Openluchtfilmfestival Roffa Mon Amour - Djakarta 1946 ²⁰²⁵

The film will be preceded by a traditional Indonesian dinner. Sign up here to join our table for a special evening of food, encounters, and stories celebrating Indonesia’s 80th year of independence.

Buildings in flames, chases and gunshots: violent battles became commonplace in the streets of Jakarta in 1946. A year ago the Indonesians declared their independence after more than 300 years of occupation, but the Dutch still think they can reclaim their colonial power with the help of the British.

Rebels Isa – a violist and teacher – and Hazil – the privileged son of a high-society family – are members of an Indonesian resistance group, working on sinister plans to end the occupation. Despite being underpaid, the resistance places high expectations on Isa. He is ordered to assassinate a high-ranking Dutch colonial official at the notorious Batavia Café. But when he discovers that Hazil is having an affair with his fierce and charming wife, Fatimah, their bond becomes dangerously complicated.

What begins as a violent historical neo-noir thriller gradually transforms into a sensual, erotic melodrama. Surya boldly intertwines film genres, complicating a crucial chapter of history that has often been restricted to the perspective of glory in Indonesia’s national story.. The film not only reflects her eclectic cinematographic style but also reveals that in times of war, there is physical passion, domestic drama, and complex intrigues.

Djakarta 1946 is Surya’s fifth feature film and it’s an essential one in the list of cinema retelling history. 80 years after the independence of Indonesia, the world is ready for new perspectives and challenging directors to reveal the nuances in decolonization.