Ketika Cinta Bertasbih

Ketika Cinta Bertasbih

Writer’s cut, not Director’s Cut

Release Year: 2009
Distributor : Sinemart Pictures
Director : Chaerul Umam
Producer : Mitzy & Cindy Christina
Screenplay: Iman Tantowi / Habiburrahman El Shirazy (Novel)
Cast : Kholidi Asadil Alam / Oki Setiana Dewi /  Alice Norin / Deddy Mizwar
Music : Anto Hoed / Melly Goeslow
Cinematography : Rudy Kurwet
Editing : Rizal Basri
Duration : 120 minutes

When watched the wedding scene between Aisha and Fahry in Ayat-Ayat Cinta  movie, i was mumbling “why is the wedding more like Indian wedding? Is it because the producer is Indian descendant?” well, maybe yes, maybe no. One thing certain was Kang Abik (refers to Habiburrahman El-Shirazy the authors of Ayat-Ayat Cinta Novel) not intensely involved in movie version of his best-seller novel. Thus, the movie version was different from the novel. The movie was not only more melodramatic, but also more like Indian movie without songs and dances. Moreover, the producer who wanted to spend minimum budget changed the location settin from egypt to India.

In fact, AAC still succeded, watched by millions people. Some of them just interested to watch their favourite novel in film; most of them, however, just interested in melodramatic creation from Hanung Bramantyo. Even Kang Abik got additional bonus after success of AAC, he said that movie version had much betrayed the novel.

So when the offer from another producer came for his another novel, Kang Abik set position. The producer would certainly give what Kang Abik wanted, because he saw a vivid prospect of this movie.

And that was when the problem began. Kang Abik involved as a supervisor, his opinion was priority. So Chaerul Umam who had made an islamic movie Titian Serambut di Belah Tujuh and Imam Tantowi a senior script writer no more than errands. Whereas the producer had been busy with making hype so that the community would be waiting for this movie, honestly, it was a tacky way to make some casting for debutal player for this movie via kind of reality shows, well, the result was another problem for this movie, the player act awkwardly. The scenes were unrefined taken from the novel, even it was important or not.

Yes, this movie, Ketika Cinta Bertasbih, did not have good visual language. AAC which Indian movie wanna be on some scenes could have touched the moviegoers, for example when Fachry married Maria or Fachry was praying togther with Maria. It means its visual language made the grade. But in KCB, the most affected scene precisely when the player read a letter from the homecountry Indonesia, only by taking close-up shot and voice over from sender. It meant which made affected was not the visual language, but the literature language.

I believe that a good movie was judged from the visual language, since movie depended on picture and scenes. While literature was judged from the author’s diction. Movie did not have to talk much.

Islam message in this movie felt too verbal. Hadith, Quran, or opinion of ‘Ulama  were wholefully provided with its reference, when a character quoted a book to stipulate some condition when she was proposed. This movie was more like a sermon which was conveyed by the characters.

The late Asrul Sani, a genius director once said, sermon, that was an easy one. It meant the director of this movie took an easy way. They did not hardly think about how visual language could subtly deliver an islamic message, not a verbal language or even a sermon. I did not even remember the hadith or opinion that they quoted from some references in that movie.

Thereupon, it remind me to Laskar Pelangi (2008) a mega box office which was born from a best-seller novel as well. The writer, Andrea Hirata handed all the production over to the director Riri Riza, the producer Mira Lesmana, and the script writer Salman Aristo.

Though he had full authorization for his story, he realized that he was a novelist not a filmmaker, it spoke with different language. The output, the movie version improved Andrea’s good story. The movie was almost independent from the novel, however the result was equally great. Fans of this novel were not dissapointed, because the movie was also perky.

Dissimilar with the movie we discussed before. The moviegoers were came off second priority, Kang Abik was the first. Maybe we should be waiting for the “Director’s cut” version of Ketika Cinta Bertasbih not the “writer’s cut”.

Ade Irwansyah

Film critics and editor at tabloidbintang.com