10 Best Malaysian Movies to Watch First

10 Essential Malaysian Films

Ranked native cinema in Malaysia’s own creative voice.

1. 

   1. PASKAL

   PASKAL: The Movie · 2018

   Based on true events, an officer of Malaysia's elite naval special-forces unit leads his team on a daring mission to retake a tanker hijacked by Somali pirates. A patriotic military action film.

2. 

   2. Abang Adik

   富都青年 · 2023

   Two undocumented orphan brothers scrape by in Kuala Lumpur — the elder deaf and resigned to poverty, the younger seething with anger — until a violent accident shatters their fragile world. A raw, moving drama.

3. 

   3. Ejen Ali: The Movie

   2019

   A young boy who moonlights as a secret agent for a high-tech spy organization embarks on a mission to foil a plot against his smart city, while wrestling with questions about where his loyalty lies. A Malaysian animated action-adventure.

4. 

   4. BoBoiBoy Movie 2

   2019

   The young elemental hero BoBoiBoy and his friends must protect his powers from an ancient villain bent on regaining control and unleashing cosmic chaos. A Malaysian animated superhero adventure.

5. 

   5. Madu Tiga

   1964

   A cunning husband secretly takes a second and then a third wife without his first wife's knowledge, and his web of deceptions collapses into chaos when the women discover one another. A classic P. Ramlee comedy.

6. 

   6. Ola Bola

   2016

   In the 1970s, a multiethnic Malaysian football team overcomes personal rivalries and hardship to unite behind a shared dream of qualifying for the Olympics. A rousing, patriotic sports drama.

7. 

   7. BoBoiBoy: The Movie

   2016

   The elemental-powered boy hero and his friends race a greedy alien treasure hunter to find a powerful ancient artifact hidden on a mysterious island. A Malaysian animated adventure.

8. 

   8. Bukit Kepong

   1981

   This drama recreates the true 1950 assault by communist guerrillas on a small rural police station at Bukit Kepong during the Malayan Emergency, and the outnumbered officers' desperate defense. A patriotic war film.

9. 

   9. Nasi Lemak 2.0

   辣死你妈2.0 · 2011

   A proud young chef whose fancy cooking fails to win over local diners embarks on a journey across Malaysia's cuisines and cultures to rediscover authentic flavors — and himself. A comic, music-filled celebration of multicultural Malaysia.

10. 

    10. Sepet

    2004

    A Chinese Malaysian boy who sells pirated VCDs and writes poetry falls for a Malay girl, and their tender cross-cultural romance runs up against the prejudices and expectations of their families and society. Yasmin Ahmad's beloved, groundbreaking drama.