20 July – Last year, director and actor Namewee was lauded for having the guts to release his controversial "Nasi Lemak 2.0", which is the reason that the 29-year-old is bolder than ever, and proving it by bursting into the local movie scene again with his latest gangster piece "Hantu Gangster", which he claimed to be the most controversial movie made in Malaysia.
"In my opinion, "Hantu Gangster" is definitely the most controversial Malaysian film. In the movie, there are many scenes that would fall into censored material, especially when it comes to the dialogue. They all touch on sensitive topics, but we managed to find alternative methods to express what we were aiming for that will avoid heavy censorship," said Namewee.
The controversial themes mentioned in movie were its emphasis on the positivity of gangsterism, and how it leads to unity among the Malays, Chinese and Indians in Malaysia. In spite of Namewee's methods, the local censorship board had removed a total of 3 minutes from the film before it was deemed appropriate enough to be released in cinemas. However, for movie and Namewee fans, producer Fred Chong revealed that those scenes can be seen in DVD later.
Namewee's last effort, "Nasi Lemak 2.0", which was also his directorial debut, had stunned Malaysians by making RM7 million in the local box office. Naturally, many were interested in his expectations for "Hantu Gangster", to which he replied, "Honestly, I don't think about box office results when I film a movie. Even though "Nasi Lemak 2.0" had done so well, it also brought us all kind of hardships, including people protesting in the cinemas while the movie is still showing nationwide." As was his trademark, Namewee is also starring in "Hantu Gangster", alongside a star-studded cast lineup that includes popular Malay artistes like Dato' Jalaluddin Hassan, Farid Kamil, Diana Danielle, Taiyuddin Bakar and Mizz Nina, local Indian legend Dato David Arumugam as well as supermodel Amber Chia.
In the film, Namewee portrays Te Sai, a thief and a father who is haunted by the three spirits of former gang leaders after stealing a cursed ring at a gangster's funeral. The gang leaders are each heads of the Malay, Chinese and Indian gangs, who are now at war due to their deaths. It all now lies on Te Sai to find a way to stop the chaos and unite the gangs.
"Hantu Gangster" is set to hit the big screens in Malaysia on 9 August, in conjunction with the upcoming Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Merdeka celebrations.