Movie review: Paskal

THE lead character of Lt Cmdr Arman Anwar in this movie was said to be inspired by a real-life national hero and Paskal (Pasukan Khas Laut) commander.

Director Adrian Teh should be given a big pat on the back for making the stunts in this movie look so intense, gritty and impressive.
The actors even went through two months of gruelling army training before the camera began rolling.
One can see that a lot of effort has been put into the action scenes. But I just wish some effort had also been put into the acting.
While most of the cast members were trained to ‘look’ like soldiers, they ‘acted’ more like mannequins who could talk.
This unfortunately means the cast only managed to scratch the surface of their characters. It was as if the actors had left their emotions at home, and only brought their fists to work.
Despite this weakness, Paskal is still an enjoyable movie.
The story centres on Arman (Hairul Azreen) who is a Paskal operative, with an impressive track record, and a late father who was also in the naval special forces who died in the line of duty.
However, Arman’s mother has always been bitter about her son’s decision to follow in his father’s footsteps.
In one of their many dangerous assignments, Arman’s team is ambushed, and his team-mate Joshua (Henly Hii) is killed, while another team-mate Jeb (Ammar Alfian) is dismissed afterwards for disobeying orders.
Arman feels guilty over what happened to them, and is haunted by the mission.
But imagine his shock when, in his latest assignment, he discovers Jeb has joined a gang of pirates who are planning something sinister against the country.
Catch Paskal, if not for the action scenes, then for its tribute to these unsung heroes who put their lives on the line to defend our country.