It’s been awhile since I wrote a highly personal review about the movies. To start this again, I will blog about Ada Apa Dengan Cinta 2 (AADC2).

I watched AADC1 movie back in 2013 on TV3. I know I am so outdated in movies, but there were some reasons why I did not watch AADC1 when it came out in 2002. I did not usually watch movies alone those days. My friends preferred watching Hollywood movies rather than foreign movies. Also, I haven’t took film studies subject in university during that time. It was only in 2003 then I took film studies and I began to see independent and foreign films in a different light.

Sometimes I wonder how would I interpret AADC1 if I saw it 2002 instead of 2013. I was a student in 2002 and a working adult in 2013. I can see how different mindsets and experiences will affect the way we interpret movies. The older we get, the easier we get into the cynicism of how movies should be.

While I found AADC1 had a different perspective of high school drama especially in the literary approach, I found AADC2 more relatable. The stories were better written and the characters had more depth and layers. Not only that, they shot most of the scenes in Yogyakarta and focused more on the art (and hipster) scenes. I felt it was a film that I could connect to because the characters grew up. When you are in your late 20s and early 30s, there will be certain things that you will be open to talk about unlike if you were in your high school. Most tv series and movies do try to do different timelines when the actors were young to when they were old but somehow the characters never grew up. Imagine a 50 year old with a teenager mindset. Not cool.

Anyway, here are my thoughts about AADC2:

The friendship among Cinta, Milly, Maura and Karmen
I was quite sad that Ladya Cheryl could not reprise her role as Alya in AADC2. Asides from her sweet looks, she was the silent supporter of the ‘Genk Cinta.’ Though in the movie her role was written as dead, but the dynamics between the rest of the cast as friends were excellent. Each of the woman had gone through different circumstances in life but despite of wrong decisions and hurts, they were still together as good friends and they were so open to each other. I remember the scene where they teased Mamet how he had a crush on Cinta back in high school though he was married to Milly in AADC2. I could relate to this very well. These are things that you will never bring up when you are in high school but often it is a funny memory when it is brought up in your thirties.

Genk Cinta also finally went for a trip together in Yogyakarta and there were moments that the girls were open and vulnerable with one another without judgement. Of course they had moments that they disagree with each other especially when Karmen and Milly bumped into Rangga but at the end, they support each other regardless of the decisions that they made.

I could relate to this friendship very well, because I have a group of high school friends whom I still keep in touch until now. Once, one of my high school friend asked me how is marriage and I answered, “It’s alright.”

Another friend then said, “That’s a diplomatic answer. My question is, do you fight more after getting married?”

I kept quiet and my friend continued and said, “Ok, that means you have fought more after marriage. That’s normal.”

These are conversations that I could have with my high school friends and not other friends. Most of my other friends who are not close to me will panic and go “Oh no!!! You have fought! Omg, people are right about marriage. Marriage is bad!”

With my high school friends, they just knew. It’s normal to have arguments with the other half and it does not mean that it is the end of the world.

I digress, but really, a lot of things in AADC2 was very relatable in my life.

Yogyakarta asides from Borobudur
I confess of having a romantic views of Yogyakarta after watching AADC2. It was more than Borobudur and it was a thriving local art scene. I learnt about Eko Nogruho and his contemporary artworks and discovered ‘wayang boneka’ through Papermoon Puppet. Apparently there is a Gereja Ayam and also a hipster cafe that sells coffee called ‘Klinik Kopi.’ I found it really interesting and wanted to find out more. I knew it in my head that Indonesia is known for their arts but after watching AADC2, I realised that arts is important and I wanted to find out more about Yogyakarta and the history behind the growth of arts in Indonesia.

Closure as the consistent theme
The theme that was consistent in the movie was about closure. It was closure for both Rangga and Cinta. Rangga struggled with closure when his mother left his family when he was younger. Cinta, though engaged with another man, struggled when Rangga did not reply her snail mails for a long time and suddenly Rangga appeared in her life again.

Though I did not like the ending of the movie as it was too happy and cliché, but I like how the story emphasised on working through your issues and dealing with forgiveness. Yes, it is good if you can resolve personal issues quickly to move on, but sometimes it takes years to overcome the pain in life. Rangga had to deal with unforgiveness towards his mother when she left him while Cinta had to deal with her unforgiveness with Rangga and she had to make a decision to be with Rangga or her fiancé.

Conclusion
Ok, I realised that I took awhile to finish writing this and it is really incomplete, but I rather finish this rather than to keep in draft. There are a few movies that move me very much. As a feeling (and highly emotional) person, I often like films that I could relate to, such as Departures and Relationship Status. AADC2 is now one of the films which I really like and really relate to.

Sighs, it’s been awhile since I wrote properly and I struggle to put my thoughts down, but let’s hope that my next blog post will get better.