Anwar Movie Screening For Firefighters Students Riles Critics

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Recent screenings of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's biopic for firefighters and students have riled up critics on the other side of the political spectrum.
This was amid allegations that ‘Anwar: The Untold Story' was struggling to pull in cinema audiences.
The screenings for the Fire and Rescue Department, as well as students from SMK Putrajaya Presint 5 (1), caught public attention after invitations to the event went viral on social media.
For the Fire and Rescue Department event, the purported memo showed that the invitation for the free screening on May 20 was sent to its top directors.
A Facebook post by the department also showed that Local Government Development Ministry secretary-general Noor Azman Taib, as well as Fire and Rescue Department director-general Abdul Wahab Mat Yasin, attended the screening.
It is not clear if the free screening came out of the ministry's or the Fire and Rescue Department's budget.
Meanwhile, the Education Ministry organised the screening for SMK Putrajaya Presint 5 (1) students last night, with its minister Fadhlina Sidek also reportedly attending.
FMT quoted the school's Form 6 senior assistant Suziyah Selamat as saying the screening was an extracurricular activity that was not compulsory.
“The ministry did not force anyone but this (programme) is misconstrued when it is politicised," she said.
Some 50 seats were allocated for the school, and only students with their parent’s permission were allowed to attend the screening, she added.
Putrajaya MP Radzi Jidin while commenting on the two screenings, briefly remarked: "The Unsold Story?"
Earlier this week DMY Creation, the biopic’s distributor, alleged local cinemas were “sabotaging” the film's sales target.
Despite collecting RM1 million at the box office on its first day, DMY Creation chairperson Mohamed Yusoff claimed that limited screening slots provided by some cinemas hindered the film’s success.
The Malaysian Association of Film Exhibitors (MAFE) denied the allegations.
Double standards?
Meanwhile, Perak PAS chief Razman Zakaria alleged double standards in the screening for students.
"Can students be dragged to the cinema to watch a politician's film? At the same time we are barred from sending cakes to school?" he said.
He said this in reference to an alleged circular ordering schools not to accept visits from non-government politicians, which made the rounds days before Teacher's Day.
‘Anwar: The Untold Story’ recounts the story of the Tambun MP during his tenure as deputy prime minister and finance minister from 1993 to 1998, as well as his fight against corruption.
It was directed by Viva Westi and starred Farid Kamil as Anwar, while Acha Septriasa and Hasnul Rahmat played the role of Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and Mahathir Mohamad, respectively. - Mkini

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