads to violence and tragedy.
Siti, Setio and Ludiro are all former wayang orang dancers who used to perform the Ramayana story, with Setio playing Rama, Siti playing Sinta, and Ludiro playing Rahwana.
Without realizing it, the three former dancers enter into a triangle of conflict, just like the conflict in the episode Sinta Obong in the wayang orang Ramayana story.
What remains of this three-sided conflict is a reflection of our lives today, as seen and heard on the television and radio. Large-scale conflict, filled with violence, in which problems are solved through cruelty, with tragic results.
The film is a requiem presented through a combination of gamelan, Javanese song (tembang), dance, costume, acting, visual art, and installation, based on a Javanese culture which develops and grows in the midst of multicultural expression. It is a requiem of grief for the killing fields which are born out of the conflict of extremes across the world; the conflict in a society filled with anxiety. It is a requiem for all kinds of grief – grief caused by disasters, grief caused by conflict, grief caused by worry, and grief for all the bloodshed throughout the world.