Ghost

This has got to be one of, if not the best Malaysian made television series I've ever watched. I'm talking about "Ghost" on 8tv (Sundays, 10:30pm), of course. Admittedly, I've not seen that many Malaysian TV series, but that's not without good reason. Astro offers so many world class series, and advertises it so extensively that it's sometimes difficult to notice the local productions (much like what happened with Malaysian soccer, that’s a story for another time), and I guess I'm also guilty of not supporting the local productions (Sorry!), but after this show, I'm now a born again believer!

In a nut shell, it’s a supernatural, murder mystery series! Zack Imran (Nazrudin Rahman), a promiscuous mega movie star, is murdered, but the murder was covered up as a drunken car accident. Zack’s ghost then continues wondering on earth seeking to reveal the truth with the help of Eza (Cheryl Samad).

The acting is seasoned, very natural and totally believable, despite some of them being fairly new at it. The flow between the 2 leads is so smooth and it just develops so well over each episode (I kinda sense some love interest brewing in there somewhere). Carmen Soo, as Julie is beautiful, talented and carries her 'best friend' role very well. Reefa's mysterious character leaves us guessing.

In the first few episodes, the plot was simplistic and built around the 'who dunnit' plot, but this changed very soon with Eza's love life, Julie's personal struggle and a corrupt, murderous Datuk (sounds familiar!) all thrown into the fray, yet intricately connected. The suspense at the end of each episode keeps the interest high.

I'm don't claim to be a expert in the technical aspects of film making, but just from a layman’s observation, it seems professional and impressive, the angles, panning, lighting and general quality is a class above. I'm told that the director is meticulous in his details and the results really show. The special effects are believable for the most parts and are still commendable in comparison with other series (different story if compared with the local movie scene). My only gripe would be the frequency of the special effects. Because Zack is a lead role and is in most scenes, it's easy to forget that he is actually a ghost without a regular dose of special effects to remind the viewers.

In summary, I love it and highly recommend it, a true example of 'Malaysia Boleh'. I sincerely hope to see a second season.

'Ghost' airs on 8TV (channel 708 on Astro) at 10:30pm every Sunday. You can also catch interesting snippets of information on the show like bloopers on the 8TV web site… http://www.8tv.com.my/