Srigala Item

Srigala Item (Indonesian for Black Wolf, also advertised with the Dutch title De Zwarte Wolf) is a 1941 film from the Dutch East Indies that was directed by Tan Tjoei Hock and produced by The Teng Chun for Action Film. Starring Hadidjah, Mohamad Mochtar, and Tan Tjeng Bok, the film's plot – inspired by Zorro – follows a young man who became a masked vigilante to take revenge against his conniving uncle. Srigala Item was a commercial success, which Misbach Yusa Biran credits to the plot's use for escapism. A copy of the black-and-white film, which featured kroncong music, is stored at Sinematek Indonesia.

Srigala Item
Poster
Directed by	Tan Tjoei Hock
Produced by	The Teng Chun
Screenplay by	Tan Tjoei Hock
Starring	Hadidjah Moh Mochtar Tan Tjeng Bok
Music by	Mas Sardi
Cinematography	The Teng Gan
Edited by	The TS
Production company	Java Industrial Film
Release date	1941 (1941) (Dutch East Indies)
Country	Dutch East Indies
Language	Indonesian

Plot

Through violence, Djoekri (Tan Tjeng Bok) is able to gain control of his brother Mardjoeki's (Bissoe) wealth and plantation, Soemberwaras. The latter disappears, leaving behind his adult son Mochtar (Mohamad Mochtar). At the plantation, the young man is treated as a servant and often beaten by Djoekri and his right-hand man, Hasan. Djoekri's son Joesoef (Mohamad Sani), however, leads a life of plenty.

Soon Djoekri's activities are targeted by a masked man known as the "Black Wolf" ("Srigala Item"), who also foils Joesoef's attempts to woo Soehaemi (Hadidjah), whom Mochtar loves. Djoekri tires of the Black Wolf's interference and takes him on in a battle. Though Djoekri almost wins, ultimately the Black Wolf emerges victorious. It is later revealed that Mardjoeki remains alive and Mochtar was the Black Wolf.[1]

Production

The film was written and directed by Tan Tjoei Hock for Action Film, a subsidiary of producer The Teng Chun's Java Industrial Film (JIF).[2] Tan, who had made his directorial debut in 1940,[3] based Srigala Item on the stories surrounding Johnston McCulley's fictional bandit Zorro;[lower-alpha 1] as with the American bandit, the Black Wolf used a whip and wore all black.[2] The black-and-white film was shot by The Teng Chun's brother Teng Gan, with Hajopan Bajo Angin as artistic designer.[4]

The film starred Hadidjah and Mohamad Mochtar, who had first acted together in JIF's Alang-Alang (Grass; 1939) and were promoted as a celebrity couple in competition with Raden Mochtar and Roekiah of Tan's Film.[5] It also featured Bissoe, Tan Tjeng Bok, and Mohamad Sani.[2] Bissoe had made his feature film debut with JIF's Oh Iboe in 1938,[6] while Sani had made his debut for JIF in 1940.[7] Tan Tjeng Bok, a former stage star with Dardanella, made his feature film debut through Srigala Item.[8]

Music for Srigala Item was done in the kroncong (traditional music with Portuguese influences) style, popular at the time, by Mas Sardi.[9] Hadidjah is credited as singing two songs, "Ja. Ja. Ja. Ja." ("Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.") and "Termenoeng-Menoeng" ("Pensive");[10] Tan Tjeng Bok is also recorded as performing a song.[9]

Release and reception

Mohamad Mochtar and Hadidjah in a promotional still

Srigala Item premiered in the first half of 1941, one of nine films released by JIF and its subsidiaries that year.[11] It was advertised, sometimes under the Dutch name of De Zwarte Wolf, as sensational, full of action, and mysterious"[lower-alpha 2][12] and marketed for all ages.[12] The film was released in Batavia (modern day Jakarta), the capital of the Indies,[10] and by July 1941 it had reached Surabaya, in Eastern Java,[12] and Singapore, then part of British Malaya.[13]

