There has been quite a frenzy in the media lately over what has been happening in urban Malaysia. Let’s take a look at some highlights and lowlights.
- GVF Cancellation
It seems only yesterday when we covered a small portion of what Good Vibes Festival was offering during the supposed 3-day festival weekend before the actions of a certain front-man of a certain band had resulted in an immediate shut down of the whole event after the first day. Certainly there’s a lot to unpack – especially in dealing with the aftermath of the government’s decision to not only ban the band (good riddance!) but also the cancellation of the event. Many people took to social media expressing their dissatisfaction and rage over the decision of the government, but none were more enraged at the actions that led to it. Which brings us to point 2:
- International Debates on LGBTQ+ in Malaysia
If there’s one strange thing that’s happened as a result of this fiasco is that the Malaysian queer community has gotten a lot more traction in international media. However, the old adage “bad press is still press” doesn’t really apply here. The narrative surrounding the Western media have unfortunately pandered towards painting Matty Healy as a beacon for awareness on queer rights in Malaysia when it reality, it has served the opposite effect.
Despite that, there have been instances where Malaysian queers were given a platform in international media to speak up and say their peace on the matter. It is a challenging time and will continue to become more difficult for the LGBTQ+ community – which is why it’s important to stand in solidarity with your queer friends. Now, more than ever.
The main takeaway we need to highlight is that what Matty Healy did was a self-serving prophecy, courtesy of his and many other Westerners’ idea of being saviors to an otherwise ‘backward’ nation. Nevertheless, the love and solidarity among Malaysians is a sight for sore eyes – one that serves as reassurance and grounding anchor against the incredulity of what has transpired.
- Barbenheimer
On a much lighter note, the two-awaited double-feature films were finally released in theatres last weekend. the live-action Barbie movie starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling grossed 337 million USD worldwide during the opening weekend, whereas Christopher Nolan’s newest masterpiece Oppenheimer’s box office collection raked in 174.2 million USD. Certainly expecting the numbers to go up as more and more people make their way to experience viewing the two films.
What a wild weekend it was for Malaysia! What about you, dear readers? What were you up to last weekend? Were you music lovers enjoying the first night of Good Vibes, or were you the avid film-buffs scrambling to make time for both films on the same day?