“Cultural In-Betweenness” in Borderland Films of Malaysian and Indonesian Cinemas

• Published in: Journal of Borderlands Studies
• Main Author: Maharam M.E.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Routledge 2024
• Online Access: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85209891285&doi=10.1080%2f08865655.2024.2424822&partnerID=40&md5=44f328724919cebe7fffd801bfcc945b

This paper examines cinematic representations of the borderlands between Malaysia-Thailand and Malaysia-Indonesia in the twenty-first century. The films focusing on the region explore problematic issues such as the intersection of traditions, issues of identity and belonging, the modern nation-state system, and the citizens in these peripheral areas. This paper employs film discourse analysis, and the ideas discussed herein are crucial to the national cinemas of the region, as they operate in a manner akin to Deleuze and Guattari’s concepts of the war machine, the smooth space, and nomadology. These representations raise questions about uneven power dynamics between the hegemonic center and the peripheral other. This investigation analyses two films: Batas (Rudi Soedjarwo, 2011) from Indonesia and Bunohan: Return to Murder (Dain Said, 2012) from Malaysia. This paper argues that the portrayal of borderlands and borders challenges the stability of inwardly focused and ethnocentric national cultural identities by presenting the borderlands of this island region as nomadic spaces, conveying a nomadic ethos and a sense of “in-betweenness” among its people. © 2024 Association for Borderlands Studies.