Macai

A drug dealer finds himself in hot water when the merchandise he’s carrying for a local kingpin is lost. Fearing his vicious boss’ retribution, he sets off to make amends, in a visceral, kinetic film that knowingly plays with genre conventions.

Siam is in deep trouble. A drug dealer in the fictional country of Lingapura, near Singapore, he has misplaced a stash belonging to his brutal kingpin boss, who has zero tolerance for failure. With no choice but to make up the loss, Siam ropes in a friend and sets out on a desperate quest to recoup the cash. But calamity strikes at every turn, and what starts as a straightforward mission quickly descends into chaos as Siam’s life spirals into disarray.

Starting out as straightforward crime genre fare, Sun-J Perumal’s third feature delivers on the promise of his previous features, Jagat (2015) and Fire on Water (IFFR 2024). It rapidly morphs into a road movie, with docu-like segues that offer an astute portrait of contemporary Malay society and a tone that becomes wilder as the story, and Siam’s journey, progresses. Macai works so well because it integrates the tropes of the contemporary crime film perfectly with the lush, tropical environs of Perumal’s homeland. Gwai Lou’s cinematography frames Lingapura’s tropical expanses with an eye for unease, underscoring Siam’s mounting desperation, while Akashdeep Singh Hardial Singh’s taut editing mirrors the relentless chaos of his downward spiral. Macai grips you with its audacity, leaving no moment to recover before propelling you further into Siam’s volatile world.

– Vanja Kaludjercic

Trailer

Interview

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