KL Gangster is a 2011 Malaysian Malay-language action thriller film written and directed by Syamsul Yusof, (who also starred in the film). The film stars Aaron Aziz, Adi Putra, Soffi Jikan and Zizan Razak. KL Gangster follows Malek (Aziz), a former gangster fresh out of prison, who wants to change his life.
KL Gangster is reported as one of the first Malaysian-made films to reach the collection point of $3,309,610 (10 million) in local cinemas. KL Gangster (reaching past the 10 million mark) beat the overall record held by Ngangkung (another Malaysian-made film) which released in 2010. A prequel, KL Gangster 2, was released in 2013.
Plot
KL Gangster tells the story of two brothers Malek (Aaron Aziz) and Jai (Ady Putra) who are entrapped in the gangster world. Malek was imprisoned for years for being betrayed by his own group's masterminded, Shark (Syamsul Yusof), a stepchild to the King (Ridzuan Hashim), a leader of the most influential secret societies in KL. After his release from prison, Malek wants to change his perception of life and stay away from the black life as a gangster.
Routine normal life while caring for his aged mother, but as a former prisoner stigmatised by society is quite difficult for Malek at first. He is often interrupted by former gangster members who still bear a grudge with him, until the King appears, and offers help to Malek start so he can start his new life. The King had ordered his men not to disrupt Malek, which is disliked by Shark, who wants to be the next "King" in KL. In contrast, his brother, Jai, who is still alive, has continued to link himself with the gangster world.
For Jai, the material luxuries of life is everything, and believes that this can only be achieved with the black world of work, willing to do anything for money and power. To do this, Jai completes missions for Shark. Jai is the one who will step forward to help Shark in any fight or gang confrontation, quickly becoming his right-hand man. But with the emergence of Malek, Shark feels increasingly threatened, feeling challenged. With various possible ways to bring down Malek, every single plan is constantly thwarted by his stepfather, King, who often defends Malek, regarding himself and Malek as friends.
King does not enjoy the hassle of constantly thwarting Shark's attempts to get at Malek, with Shark now involving other gangster groups to get at Malek. This makes the relationship with King and Shark cold. For King, reconciling with Malek is helping and showing a good gesture towards him. For Shark, Malek causes everything wrong.
With Shark ordered to remove Malek's brother, Jai, to get at Malek directly, loyalty becomes tested.
Cast
Aaron Aziz as Malek
Syamsul Yusof as Shark
Adi Putra as Jai
Soffi Jikan as Ajib
Zizan Razak as Fadil
Ridzuan Hashim as King
Adam Corrie as Dragon
Ku Faridah as Mak
Sheera Iskandar as Zati/Zeti
Anna Halim as Erin
Zalfie Md Nor as Gang Jai
Razib Salimin as Cicak
Zack Taipan as Nuar
Jesse Lim as Tony
Zazly Baginda as Nightclub Boss
P. Jeganathan as Thug
Megat Terawis as Uncle at the Wholesale Market
Reception
Critical response
Gua.com.my gave KL Gangster 4/5 stars, commenting on the film as "realistic". Azwan Annuar, however, commented more on the story stating: "there is enough action in the film, but it is also a simple story. A connecting story of triad groups in Kuala Lumpur. It can be said of the conflict that exists in the reality of the community here."
According to The Portal, who publish commentaries before films are screened to the public, described the acting portrayed by each character as "fascist". According to another review, "the effectiveness of the highlighted characters managed to impress the audience and makes the story interesting to watch. Praise should be given to each film actor, especially Zizan Razak, who gives such good acting that will have viewers in stitches. Praise should be given to Syamsul Yusof as well, who successfully highlighted the good side of acting and managed to inspire the character he portrayed."
Box office
On the first day of the screening, the film managed to collect RM1.5 million. This figure reached RM6.2 million after four days, and then topped the collection chart in Malaysian cinemas on its first weekend (9 to 15 June 2011), to overcome Hollywood films, including Super 8, X-Men: First Class and Kung Fu Panda 2.