Three Days To Forever

“This place is shitty, but it’s…what’s the word? Magical? Do I mean magical?…Mystical! That’s it!” says the long-limbed and beautiful Ambar to her cousin Suf, and so goes their road trip in Riri Riza’s thoughtful coming-of-age story, Three Days to Forever.

Against a scrolling backdrop of rural and urban Indonesia, Three Days to Forever follows two youths who discover their place, or lack thereof, in a passing and ever-expanding world. When Ambar misses her flight to her sister’s wedding, she tags along with cousin Suf, who has been entrusted to deliver a set of antique cutlery for use in a traditional bridal meal. While the two take to the road, accidental hold-ups turn into opportunities for play, and Ambar and Suf take their time to party and explore various detours, among them a holy place of prayer and a mystical beachside vil­lage. A few dozen cigarettes (and joints) later, the cousins begin to feel an affinity for each other, and a typically docile Suf can’t help but be drawn to his cousin’s out-there spirit and legs-up-to-here physique.

A playful teen saga, Three Days to Forever is also a highly controversial film that bumps up hard against the confines of Islamic culture. In it, Riza (Eliana, Eliana, SFIAAFF ‘03) captures the gestures of (privileged) adolescence and its dual spirit of rebellion and submission. With magnetic performances by Nicholas Saputra and Adinia Wirasti and an original soundtrack by Indonesian folk group Float, the film is a subtle, well-crafted portrait of the resilience and suppleness of being young.