An anonymous review of Srigala Item in the Surabaya-based daily Soerabaijasch Handelsblad was positive, predicting the film would be a commercial success.[14] This prediction was fulfilled, as Srigala Item reached extensive audiences – mostly lower-class natives.[8] The Indonesian film historian Misbach Yusa Biran credits this success to escapism.[15] He writes that the film's theme of an oppressed, financially destitute youth who is able to control his destiny by becoming a masked vigilante, allowed viewers to be able to see themselves as the Black Wolf, and thus take revenge against those who had wronged them.[9]

Action Film and JIF continued producing films until the beginning of the Japanese occupation of the Indies began in early 1942, leading to the closing of all but one film studio. The cast of Srigala Item remained with JIF until the company closed, as did Tan.[16] According to JB Kristanto's Katalog Film Indonesia (Catalogue of Indonesian Films), a copy of Srigala Item is stored at Sinematek Indonesia in Jakarta.[2] The reels have been damaged by acid, leading to part of the film being excised.[17]

Explanatory notes

1. Sources disagree on which version served as the inspiration. Kristanto (Filmindonesia.or.id, Srigala Item) credits The Mark of Zorro (1940). Said, McGlynn & Boileau (1991, p. 28) credit a stage version of the bandit.
2. Original: "... sensationeele, actievolle en mysterieuze"

References

1. Filmindonesia.or.id, Srigala Item; Biran 2009, p. 274; Soerabaijasch Handelsblad 1941, Sampoerna-theater
2. Filmindonesia.or.id, Srigala Item.
3. Filmindonesia.or.id, Filmography Tan Tjoei Hock.
4. Filmindonesia.or.id, Kredit Srigala Item; Biran 2009, p. 150
5. Imanjaya 2006, p. 109.
6. Biran 2009, p. 181.
7. Filmindonesia.or.id, M. Sani.
8. Biran 2009, p. 272.
9. Biran 2009, p. 274.
10. Biran 2009, p. 310.
11. Biran 2009, pp. 384–385.
12. Soerabaijasch Handelsblad, (untitled).
13. The Straits Times 1941, (untitled).
14. Soerabaijasch Handelsblad 1941, Sampoerna-theater.
15. Biran 1986, p. 6.
16. Biran 2009, pp. 319, 322; Filmindonesia.or.id, Filmography Tan Tjoei Hock
17. Sembiring 2009, Saving Indonesian Cinema Treasures.

Works cited

• Biran, Misbach Yusa (2009). Sejarah Film 1900–1950: Bikin Film di Jawa [History of Film 1900–1950: Making Films in Java] (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Komunitas Bamboo working with the Jakarta Art Council. ISBN 978-979-3731-58-2.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Biran, Misbach Yusa (1986). Snapshots of Indonesian Film History and Non-theatrical Films in Indonesia. Jakarta: Komunitas Bamboo working with the Jakarta Art Council. OCLC 20550138.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Imanjaya, Ekky (2006). A to Z about Indonesian Film (in Indonesian). Bandung: Mizan. ISBN 978-979-752-367-1.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• "Kredit Srigala Item" [Credits for Srigala Item]. filmindonesia.or.id (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Konfiden Foundation. Archived from the original on 31 May 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
• "M. Sani". filmindonesia.or.id (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Konfiden Foundation. Archived from the original on 31 May 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
• Said, Salim; McGlynn, John H.; Boileau, Janet P. (1991). Shadows on the Silver Screen: A Social History of Indonesian Film. Jakarta: Lontar Foundation. ISBN 978-979-8083-04-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• "Sampoerna-theater "Srigala Item"". Soerabaijasch Handelsblad (in Dutch). Surabaya: Kolff & Co. 23 July 1941. p. 8. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
• Sembiring, Dalih (26 August 2009). "Saving Indonesian Cinema Treasures". The Jakarta Globe. Archived from the original on 26 June 2012. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
• "Srigala Item". filmindonesia.or.id (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Konfiden Foundation. Archived from the original on 27 July 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
• "Tan Tjoei Hock | Filmografi" [Tan Tjoei Hock | Filmography]. filmindonesia.or.id (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Konfidan Foundation. Archived from the original on 23 September 2012. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
• "(untitled)". Soerabaijasch Handelsblad (in Dutch). Surabaya: Kolff & Co. 23 July 1941. p. 10. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
• "(untitled)". The Straits Times. Singapore. 11 July 1941. p. 6. Retrieved 31 May 2013.