Police officer Nazri (Syafiq Kyle, left) takes law into his own hands and starts killing the bad guys. Photos: Handout
When producer-director Datuk Yusof Haslam was helming the Gerak Khas dramas in the late 1990s – which follows the crime-fighting efforts of the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) – he often got notes from the police headquarters in Bukit Aman not to highlight the darker side of policing.
Issues surrounding corruption, bribery and violence were strictly forbidden from being featured in the series that ran for 20 seasons, and ended in 2021, he said.
When Yusof wanted to broach these elements that exist within the police department for his 2002 Gerak Khas The Movie II, his request was turned down yet again.
“As a filmmaker, we can only do as much as we are allowed to,” he said at a recent press event to launch his production company’s latest film.
Despite accepting his limitations, it didn’t sit well with Yusof.
“Every time I went to give talks at universities, students would always question me why I only showcased good things about police in my Gerak Khas shows.
“Thankfully, times have changed and we are now more open-minded.
“PDRM has given us the green light to show the dark side (of the police force) because it is illogical to hide it anymore in this day and age of social media,” added Yusof, who turned 70 yesterday.
That idea of his has finally been turned into the hit film Sheriff by his son, Syafiq Yusof, who developed the script (with Nazifdin Nasrudin) and directed it.
Headlined by Zul Ariffin, Syafiq Kyle and Datuk Aaron Aziz, Sheriff is currently showing in cinemas nationwide. The film has earned a total of RM22.1mil within seven days of its release.
According to Yusof, the script for Sheriff was approved by PDRM as it does not damage the reputation of the force, has an important message to impart, as well as there being rhyme and reason behind the actions of the good cop and those of the bad cop featured in the film.
“Audiences are smart enough to know that there are many good officers out there, and not to judge the whole force based on just a few bad ones,” explained Yusof.
The film centres around Zul’s character Sheriffudin Hussein, better known as Sheriff.
He works in the police’s Integrity Department and “cleans up” the force by arresting corrupt cops in other departments.
His latest case brings him to the Narcotics unit and face-to-face with Nazri (Syafiq Kyle) whom he suspects to be the vigilante cop who is killing off corrupt policemen as well as bad guys who escape punishment.
Many audiences have applauded Syafiq Yusoff for tackling a topic that often lands on the front page of newspapers and social media, but never in local films.
“My father has been doing police shows for four decades now, and I feel I should continue his work,” said Syafiq, who directed Polis Evo 3, the No.1 film of 2023, and the KL Special Force (2018).
“But after Polis Evo 3, I didn’t really know what story to explore in this genre. So I asked him what other police story he wants to do. He suggested the theme of integrity within the force, an idea he has been ruminating for some time.
“To be honest, I didn’t expect such an open attitude from PDRM,” said Syafiq, adding that Bukit Aman only requested for a few changes to the script.
“And the Film Censorship Board of Malaysia (LPF) only asked for a cut of a scene involving bad language, which I was fine with omitting.
“I was more afraid LPF would ban the film and it would not be shown in cinemas.”
Yusof Haslam (centre) and his son Syafiq Yusof on the set of 'Sheriff'.
Syafiq explained his main aim with Sheriff is not to tell who are the bad cops doing the bad things they do, but to show why they happen.
“I want to present a story from different points of view, and not paint the characters in just black and white. I am not attacking anyone. To me, the film is honest and fair.”
Yusof also described Sheriff as the most honest work he has ever produced.
At the same time, Syafiq admitted that with the approval and due to the sensitivity of the subject, he had to be careful at every turn about the portrayals of police officers in Sheriff.
Hence, the filmmaking process took longer than usual and cost RM6mil to make.
Yusof shared: “The film went over the budget and the shoot went on for 81 days. Normally we shoot for about 60 days only. My son and I often quarrelled over the production cost.
“I trust my son to do the best and he is very detailed. But some things that can be done in a day, he takes two or three days.
“The scene where we had to close the roads for the chase scene took three days to shoot. It looks simple and fast in the film but it took a long time and much effort to shoot.”
Sheriff (Zul Ariffin) feels there is more to Nazrin (Syafiq Kyle) than meets the eye.
Sheriff, which received a 16 rating (for viewers aged 16 and above), runs close to two hours, and features not only car chases but also extensive shootout scenes and physical fights.
An outstanding physical fight in the film is between the titular character and the ultimate baddie, a drug lord, played by Datuk Aaron Aziz.
As it happens, this particular sequence almost didn’t make it into the film as director Syafiq wanted to tighten the script and thought there were already too many action sequences.
But lead star Zul disagreed: “I thought it would be a real pity to let go of this opportunity of a fight sequence between Aaron and myself in this movie.
“This is our first film together and of course the audiences want to see the two of us fight. So, I was happy when it was back in.”
Zul added that the fight sequence – which took four days to shoot – took a toll on him and Aaron as they went all out each time the camera rolled, sometimes even breaking props that were not meant to be broken.
“It’s true that we were both tired when shooting this scene. But we encouraged each other because we want to showcase the best for the film.
“Collaboration is crucial on any film set, and actors cannot be selfish because ultimately we want to entertain the audience,” said Zul.
“Thankfully, when we watched the playback, we could see it looked good and we were satisfied with the result. Sometimes we did go overboard in the scene,” added the 37-year-old action star with a laugh.
Zul Ariffin and Datuk Aaron Aziz couldn't let the opportunity of including a fight between their characters in the film just go by. Photo: Zul Ariffin/Instagram
One of the things that come across clearly in Sheriff too is just how charismatic Zul’s character is.
Syafiq, who had directed Zul in Penunggang Agama and Misteri Dilaila, said it was the actor who injected so much personality into his character.
The director said: “I love working with Zul Ariffin because he always knows how to enhance a character. There are a lot of scenes in this movie where the personality trait is actually something that he came up with. It wasn’t in the script originally.
“For example, when he’s making fun of other cops and he’s laughing. In the script, there’s no laughing. But somehow when he includes the laughter, the scene just becomes so much better.”
For actor Syafiq Kyle, who portrays a cop who goes off the rails, working with Zul turned out to be a masterclass of sorts for the 31-year-old who is known for his role in the TV drama One Cent Thief.
“I was nervous working with both Zul and Datuk Aaron because they are so much more experienced in the film industry,” the actor admitted.
Main stars of 'Sheriff', Syafiq Kyle and Zul Ariffin.
Speaking specifically of his scenes with Zul, Syafiq said: “My scenes with Zul were many but they were all easy, thanks to him. A lot of scenes involved us improvising, too.”
Unlike Zul and Aaron, Syafiq focused more on his mental than physical preparation for his role as his character is undergoing emotional turmoil when the audience meets him.
“I only had to be in that bad mental space during rehearsal and during filming. Once they yell ‘Cut’, I am back to having fun on set.”
One of the reasons why Syafiq was interested in participating in Sheriff was because his character is different than any other police characters seen in a Malaysian movie.
“When I first read the script and saw that my cop character kills a policeman, I was very interested in playing Nazri.
“I was also impressed that (director) Syafiq was willing to explore such a story and I immediately signed on to be on this ride with him,” he said.
Wanting to give his best for the role, the actor did his research which also included absorbing Jake Gyllenhaal’s performance of a determined detective in the 2013 film Prisoner to get a little inspiration on how to start playing Nazri whom believes he is on the right path.
Syafiq added: “I was also interested in participating in this movie because of the message it carries – which is, no matter the wrong you are trying to right, the law must be followed; it’s not there to be manipulated to suit one person.
“I felt it was brave of PDRM to give this project a green light. As an actor and a Malaysian, I feel proud to be part of this movie.”
