Life In Exile
By Alice Wang

Politics is war without bloodshed while war is bloody politics. The old saying reveals the true nature of politics. Since the day one, politics have subtly penetrated everyone's daily life. In a world where there are still divisions between countries, parties, classes and governments, no one can totally liberate himself from politics, whether living in an internationalized metropolis or an underdeveloped village. It's like an invisible and ineradicable tattoo marked in our mind.

Malaysian director Amir Muhammad likes to touch on issues in his work. Village People Radio Show (Apa Khabar Orang Kampung, Malaysia) is almost a sequel to his last controversial documentary The Last Communist. It records the life of former members of a Muslim division of the Malay Communist Party, who today live in exile in a village in the south of Thailand. This group, which once risked their lives fighting for the independence of their nation, is almost forgotten by the outside world. Banned from returning to their motherland for decades, they have to spend their old age in a foreign land. Their dramatic past is almost buried in the jungle.

The documentary moves at a very smooth pace. With its stationary camera and long shots, a technique that reflects the quiet life of these people. Interpersed with a Thai soap opera, it gathers recollections of some old guerrillas through interviews. Pak Kassim is the most impressive person in the film. Now 86 years old, he tells his dramatic life story which no one has ever asked him to disclose. From being a member in the British reserve army, to holding a post in the Japan military police, then being a soldier of the Communist Party, and today a fragile old man in exile for decades, Pak's complicated life reflects a country's political changes over a full century. As a Muslim, he is caught between religion belief and political choice. "We're communists, we still need religion," he asserts.

The movie poses some thorny questions: What is patriotism? What is betrayal? Does a country choose its people or is it people who choose their native land? How does a country's political changes affect a person's destiny? What are these people's feelings about their motherland? "Our bodies dwell in the wilderness. Our eyes gaze at the world. Our hands embrace our motherland." They repeat the old slogans.

Director Amir is a pioneer of digital film in his country, and that makes the film all the more watchable, and the imagery is extremely beautiful. Though the story is told by old men, there are many scenes involving children. They play games, have classes, hang out at random… Politics have no place in their life. The scenes of day-to-day life in the village and the intrusion of Thai soap-opera balance the heavy subtest that this documentary contains. Although 72 minutes in length, the film fails to explore its theme profoundly. It concludes on a peaceful note, showing a road leading into the jungle, where Pak and his peers are in exile — a road that links their home in Thailand to their neighboring motherland of Malaysia.

Alice Wang

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