Malaysia's First-Ever Gay Film Becomes Box Office HIT

Malaysia’s first gay-themed film has become a box-office success.

The Malay-language movie, called In A Bottle when translated to English, grossed slightly more than 1 million ringgit – or a quarter of a million pounds – in its first five days.

This means it recouped its production and marketing costs of 970,000 ringgit in less than one week of release.

Raja Azmi Raja Sulaiman, who wrote and produced the film, said the box-office results "prove that Malaysian audiences can handle such movies, that they're more open and not so conservative anymore," Sulaiman told The Associated Press.

"I hope it'll inspire more films that are meaningful and linked to the reality of people's lives.".

The movie, which tells the tale of a Muslim man who has a sex change operation because he believes it will please his male lover, has been commercially successful – but has also faced criticism from gay advocacy groups that it relies on lazy stereotypes.

According to ABC news, Malaysian gay rights activist Pang Khee Teik specifically voiced concerns that the film may discourage people who have valid reasons to undergo sex change surgeries. 


Peter Lloyd


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