Si Tjonat

Si Tjonat

Si Tjonat was directed by Nelson Wong and produced by Wong and Jo Eng Sek. Based on the novel by F. D. Pangemanann, the silent film followed an indigenous man who, having killed his fellow villager, flees to Batavia and becomes a bandit. After kidnapping an ethnic Chinese woman, he is defeated and brought to justice.

About Si Tjonat in brief

Summary Si TjonatSi Tjonat was directed by Nelson Wong and produced by Wong and Jo Eng Sek. Based on the novel by F. D. J. Pangemanann, the silent film followed an indigenous man who, having killed his fellow villager, flees to Batavia and becomes a bandit. After kidnapping an ethnic Chinese woman, he is defeated and brought to justice. A commercially oriented work aimed at ethnic Chinese audiences, it received mixed reviews; box office proceeds are unclear. Although intended as a serial, no sequel was ever made; the production house, Batavia Motion Picture, closed soon afterwards.

Several works in the same genre were released soon afterwards, including Si Pitoeng, which used the same director and star. Several films centred on bandits, including Lie Swie’s Ronda and Si Rampok’s Preok’n Preok, were also made in the Indies in the 1930s and 1940s. The film was one in a line of domestic productions targeted primarily atethnic Chinese audiences.