Abstract

This article will point out some Indonesian historical films as an indication of the rich popular culture of Southeast Asia. In Indonesia, their representation in films has long been suppressed due to the dominance of Western films (1900-1920); Japanese films (1942- 1945); and the censorship by past dictatorships (1945- 1998). During the so-called Post-Soeharto Era (2000- Present), Indonesian films flourished, particularly those that focused on the Life History of their revered heroes. These include films focusing on Raden Adjeng Kartini (1879-1904), who is recognized as one of the main sowers of the women’s movement in Indonesia during the transition period of the 18-19th centuries. This article will review two films that featured Kartini’s life—The Postman and Kartini (2016) as an example of a film that uses history as context and Kartini: Princess of Java (2017) as an example of a film as direct historical representation. Films will be evaluated based on four types of reading texts— textual, contextual, subtextual, and intertextual analyses. This article will also sew together the comprehensive relationship of Area/Intercultural/ Interpeople Studies, Southeast Asian Studies, and Women’s Studies from a pro-Asian framework.