When I first came across Tiger Stripes’ poster I knew I had to watch it. Then I read about it, even watched the trailer, a thing I rarely do, and I couldn’t get it out of my mind. I was dreading to watch it.

I’ve lived in Malaysia for a few years, even started my family there and my kids are half Malay. It was such a painful feeling to find out the only movie theaters there were recipients of mostly mainstream movies.

No indie movies, no film d’auteur, just Disney/Marvels, comedies, and action movies all year round. With high censorship. Far from what I was drawn to as a spectator (a snob French). So it took me a while to discover the hidden part of the Malaysian film industry. 

Now I know that very recently an independent movie theater opened its doors in Pasar Seni and I will definitely go there when I’m back in Malaysia! And that some more interesting screenings pop up from time to time. But censorship is still there, making filmmakers shoot masterpieces in secret and force spectators to escape movie theaters to watch these gems.

But back to Tiger Stripes, Amanda Nell Eu‘s debut movie, which is about so much more than just a girl getting her first period.

The Plot 

We follow Zaffan (Zafreen Zairizal), a 12 year-old Malaysian girl, who goes to school in a rural area, who does TikTok dances in the bathroom, and she seems pretty carefree leading this little trio of friends – Farrah (Deena Ezral) and Mariam (Piqa). But she’s also the first one to get her period and see her body change. 

As she grows into puberty she falls into a cryptic spiral where she discovers with horror that she’s starting to turn into a were-tiger and finds refuge in the jungle as her friends and loved ones ostracised her.

A Horrifying Ode To Puberty

There might not be anything better than gore to describe puberty. And it’s so well done in Tiger stripes. But first things first: I know that it states everywhere that it’s a horror movie, but it’s not really scary. As someone who couldn’t even go further than S1E2 of Lost, Tiger Stripes isn’t a horror movie but it can feel a bit gross sometimes. So I guess if you’re looking for the thrill, it might not deliver it, and if you think you can’t handle it, maybe you could actually give it a try.

The Dark Side Of Adolescence : The Burden of Periods and Loneliness

For young girls, transitioning to a teenager is mostly : starting to bleed, changing pads and tampons, fearing leaks and stains on our clothes and chairs, developing a burden no one wants, every month or so.

And when you see all your friends going through puberty this might make you feel a bit jealous to be the last one to have to fill up your bra but when you’re the first one to experience all these changes by yourself it isn’t glamorous as the other ones would think. 

And that’s what happens to Zaffan, at first her friends are kind of excited with her that she’s growing up faster than them, as they feel like they can enter that world with her. But soon they just find it gross and make her feel like she doesn’t belong with them anymore.

The horrors of puberty aren’t only physical, when it hits us we can feel so estranged to our own body, but also to the people that surround ourselves even the closest like our parents. 

Amanda Nell Eu perfectly portrays it with Zaffan who first becomes the center of attention, but soon she gets bullied by her classmates and becomes isolated. Farah is the perfect Malay mean girl making us root for Zaffan even more.

As she struggles to belong with her own friends, the adults around her seem to understand her less and less as well. Which is a pretty common thing during teenage hood.

Folk Horror Tales

The use of Malay folklore in the movie really supports the idea of teenagehood being a strange phase, where one’s body and mind can feel possessed. As Zaffan is entering puberty and adolescence she’s also turning into a beast, a monster that everyone is urged to heal so that it can fit society expectations.

The Feminist Act

This is a beautiful tale about girls and women who want to exist for what they are. The need to embrace our body and thrive in a society that can’t seem to accept our true nature.

What’s Hard To Explain Serves The Religion

At first it seems cool when Zaffan doesn’t get to pray, but soon it pictures her as dirty and marginal, and she slowly becomes a stranger to the other girls, as if once a month she didn’t really get to exist in the community.

It’s all the taboo and superstitions from the religion that are going to bring shame and negativity around women’s bodies, and this is definitely not helping Zaffan go through teenagehood. 

Tradition And Misogyny

If this exorcism, known as Rukiah, is a well known practice in Malaysian culture it’s also a perfect way to portray what parents feel towards their children during teenage hood. As if a stranger had taken over their little one’s body and soul. 

But it also reminds me how a few decades back only, women were associated with hysteria and the evil eye so easily in the western culture. How medicine was betraying women’s sanity under men’s power. It’s so recent that women can finally own their body in so many ways. 

In the movie, Dr Rahim (Shaheizy Sam) is the perfect portrayal of mansplaining and how people behave when they don’t know how to handle something. Especially adults towards kids and teens.

A Fresh Perspective On Adolescence

Body horror paired with the coming-of-age genre perfectly delivers a fresh perspective about one of cinema’s most explored – and compelling – themes : adolescence. I’m a fan of the genre, of the theme, but I must say that realism mixed with folk horror really offers a new angle to teenagehood and puberty. 

You can find this atmosphere in the Colombian coming-of-age movie Mi Bestia (2024) by Camila Beltrán where fantasy mixed with daily life gives birth to an interesting tale about the confusion and transformation of adolescence. 

Another masterpiece that uses the supernatural to talk about the evolution of the body, ageism, and the violence one internalizes about the female body is of course The Substance (2024) written and directed by Coralie Fargeat.

Voilà!

I’ve really enjoyed Tiger Stripes and was extremely impressed by the acting of Zafreen Zairizal, Deena Ezral, and Piqa. Despite the fact that it has strong roots in Malay culture and customs I believe many girls could relate to Zaffan and appreciate this indie drama.
So I’m off watching Amanda Nell Eu two shorts : It’s easier to raise cattle, 2017 and Vinegar Bath, 2019.