THE name Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad needs no introduction, for he is the man who has been most synonymous with Malaysia over the last four decades.
And modern Malaysia, for better or worse, is undoubtedly his “child”.
In fact, his legacy for the nation is visible in almost every aspect of life, from the Petronas Twin Towers and the national car Proton, right down to the common time zone which united West and East Malaysia a year after he became the fourth Prime Minister in 1981.
Since he has been a larger than life historical figure for as long as Malaysians can remember, and now that he is back for the second time as the country's Prime Minister, one of the people closest to him has chosen to celebrate his spectacular comeback with an intimate documentary that is her “labour of love” to the man himself.
She is his granddaughter Ineza Roussille, whose mother social activist, producer and writer Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir is the Prime Minister's eldest child.
Ineza's documentary is M For Malaysia, and this 93-minute film focuses on her revered grandfather's political comeback via the 2018 general election which swept his coalition Pakatan Harapan or PH to power, and toppled the ruling Barisan Nasional or BN (known as the Alliance before 1973) after 61 years in the federal government.
Speaking at the press preview of her documentary at GSC Nu Sentral, Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur recently, Ineza said: “The general election last year brought a change in government that was peaceful, and M For Malaysia chronicles the events leading up to it in just over 90 minutes.”
Describing M For Malaysia as “a story of hope and the making of New Malaysia”, she said it gave an honest account of the historical event through the eyes of her grandfather and the people closest to him.
“It was indeed a major task since we had to take into account controversial historical moments such as the Reformasi 1998 and Bersih rallies. Also Ops Lalang in 1987 where politicians and activists were detained by the police.”
Ineza admitted that she “agreed to disagree” with her grandfather on Reformasi and Ops Lalang and a few other controversial issues during his first premiership from 1981 to 2003. However, Dr Mahathir was “perfectly okay” with differences of opinion and is always open-minded, especially with his loved ones.
The documentary, which will be shown in 37 cinemas from Sept 12 to 15, is directed by Ineza and produced by her friend Dian Lee. Ineza's mother is the executive producer while Ruby Yang is the creative producer.
Ineza, 31, said her grandfather was “always easy to work with” when it came to making the documentary, and readily gave interviews off the cuff.
“He was cooperative from the word go, and I followed him throughout most of his 16-day campaign trail and recorded most of it, plus several intimate scenes of him preparing for his mornings, afternoons, evenings and nights of spirited political campaigning,” she said.
Ineza also interviewed key figures who were involved in her grandfather's campaign to bring about political change in Malaysia after years of misrule under the previous ruling coalition.
They included Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng, former Bersih chairman Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, Iskandar Puteri Member of Parliament Lim Kit Siang, and former International Trade and Industry Minister Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz.
“The documentary looks at major activities of my grandfather during the general election, and this is enhanced with behind-the-scenes shots on how things were before the announcement that Pakatan Harapan won a majority in Parliament, and some intimate shots of light-hearted banter involving both of us and family members at the dining table.”
Ineza also revealed that the loving bond between her grandfather and grandmother Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali was “beautifully played up”, and likewise her grandmother's love of playing the piano and violin.
In fact, some of Dr Siti Hasmah's own musical scores have been incorporated into the documentary.
“Having Ruby on board is great. She's an Oscar-winning filmmaker with wide experience.”
Ineza, Lee and Marina also recruited playwright and stage director Sebastian Ng as the documentary's editor.
He has worked on Hollywood films such as X-Men: First Class and Alvin And The Chipmunks: Chipwrecked.
Ineza said the idea behind M For Malaysia started when Lee, a family friend, suggested to Marina and herself that it would be great to document Dr Mahathir’s historical return to the premiership.
“My mother suggested that I come on board as director, and from here I began 16 days of keeping up with my grandfather. I admit it was tiring, and I'm impressed with his amazing stamina.”
Ineza said she and her mother did not want to create a “propaganda documentary” but one that was balanced, since that was what Malaysians and international film enthusiasts loved.
“We had to be honest about various issues during my grandfather's first tenure, even if the focus was on him and not his policies,” she said.
The RM2 million film, said Ineza, was 100 per cent privately funded, and was “as much a story of Malaysians who voted for change” as it was about her grandfather.
“That's why it's M For Malaysia. It's about our nation and its people who chose to change the government peacefully,” she said.
Ineza, a documentary filmmaker who is marking her first feature film, and Lee also roped in a renowned Malaysian musician to come up with the documentary's score, Los Angeles-based songwriter Rendra Zawawi.
He and his creative team contributed 60 minutes of music that enhanced the exciting scenes.
In addition, Rendra teamed up with popular United States-based songstress Yuna to create a stirring theme song, Bermula Kita, performed by Yuna herself.
It speaks of a new dawn and new beginning for Malaysia, created by Malaysians of all races and walks of life who yearned for a brighter future.
Asked about her grandfather's reaction to the finished product, Ineza said he “loved it so much” that he gave her a warm hug.
“He smiled broadly and said, ‘congratulations, I love it’,” she said, adding that she wrapped up everything by May 2019 and spent 30 hours interviewing her grandfather and his “co-stars”.
Marina said M For Malaysia offered viewers a “close-up look” at her father's tireless efforts to bring about positive change for the nation.
“It was a tiresome journey, lots of hard work, but we did it,” she said, adding that M For Malaysia highlighted the determination of Malaysians from all walks of life to help her father “save Malaysia”.
“We hope that movie-goers will give M For Malaysia their fullest support, as it is a story that deserves to be told for the next generation.”
Lee said that she was having talks with Astro and media services provider Netflix to make M For Malaysia available to a wider audience after its four-day cinematic run.
“It premiered at the Centre For Asian American Media Festival 2019 in San Francisco and Oakland, the United States and the DocEdge New Zealand documentary festival in Auckland and Wellington, New Zealand earlier this year. Next stop will be the 24th Busan International Film Festival from Oct 3 to 12 in Busan, South Korea,” she said.
The cinemas which will screen M For Malaysia include GSC Mid Valley Megamall, TGV KLCC and GSC Alamanda Putrajaya (Federal Territories), GSC Paradigm Mall Johor Baru, Superstar Ulu Tiram and MM Cineplex 1 Segamat (Johor), GSC Aman Jaya Sungai Petani, Paragon Cineplex Alor Star and Jitra Mall Cineplex (Kedah), TGV 1 Utama Shopping Centre, MBO Space U8 Shah Alam and TGV D’Pulze Cyberjaya (Selangor). Others include TGV 1st Avenue and MM Cineplex Megamall, Prai (Penang), GSC Mentakab Star Mall and GSC Kuantan Megamall (Pahang), GSC Bintang Megamall Miri and MMC Summer Mall Kuching (Sarawak), GSC Palm Mall Seremban (Negri Sembilan), MBO Melaka Mall Ayer Keroh (Melaka), MM Cineplex Seri Iskandar and MM Cineplex Parit Buntar (Perak), and City Cineplex Kota Kinabalu and Eastern Cineplex Tawau (Sabah).
Cinema ticket sales began on Monday. For details, visit mformalaysia.com.