Menculik Miyabi

Menculik Miyabi (Indonesian for Kidnapping Miyabi) is a 2010 Indonesian comedy film directed by Findo Purwono HW and produced by Ody Mulya Hidayat. Starring Sabrina Pai and Nicky Tirta, the film follows a young man who is obsessed with AV idol Maria Ozawa and, in an attempt to kidnap her, accidentally kidnaps a Taiwanese tourist. After the film was announced it was protested heavily by the Islamic Defenders Front, which resulted in Ozawa's role being cut almost entirely. Critical reception was unfavourable.

Menculik Miyabi
Poster
Directed byFindo Purwono HW
Produced byOdy Mulya Hidayat
Written byBang Marqee
Screenplay byBang Marqee
Starring
  • Sabrina Pai
  • Nicky Tirta
Music byJoseph S Djafar
CinematographyJoel F Zola
Edited byWaldo Brothers
Production
company
Maxima Pictures
Release date
  • 6 May 2010 (2010-05-06)
Running time
85 minutes
CountryIndonesia
LanguageIndonesian

Plot

Following a contest, Miyabi (Maria Ozawa as herself) is asked to deliver a prize, consisting of a pair of airplane tickets, to Jakarta, Indonesia. Excited by the prospect, she begins learning about Indonesia. However, when she attempts to board her flight she discovers that she has forgotten her passport at home and is thus stuck in Tokyo.

Meanwhile, in Jakarta, Kevin (Nicky Tirta) and his friends Bimo (Kevin Julio) and Aan (Hardi Fadhillah) are being terrorised by Mike and his flunky. Mike bets the trio that they will be unable to find a beautiful woman to bring to his girlfriend Jessica's (Herfiza Novianti) birthday party. Seeing Mike's childish behaviour towards the trio of "losers", Jessica – Kevin's childhood friend – breaks up with Mike on their way home.

At Kevin's home, Aan discovers that Miyabi is scheduled to come to Indonesia and has the trio go to Soekarno-Hatta Airport to see her. They join a crowd of Miyabi fans and, when a woman resembling Miyabi leaves the entry gate, the group of fans chases after her. Kevin and his friends force her into their car, while Aan silently takes her passport. After a series of misunderstandings caused by language barriers, the girl realises that her passport is missing. When Kevin and his friends take her to the Japanese embassy they discover that the girl, Mie Yao Bie (Sabrina Pai), is from Taiwan. The boys plan to have her spend the three days required to make a new passport at Kevin's house. Mie Yao Bie, although at first disgusted with the boys, grows to like them – although they remain unable to communicate verbally.

Later that day Jessica comes to Kevin's home, asking to use his internet connection to send an email. Kevin assists her, and after almost sharing a kiss Jessica invites him to see a movie with her. This date, however, is interrupted when Mie Yao Bie arrives, calls for Kevin, and gives him an enthusiastic hug upon finding him. Jessica declares Kevin to be the same as all other men and leaves him alone in the theatre. The following day, when Kevin tries to give her flowers to make amends, Mike steals his flowers and gives them to Jessica.

Before the party Kevin discovers that Aan has been hiding Mie Yao Bie's passport and, after fighting with Aan, gives it back to her. Aan thereafter decides to go to the party on his own but is humiliated, forced to drink alcohol while dressed only in his boxers. Kevin, having decided to stand up for himself and win Jessica's love, arrives with Bimo and beats Mike in a fight. Mike states that Kevin had still lost their bet, as he had not brought any girls with him. Mie Yao Bie then arrives with her Taiwanese friends and kisses each of the trio on the cheek. Enraged, Mike departs.

Jessica, after hearing the whole story, forgives Kevin; they begin dating and share a kiss. Some days later, Miyabi arrives in Jakarta and – owing to a mishap with apartment numbers – delivers the prize to Bimo. Bimo, however, is unaware that she is Miyabi and treats her as a courier.

