Although it is true that people leave this world everyday, the feeling of lost is not often felt. However, the same cannot be said about some fine individuals who had left us recently. Barely two months ago, the world of cinema was shocked by the death of the venerable Kung Fu star, David Carradine. A month after, the King of Pop exited the Stage of Life, and that caused a media frenzy. You may have heard of it.
More recently, on July 25th, another great name returned to meet her maker. FPBM! would like to take this opportunity to pay a little tribute to the very talented Yasmin Ahmad.She first caught my attention with the romantic comedy, Sepet [2004]. Before then, I must confess, I would not even take a glance at a local movie. I did not realise until then that there are local movies not only watchable, but also enjoyable. She proved that there is no need for a million Ringgit budget or star-studded cast to make a great movie. All you need is a good story that people can relate to in one way or another. Almost single-handedly, she paved the way for me to explore other local productions aside from the polluted mainstream Malaysian cinema.
And then my interest to her body of work increased dramatically when I found out that she was the creative mind behind the countless of television commercials, often dubbed as "Petronas Commercials". These commercials and ads became a documentation of how lovable our country actually is. You get the feeling of warmth in your belly; glad and proud that you are part of what makes Malaysia so unique. The same kind of feeling you get from watching the films by the great Tan Sri P. Ramlee. Pure nostalgia.
Now, all of these sudden deaths may leave the impression that nowadays, people are dropping like flies. However, you have to put into perspective that people die everyday. What makes the death of these great names such a bereavement is that these are the people who made the most out of their lives. More importantly, however, how much they have touched the lives of others.
So to Yasmin Ahmad, I dare say you are gone too soon...
Al-Fatihah
