Sorga Palsoe

Hian Nio is displeased as her mother, Roti, treats her poorly and favours her siblings. One day, Hian Nio's boyfriend Kian Bie is fired from his work. Kian Bie's former employer, Bian Hong, uses the opportunity to take Hian Nio as his wife. She is, however, unhappy, and after a year abandons Bian Hong and their newborn daughter. Eventually Hian Nio returns to claim their daughter, but she dies soon afterwards.{{sfn|Filmindonesia.or.id, Sorga Palsoe}}

Sorga Palsoe was directed by Tan Tjoei Hock for The Teng Chun's Java Industrial Film. It was his fourth film, following Dasima, Matjan Berbisik, and Melati van Agam (all 1940).{{sfn|Biran|2009|p=209}} The story, which bucked a then-ongoing trend of native oriented films, was written by Fred Young;{{sfn|Filmindonesia.or.id, Sorga Palsoe}} it was Young's first foray into the industry.{{sfn|Filmindonesia.or.id, Fred Young}}

The film starred Lo Tjin Nio, Tong Hui, Lim Poen Tjiaw, and Rohana.{{sfn|Filmindonesia.or.id, Sorga Palsoe}} Filming for the black-and-white film began on 27 December 1940 and was completed by January of the following year.{{sfn|Filmindonesia.or.id, Sorga Palsoe}} Music direction was handled by Mas Sardi.{{sfn|Filmindonesia.or.id, Mas Sardi}}

Sorga Palsoe was screened in Surabaya, East Java, by late February 1941{{sfn|Soerabaijasch Handelsblad 1941, (untitled)}} and in Medan, North Sumatra, by April.{{sfn|De Sumatra Post 1941, (untitled)}} The film, targeted at uneducated, lower-class viewers,{{sfn|Biran|2009|p=248}} was a commercial failure.{{sfn|Filmindonesia.or.id, Sorga Palsoe}} An anonymous review in the daily Soerabaijasch Handelsblad found the film to have a tragic ending and emphasised the role of ethnic Chinese in production.{{sfn|Soerabaijasch Handelsblad 1941, Sorga Palsoe}}

The film is likely lost. The American visual anthropologist Karl G. Heider writes that all Indonesian films from before 1950 are lost.{{sfn|Heider|1991|p=14}} However, JB Kristanto's Katalog Film Indonesia (Indonesian Film Catalogue) records several as having survived at Sinematek Indonesia's archives, and film historian Misbach Yusa Biran writes that several Japanese propaganda films have survived at the Netherlands Government Information Service.{{sfn|Biran|2009|p=351}}

{{reflist|30em}}

{{refbegin|40em}}

• {{cite book

| title = Sejarah Film 1900–1950: Bikin Film di Jawa

|trans-title=History of Film 1900–1950: Making Films in Java

| language = Indonesian

| last = Biran

| first = Misbach Yusa

| authorlink = Misbach Yusa Biran

| location = Jakarta

| publisher = Komunitas Bamboo working with the Jakarta Art Council

| year = 2009

| isbn = 978-979-3731-58-2

}}

• {{cite web

|title=Fred Young

|language=Indonesian

|url=http://filmindonesia.or.id/movie/name/nmp4b9bad3b7af11_Fred-Young#.UGF4tKA24gc

|work=filmindonesia.or.id

|publisher=Konfidan Foundation

|archive-date=16 December 2014

|url-status=live

|access-date=25 September 2012

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141216090018/http://filmindonesia.or.id/movie/name/nmp4b9bad3b7af11_fred-young

|ref={{sfnRef|Filmindonesia.or.id, Fred Young}}

}}

• {{cite book

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m4DVrBo91lEC

|title=Indonesian Cinema: National Culture on Screen

|isbn=978-0-8248-1367-3

|last1=Heider

|first1=Karl G.

|year=1991

|publisher=University of Hawaii Press

|location=Honolulu

}}

• {{cite web

| title = Mas Sardi

| language = Indonesian

| url = http://filmindonesia.or.id/movie/name/nmp4b97cbf8435d6_Mas-Sardi

| work = filmindonesia.or.id

| publisher = Konfiden Foundation

| location = Jakarta

| access-date = 11 June 2013

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140111085218/http://filmindonesia.or.id/movie/name/nmp4b97cbf8435d6_mas-sardi

| archive-date = 11 January 2014

| url-status = live

| ref = {{sfnRef|Filmindonesia.or.id, Mas Sardi}}

}}

• {{cite web

| title = Sorga Palsoe

| language = Indonesian

| url = http://filmindonesia.or.id/movie/title/lf-s011-40-986379_sorga-palsoe

| work = filmindonesia.or.id

| publisher = Konfiden Foundation

| location = Jakarta

| access-date = 25 July 2012

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131202203735/http://filmindonesia.or.id/movie/title/lf-s011-40-986379_sorga-palsoe

| archive-date = 2 December 2013

| url-status = live

| ref = {{sfnRef|Filmindonesia.or.id, Sorga Palsoe}}

}}

• {{cite news

|title=Sorga Palsoe (De Valsche Hemel)

|language=Dutch

|url=http://kranten.kb.nl/view/article/id/ddd%3A011122601%3Ampeg21%3Ap006%3Aa0112

|work=Soerabaijasch Handelsblad

|location=Surabaya

|page=6

|date=24 February 1941

|publisher=Kolff & Co.

|access-date=11 June 2013

|ref={{sfnRef|Soerabaijasch Handelsblad 1941, Sorga Palsoe}}

}}

• {{cite news

|title=(untitled)

|language=Dutch

|url=http://kranten.kb.nl/view/article/id/ddd%3A011176887%3Ampeg21%3Ap008%3Aa0072

|work=De Sumatra Post

|location=Medan

|page=8

|date=21 April 1941

|access-date=11 June 2013

|ref={{sfnRef|De Sumatra Post 1941, (untitled)}}

}}

• {{cite news

|title=(untitled)

|language=Dutch

|url=http://kranten.kb.nl/view/article/id/ddd%3A011122598%3Ampeg21%3Ap004%3Aa0070

|work=Soerabaijasch Handelsblad

|location=Surabaya

|page=4

|date=22 February 1941

|publisher=Kolff & Co.

|access-date=11 June 2013

|ref={{sfnRef|Soerabaijasch Handelsblad 1941, (untitled)}}

}}

{{refend}}

• {{IMDb title|1852103|Sorga Palsoe}}

{{Portal bar|Film|Indonesia|Netherlands}}

{{Tan Tjoei Hock}}

Category:1941 films

Category:1941 lost films

Category:Dutch East Indies films

Category:Films directed by Tan Tjoei Hock

Category:Indonesian black-and-white films

Category:Lost Indonesian films