A great horror flick from Syafiq
WITH his brother Syamsul Yusof having released the supernatural horror movie Munafik 2 last year, one wonders how much different Syafiq Yusof’s horror film Misteri Dilaila is compared to the former which collected RM48 million at the box office.
This film is set in a sprawling colonial mansion located in Fraser’s Hill, which evokes much of the English countryside ambience.
If you’re familiar with this hill station, you’d agree that this location is perfect for a horror movie.
Misteri Dilaila tells the story of a couple, Jefri (played by Zul Ariffin) and Dilaila (Elizabeth Tan), who return to Dilaila’s family home.
On their first night there, Jefri has strange encounters. The following morning, he discovers that his wife has gone missing. After lodging a police report, he is visited by Imam Aziz (Namron), who brings along with him Dilaila (Sasqia Dahuri).
Jefri insists she is not his wife, although the woman claims that she is and even furnishes proof that she is indeed his wife.
Call it luck but I’m sure Syafiq has done his homework in picking his cast. After all, Tan and Sasqia bear an uncanny resemblance to each other.
Besides the two, others in the cast are award-winning Datuk Rosyam Nor, actordirector Namron and the hunky Zul Ariffin.
Kudos to Syafiq for the tight and detailed script — besides directing, he is also the movie’s screenwriter — which is far from the run-of-the-mill horror Malay movie.
Misteri Dilaila has all the right ingredients of a great horror movie. You cannot afford to get distracted even for a couple of minutes or you will miss important information to grasp the storyline. You definitely have to hold that trip to the toilet!
As promised by Syafiq, this film has many plot twists, which makes for an interesting watch. The twists will ensure your mind is busy putting two and two together.
It sure made my mind work harder, as I followed the mysterious plot. Those who love a thinking kind of movie, well, this is definitely down your alley.
Rosyam never disappoints moviegoers. This time around, he gives a convincing portrayal of Inspector Azman. Sure, he has played cops before but in Misteri Dilaila, he injects comic relief here and there.
I like the storyline and how it is presented. I do not feel that the film is too scary for me to watch. Each time the ghost appears, it doesn’t make me scream or jump, except for one particular scene which catches me off-guard.
At the end of the movie, when I think that I have had enough of the plot twists, my friend whispers in my ear that the ending is not what it appears to be.
Wait a minute. What did my friend mean by that? By now, I’m sure you must have heard of this too, haven’t you?
Whatever it is, it is one clever writing on Syafiq’s part, ensuring it is a movie worth watching more than once. No wonder Datuk Yusof Haslam is always singing him praises.
Here’s wondering whether Misteri Dilaila can break Munafik 2’s record at the box office this year...