''Matula'' () is a 1941 film from the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

(present-day Indonesia) which was directed by Tan Tjoei Hock and produced by

The Teng Chun The Teng Chun (; 18 June 1902 – 25 February 1977), also known by his Indonesian name Tahjar Ederis, was an Indonesian film producer. Born to a rich businessman, The became interested in film while still a youth. After a period as an expo ...

of Java Industrial Film. The

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white to produce a range of achromatic brightnesses of grey. It is also known as greyscale in technical settings. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, ...

film, now likely lost, follows a young man who tries to give a woman's soul to a

shaman Shamanism is a spiritual practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with the spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritual energies into ...

as payment for being made handsome.

Plot

A rich yet hideously deformed youth named Matula (Ferry Kock) visits a ''

dukun Dukun is an Indonesian language, Indonesian term for shaman. Their societal role is that of a traditional healer, spirit medium, custom and tradition experts and on occasion Magician (paranormal), sorcerers and masters of black magic. In comm ...

'' (shaman) named Tello, asking to be made handsome. Tello agrees, then does the deed. When Matula asks him to name his price, Tello asks to be paid with a soul. Using his magic, Tello arranges for Emma (Dewi Mada), the daughter of a rich businessman, to meet Matula in a plantation, where Matula can convince her to come with him. Upon realising what is happening, Emma's father Johan and her fiancé Paul chase down Matula. They are too late, as Tello has taken Emma's soul. The four men fight, and though Paul's soul is almost taken, Johan is able to defeat Tello with a bamboo shaft. Defeated, Tello returns Emma's soul. Matula returns to his original form, reeking of death; Tello then demands his soul.

Production

''Matula'' was produced by

for Action Film, a subsidiary of his company New Java Industrial Film. It was directed by Tan Tjoei Hock, a former theatre assistant, who had worked who had made his directorial debut the preceding year with '' Dasima''; Tan also handled cinematography.; . Music was handled by Mas Sardi. It was written by Ferry Kock (who also starred), a former stage actor with the touring troupe

Dardanella "Dardanella" is a popular song published in 1919 by McCarthy & Fisher, Inc., a firm owned by Fred Fisher, lyricist, for music composed by Felix Bernard and Johnny S. Black. Bandleader Ben Selvin (1898–1980) recorded "Dardanella" for several ...

who had made his film debut in 1940 with ''

Rentjong Atjeh ''Rentjong Atjeh'' (EYD, Perfected Spelling: ''Rencong Aceh''; meaning ''Rencong of Aceh'') is a 1940 action film from the Dutch East Indies directed by The Teng Chun. Telling of a group who take revenge against pirates in the Strait of Malacca, it ...

''. The

film also starred Dewi Mada,

Mohamad Mochtar Mohamad Mochtar (1 July 1918 – 1 December 1981), usually credited as Moh Mochtar, was an Indonesian film actor active from 1939 until his death in 1981. Biography Mochtar was born in Cianjur, West Java, Dutch East Indies, on 1 July 1918. ...

, and Bissu.

Release and reception

''Matula'' was released in 1941, reaching

Surabaya Surabaya is the capital city of East Java Provinces of Indonesia, province and the List of Indonesian cities by population, second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. Located on the northeastern corner of Java island, on the Madura Strai ...

by late January. Open to audiences aged 17 and older, it was advertised as "a film of black magic (''guna-guna''), action, and romance". A review in the Surabaya-based '' Soerabaijasch Handelsblad'' stated that the film was "in every way successful", particularly praising Kock's performance. The film is likely lost. The American visual anthropologist

Karl G. Heider Karl Heider (born January 21, 1935) is an American visual anthropologist. Life and education Heider was born in Northampton, Massachusetts. Heider is the son of psychologists Fritz and Grace (née Moore) Heider. He had two brothers; John and S ...

writes that all Indonesian films from before 1950 are lost. However, JB Kristanto's ''Katalog Film Indonesia'' (''Indonesian Film Catalogue'') records several as having survived at

Sinematek Indonesia Sinematek Indonesia, or Sinematek for short, is a film archive located in Jakarta. Established in 1975 by Misbach Yusa Biran and Asrul Sani, the archive was the first in Southeast Asia, and remains the only one in Indonesia. It is home to rough ...

's archives, and Biran writes that several Japanese propaganda films have survived at the

Netherlands Government Information Service The Netherlands Government Information Service (''Dutch:'' Rijksvoorlichtingsdienst, abbrev.: RVD) is a Dutch government agency. The RVD is the official information service of the Dutch government and is the spokesbody for the prime minister, th ...

Explanatory notes

References

Works cited

* * * * * * * {{Portal bar, Film, Indonesia, Netherlands Indonesian black-and-white films Films directed by Tan Tjoei Hock Dutch East Indies films