This may seem unusual at first, but the intrepid Tunku Mona believes good films are universal, and a powerful story can resonate with all kinds of audiences.
“Film is borderless. It has no race and religion. Of course, I don’t mean that literally: you follow certain characters with their own background. But as long as you can relate to their stories, you can feel for them and narrate any sensitive matters with respect, that’s what is truly important,” the director told FMT Lifestyle in a recent interview.
Set in contemporary Taiping – a town that records the heaviest volume of rainfall in Malaysia, resulting in the nickname, ‘Rain Town’ – Tunku Mona’s latest film features a prominent cast of Chew Kin Wah, Susan Lankester, Fabian Loo, Wilson Lee and Pauline Tan.
Choo (Chew) is a patriarchal lantern-maker who constantly meddles in the lives of his three adult children, Isaac, Alex and Ruby.
When Choo’s Eurasian wife, Aileen (Lankester) suddenly faces a dire situation, the family’s bonds are tested, resulting in a heart-breaking series of conflicts.
The film is presented by Current Pictures, which Tunku Mona formed in 1999. Its previous films include “Uri” (2011), “Parit Jawa” (2011) and “Redha” (2016), the Malaysian entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards.
Tunku Mona said her film’s story involved rain-betting, a popular practice in Taiping where locals would make bets on the day’s weather.
“Because it involved rain-betting, it didn’t feel right to put it in a Malay story. So the idea came to me when I was cooking at home one night. I said out of the blue to my family: I want to do a Chinese film,” she laughed.
Actress Pauline Tan said it had been a rewarding challenge playing Ruby, the family’s youngest daughter.
“I have a good relationship with my parents, and we communicate well. But for Ruby, it’s the opposite. She has a very conservative father, and is insecure about what to do with her life. My challenge was to remove the conscious ‘me’, and understand how Ruby would react to decisions made about her life,” Tan said.
For Lankester, on the other hand, playing Aileen was a fascinating experience.
“I channelled my mother, who has passed. There were many facets in her that were also in Aileen. There are bits of scenes where I could see her, and emulated what she would do. It was hard, because it made me very emotional. Even now. But it was like a homage to my mother,” she shared.
The film touches on themes such as dreams, generational gaps, love and family, and should strike a chord with any kind of audience.
“In my experience, there are many things that can substantially damage a child’s upbringing. But many people shy away from talking about these issues. The film does not find flaws within a culture, but examines how decisions we can make as a family can trickle down and go out of control. Hopefully audiences can watch this and reflect on their lives,” said Loo, who plays eldest son Isaac.
“Everyone should watch ‘Rain Town’ because it’s done with heart. It does show a Chinese family, but behind the scenes, the people who worked on it are every kind of Malaysian. It tells a very Asian story,” said Chew.
‘Rain Town’ made its world premiere at the 10th Silk Road International Film Festival in Fuzhou, China in September.
“We were very honoured that this local Chinese film, made by a Malay female director, was accepted by a film festival in the Chinese mainland. We’ve also been invited to be the opening film for the 27th Vancouver Asian Film Festival, and for our Indian premiere at the 54th International Film Festival of India in Goa,” said producer Ku Mohamad Haris Ku Sulong.
“It’s been a nice honour carrying Malaysia’s name internationally, and great to see foreign audiences embrace it. We hope that Malaysian audiences too will enjoy it when it opens here.”
‘Rain Town’ will play in Malaysian cinemas from Feb 8. To learn more, visit Current Pictures’s website.