Sorga Ka Toedjoe

Sorga Ka Toedjoe[a] ([ˈsɔrɡa kə ˈtudʒu]; vernacular Malay for Seventh Heaven; also advertised under the Dutch title In Den Zevenden Hemel) is a 1940 film from the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia) directed by Joshua and Othniel Wong for Tan's Film.

Rasminah (Roekiah) is living with her blind aunt Hadidjah (Annie Landouw) in Puncak, a village south-east of Buitenzorg (now Bogor).

Although she regretted the incident almost immediately, it was too late; a corpse resembling Kasimin was found floating in a river, and in her hurry to see the body Hadidjah was struck by a car, blinding her.

Following an encounter with the rich and detestable Parta, who intends to take her as his second wife, Rasminah goes to the nearby city of Batavia (now Jakarta) to find a job.

After a lengthy search, in which he almost gives up hope, Hoesin finds Kasimin at a small plantation in the hills outside of the city – Hadidjah's long-lost husband previously operated his own orchard, but had been evicted by a conniving and greedy landlord only days before.

[2] The Wongs had worked for Tan's since 1938, when they directed the hit film Fatima, helping to reestablish the company after it had been dissolved in 1932.

[6] Before making their feature film debut in Albert Balink's Terang Boelan (Full Moon; 1937), Roekiah and Kartolo had found popularity with the stage musical troupe Palestina.

[9] Sorga Ka Toedjoe had its Surabaya premiere on 30 October 1940,[10] one of fourteen domestic productions released that year.

[13] It was advertised, sometimes under the Dutch title In Den Zevenden Hemel, as a "simple yet compelling film"[c] which featured "good music, catchy songs, and beautiful scenery".

The Soerabaijasch Handelsblad gave the film high praise, stating that it had good dialogue and music as well as a "well chosen, romantic and not exaggerated"[e] theme.

[6] According to the reviewer, Sorga Ka Toedjoe seemed to have been inspired by American films but still showed its Indies character.

Two women looking forward
Roekiah (left) and Annie Landouw in a promotional still from the film
A black-and-white photograph of a man and a woman in a boat
Djoemala and Roekiah went on to act in another three films together.