Laskar Pelangi to set new box office record

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta Sat, 11/22/2008 1:03 PM Arts & Entertainment
Adventure movie Laskar Pelangi (Rainbow Warriors), based on the same-title best-selling Indonesian novel by author Andrea Hirata, has reportedly generated 4.2 million viewers since it was first screened late last September and is rumored to become one of the country's best selling movies."The number of Laskar Pelangi viewers have reached 4.2 million now," Laskar Pelangi director Riri Riza said Friday evening, as reported by Kompas.com on Saturday.
Riri attributed the hike in viewership to the fact that the movie was made against the backdrop of Indonesian culture."It's also a window to Indonesia's education system in that the country's poor education facilities doesn't dampen the spirit to learning and hopes for a better future," Riri said, adding that the movie is likely to be screened abroad.
Laskar Pelangi, the novel, was written by Hirata in 2005, based on the writer's childhood. It is about an inspiring teacher and her 10 students in the poverty-stricken Kampung Gantong in Belitong.

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta Sat, 11/22/2008 1:03 PM Arts & Entertainment