A Copy of My Mind (2016) – Review: A copy of Joko Anwar’s mind

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Review: A Copy of My Mind is definitely a copy of Indonesian versatile filmmaker, Joko Anwar’s mind towards particular issues in Indonesia, more specifically, Jakarta, as – at least – projected in his social media.

After experimenting with romantic comedy in Janji Joni a.k.a Joni’s Promise (2005), spawning Indonesian first noir in Kala (2007), spilling blood in two consecutive psychological thrillers – Pintu Terlarang a.k.a The Forbidden Door (2009) and Modus Anomali (2012), Mr. Anwar brings his witty, groundbreaking mind home, in seemingly his most deviant/smallest/most hyper-realistic but most personal work.

In brief, A Copy of My Mind seems to devotedly follow a three-act structure, with a prolonged first act. During the first act, we’re introduced to Sari (Tara Basro, Pengabdi Setan) – an attractive beautician in a small-time salon who loves to watch pirated whimsical B-movie wonders in her damp, cramped boarding room. On the other side, we’re also introduced to Alek (Chicco Jerikho, Filosofi Kopi) – a man without a phone or IDs whose job is making subtitles for pirated DVDs. Separately, Sari and Alek become our eyes to observe the hustle and bustle of Jakarta’s suburb with the heat, the traffic, and other beautifully suffocating details in welcoming an upcoming presidential election.

Tara Basro as Sari and Chicco Jerikho as Alek in A Copy of My Mind
Tara Basro as Sari and Chicco Jerikho as Alek in A Copy of My Mind

By the end of the first act, Sari met Alek in an unexpected way – when she’s making a complaint to her usual DVD shanty about the quality of subtitles of some movies she’s been watching. But their encounter wasn’t going anywhere until Alek caught Sari looted a DVD as an act of revenge. Before long, they start seeing each other in a very likable, sweaty romance.

When it seems it’ll lead to an explosive and voluptuous romance, A Copy of My Mind suddenly takes an unexpected turn when Sari, now working in a bigger salon, stole a DVD from a prisoned customer. What she thought as a hybrid-monster movie was actually evidence of a corruption broker case in the presidential campaign.

It’s surprising that A Copy of My Mind covers a poignant political thriller behind an already likable romance. The Via Dolorosa approach to reach the Calvary is definitely unpredictable and, might seem, random although it makes sense. Mr. Anwar really takes the time to collect all the details to cleverly culminate into an irreversible hazard, without being explosive and hasty.

Frankly, it’s not the high-profile twist of fate in the end which makes A Copy of My Mind big; it’s their modesty that wins. Senses of authenticity and chemistry become all that matters in creating the whole set-up. Without big set pieces and artificial production designs, Mr. Anwar and DoP Ical Tanjung choose to highlight the constriction of Jakarta by stuffing every corner of the screen with natural details that represent the metropolis. The crowd, the ambiance, the mood, and the intimacy are showcased in a low-key idyll, which lingers long after the ending.

Similar to absorbing the beauty of Wong Kar Wai’s works, Joko Anwar’s work in A Copy of My Mind is a tour de force for him in what a character called as ‘craftsmanship’—it’s exactly like that on-screen description: it doesn’t need to look expensive, it needs to feel expensive. In getting that job done, both main actors lend their charisma to Anwar’s craftsmanship. It’s charming chemistry between Chicco Jerikho and Tara Basro that seasons the authentic beauty of it, in additional to beautiful mise-en-scene powered by the director.

In the end, A Copy of My Mind is surprisingly a poignant political-thriller sweetly wrapped in a sweaty romance with a most likable couple of the year. It indeed probes more questions than answers from its unpredictable storyline, but it’s modest in a barely patronizing reflection of thought about Jakarta by Joko Anwar.

A Copy of My Mind (2015) 116min | Drama | 3 September 2015 (Italy) Summary: A female cheap salon worker and a pirated DVDs subtitle maker fall in love during the turbulent presidential election in Indonesia.
Countries: Indonesia, South KoreaLanguages: Indonesian, English

Further movie information: A Copy of My Mind on FilmIndonesia.or.id

sinekdoks won Kritik Film Terpilih on Piala Maya 2016 for this write-up.

17 responses to “A Copy of My Mind (2016) – Review: A copy of Joko Anwar’s mind”

  1. Radira Avatar
    Radira

    Lucky you can watch this movie~
    This one is movie that I really wanna watch right now but I can’t :'(

  2. Radira Avatar
    Radira

    I wanna really watch this.
    Lucky you can watch this~

    1. Paskalis Damar AK Avatar
      Paskalis Damar AK

      Yes, I’m so lucky! It only screens on one theatre for 1 showtime 😀 Hopefully you can watch it anytime soon, ’cause it’s definitely a must-watch movie 🙂

      1. Radira Avatar
        Radira

        No idea where and when can watch this~~

        1. Paskalis Damar AK Avatar
          Paskalis Damar AK

          Television anytime 😀

          1. Radira Avatar
            Radira

            I’m not sure it’ll be played in tv; national television I mean

          2. Paskalis Damar AK Avatar
            Paskalis Damar AK

            DVD will do, then 😀

  3. ruth Avatar
    ruth

    I’m gonna watch this later this afternoon at a local film fest (MSPIFF), Paskalis! Glad to hear you like it.

    1. Paskalis Damar AK Avatar
      Paskalis Damar AK

      There will be screenings of Indonesian film there? So excited to hear it!

      1. ruth Avatar
        ruth

        Yes it’s during a local film festival (MSPIFF) which showcased movies from 60 countries. My review is up now Paskalis, I’m quite impressed by it.

        1. Paskalis Damar AK Avatar
          Paskalis Damar AK

          So glad you’re impressed by this film. Gonna check your review soon!
          Love it when Indonesian films find ways to be more universally recognized

  4. dbmoviesblog Avatar
    dbmoviesblog

    Nice post. It looks like such an interesting film. Thanks for introducing me to it.

    1. Paskalis Damar AK Avatar
      Paskalis Damar AK

      Thank you 😀 hope you’re gonna have a chance to view it

  5. The 2016 Piala Maya Nominations | sinekdoks – Movie Review

    […] Film Terpilih’ or ‘Acclaimed Film Critics’ for the review A Copy of My Mind (as seen in this post). Below are the complete list of Piala Maya […]

  6. Review: Gundala (2019) | sinekdoks – Movie Review

    […] distance itself from the million-dollar Hollywood influence. To helm this showpiece, Joko Anwar (A Copy of My Mind, Satan’s Slave) is the most obvious choice to have the integrity and vision to decipher all […]

  7. Finn Avatar
    Finn

    I’m not a fan of this one, though I’d have to admit that this film has a quite stunning cinematography–except for some annoying lens flare at the end of it.

    1. Paskalis Damar Avatar
      Paskalis Damar

      I love how intimate this is. Anyway, thank you for visiting!

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