Production

Menculik Miyabi was directed by Findo Purwono HW and produced by Ody Mulya Hidayat of Maxima Pictures. The script was written by Bang Marqee;[1] blogger-cum-novelist Raditya Dika was reportedly attached, but denied any connection owing in part to fears that his young readers would attempt to learn of Ozawa and her pornography.[2] Cinematography was handled by Joel F Zola, while editing was completed by the Waldo Brothers. Music was provided by Joseph S Djafar, with Abdul Malik Deva and Bellamy on sound.[1] The film starred Sabrina Pai, Nicky Tirta, Herfiza Novianti, Kevin Julio Chandra, and Hardi Fadhillah.[1]

The film was initially meant to star Maria Ozawa, who was cast for the part at great expense.[3] Commonly billed as Miyabi in Indonesia, Ozawa was a Eurasian AV idol from Japan who had become famous in 2005. As an AV idol she had acted in numerous pornographic films. For Menculik Miyabi she would have performed no nude scenes. However, as she had been a pornographic actress the hardline Islamic Defenders Front (Font Pembela Islam, or FPI) protested the production. A spokesman said that the group was "ready to die fighting" to prevent Ozawa's arrival;[4] in other protests students burned women's underwear.[5] Ultimately the Ministry of Culture and Tourism banned Ozawa from coming to Indonesia,[5] and plans for her to film in Indonesia were dropped.[6] She ultimately filmed several scenes in Japan, although she had reduced prominence in the final edit.[7]

Release and reception

Menculik Miyabi was released on 6 May 2010.[1] The Indonesian Ulema Council protested its contents,[8] while the FPI threatened to raid theatres showing the film. Otherwise the release proved uneventful.[9] It saw mediocre box-office returns.[10]

Marcel Thee, reviewing for The Jakarta Globe, found the film "another dud in a collection of tedious local comedies" which focused on "not particularly funny sex jokes and an equally hollow love story".[7] Benny Benke of the Semarang-based Suara Merdeka, found the film's elements to be "unrelated" ("tidak terkait"), with the title serving only as a draw for male audiences.[11]

Ozawa would later star in another Indonesian production, the horror film Hantu Tanah Kusir (Ghost of Tanah Kusir), in 2010. This film was also made by Maxima Pictures.[12]

Footnotes
  1. Filmindonesia.or.id, Menculik Miyabi.
  2. Oke Zone 2010, Raditya Dika.
  3. The Jakarta Post 2009, Miyabi to feature.
  4. Setiawati 2009, FPI rallies against Miyabi.
  5. The Jakarta Post 2009, Government bans Miyabi.
  6. Matondang 2010, Profile: Ody Mulya.
  7. Thee 2010, Miyabi Hits Theaters.
  8. Benke 2010, 'Menculik Miyabi'.
  9. The Jakarta Post 2010, Miyabi film.
  10. Kompas 2010, Hari Kedua.
  11. Benke 2010, Menjajakan Miyabi.
  12. Sagita 2010, With Little Ado.

Works cited
  • Benke, Benny (7 May 2010). "'Menculik Miyabi' Langsung Ditentang MUI" ['Menculik Miyabi' Challenged by MUI]. Suara Merdeka (in Indonesian). Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • Benke, Benny (7 May 2010). "Menjajakan Miyabi" [Peddling Miyabi]. Suara Merdeka (in Indonesian). Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • "Government bans Miyabi from visiting Indonesia". The Jakarta Post. 13 October 2009. Archived from the original on 16 November 2011. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • "Hari Kedua, 'Menculik Miyabi' Ramai Ditonton" [Second Day, 'Menculik Miyabi' Has Many Viewers]. Kompas. 7 May 2010. Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • "Kredit Lengkap Menculik Miyabi" [Credits for Menculik Miyabi]. filmindonesia.or.id (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Konfidan Foundation. Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • "Miyabi film debuts without incident". The Jakarta Post. 8 May 2010. Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • "Miyabi to feature in Indonesian movie". The Jakarta Post. 19 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • Matondang, Patra (2 June 2010). "Profile: Ody Mulya: Controversy sells". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • Muharrami, Novi (7 May 2010). "Raditya Dika Protes Disebut Penulis Menculik Miyabi" [Raditya Dika Protests Being Called Writer of Menculik Miyabi]. Oke Zone (in Indonesian). Archived from the original on 24 October 2010. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  • Sagita, Dessy (25 November 2010). "With Little Ado, Miyabi Arrives in Indonesian Theaters". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • Setiawati, Indah (10 October 2009). "FPI rallies against Miyabi; producer continues". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 11 January 2010. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
  • Thee, Marcel (9 May 2010). "Miyabi Hits Theaters, but Was She Worth the Wait?". The Jakarta Globe. Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.

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