The turn Indonesian indie cinema seems to be making the last few years, towards social issues that torment the local society, mostly through the lives of youths, is one of the most interesting things happening in the industry at the moment, with movies like “Yuni” and “Photocopier” being among the most prominent samples. Award winning script writer turned director Gina S. Noer's movie also follows in the footsteps of the aforementioned.
Like & Share is screening at Osaka Asian Film Festival
Best friends Lisa and Sarah are two 17-year-olds living in Jakarta, who are trying to forge a career in the world of ASMR, by eating food in a way that is both artful and sensual. The more they deal with the world of YouTube however, the more they find themselves sucked in, with Lisa in particular, developing an obsession with porn that is soon revealed to be something completely different. Sarah, on the other hand, has her own share of troubles through her relationship with an older man which Lisa does not approve of, both for his age and also because she starts feeling neglected. As time passes, the pressure the girls feel from varying sides becomes more and more palpable, while an incident involving Sarah and her inability to acknowledge it add even more to the tension between the two.
Although Gina S. Noer implements an approach that looks like that of a teenage (melo)drama, the context here is much richer than what is usually the case in such films, to the point that the base genre can be interpreted as just the wrapping of a much more intricate movie. In that fashion, and in an approach that seems quite brave considering the censorship laws of the country, Noer talks about female addiction to porn (in a concept very rarely examined in cinema in general), the impact the internet and social media have on youths, again in conjunction with online porn, and particularly as a concept their parents fail to understand, and the concept of abuse, especially from the perspective of the victim, with denial emerging as a rather shocking reaction here.
All these topics are examined in a rather pointed way, with Noer also showing the issues the lack of proper parenthood causes, which, in the case of the two girls, result either from their total absence, or their inability to understand. At the same time, and as we watch Sarah and Lisa react to the things happening to them, Noer also includes a coming-of-age element, which, however, is quite harsh, as much as realistic in its presentation, also including the concept of emerging sexuality.
Considering the dramatic premises of the movie, the visual approach here is quite unusual, since Noer, DP Deska Binarso and colorist Andhy Pulung went for a rather vivid color palette, which finds its apogee in the videos the girl shoot, which are as colorful as the “trend” demands. This approach actually works well for the movie, not allowing it to be bleak or fall on the reef of the melodrama, while adding to the entertainment it offers. The same applies to Aline Jusria's editing which induces the movie with a relatively fast pace that also works nicely.
Lastly, the acting is on a rather high level, too. Arawinda Kirana (who also appeared in “Yuni” btw) as Sarah is quite good in the way she portrays her frustration, denial, and also in the way she begins to feel superior from her best friend after a point. Aurora Ribero as Lisa is very convincing in her anger, and the way the interest she shows towards one of the “protagonists” of a porn video changes her significantly. The chemistry of the two girls is excellent, finding its apogee in the videos they make together and the moments they fight, while the fact that they are both easy to the eye definitely helps in that regard.
“Like & Share” is an excellent movie that manages to pose a number of very pointed questions about the lives of youths nowadays, through an approach that is both dramatic and easy to watch.
