I propose to you a different way to look back at the Singapore films of 2008. Our memories of films may fade faster than we like to but unforgettable characters tend to stay with us in our minds. Instead of dishing out the stories all over again, I prefer to take a second look at the characters from the Singapore-made films that were hard to erase. And what a bunch of boys, women, uncles, ah mas and cross-dressers we’ve got on our plate, oops, my plate, to be exact.

Topping the list is the sequin-draped, yet bicep-flexing Astro Boy from ‘12 Lotus’. His role is actually historically accurate. There was a boy, commonly known as ‘Xiao Fei Xia’, who stole the hearts of audiences in the early Getai days. While, his friendship with fellow-suffering Lian Hua was chummy, his role 20 years older seemed an oddity. It starts with his dramatic transformation into a porcelain-skinned, helium-infused-voiced teenager of a man. Then you’d think he came straight from work, but apparently, he bought Lian Hua groceries from Econ Minimart in the outfits as well. Then, he brings a Candy coloured Cosplay girl to Lian Hua and introduces her as a girlfriend, still never missing a feather in his cap, literally.

It is a really tough fight with my second choice-Mother from ‘Money No Enough 2′. She must have touched more hearts than any other character from a Singapore movie going by ticket sales. And to top it up, she earned a Golden Horse nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Her face is no newcomer to our screens but her role is refreshing. For once, she talks at half her speed and plays amnesia to perfection. The best part is she is so steady in every scene, adding to the drama and never upstaging anyone. But also thanks to Jack Neo, her role gives her the breadth to play with. Apart from the family drama, she even sings, drives, dies dramatically and has sexy brasserie to complete her wardrobe. Finally, do not deny if you have a shed a tear during the old aged home scene.

The next character has to be the most hardworking among all in the year 2008. I am not sure if he has a name. He has to drain away his father’s urine in the opening act, wear red underwear and crawl in the desert, help a friend tide through her post-transexual operation blues, pull down panties, be slapped by bloodied sausages, become a schizophrenic in middle a train depot and then endure a bomb-blast makeover for the final act. Sunny Pang has previously appeared in several roles with a strong underground flavour but Lucky 7 must be his showpiece. The only problem with his ‘Lucky 7′ stint is when he appeared in My Magic as the gangster, we are never sure if he left the world of Lucky 7. Maybe he needs to cut his hair.

Now that Sinema Old School has started its ‘18 Grams of Love’ run, this character should be slowly be a good character to impersonate at parties and social events. Even for those who cannot stand her ‘act-cute’ ways like me, I still succumbed to the her ‘heeheehee’ snigger. It is not an expression for all to mimick for your results could be disastrous. Magdalene See who plays this character, called Xiao Tong, the wife of the lead Zihua, has the right attributes. Her cheeks are supple and her smile with bugs bunny teeth complete that Disney moment. And it never drops in its delivery. Three quarters into the film and she is still beaming at it. Thanks to characters like her, there is hope that movies from relatively lesser known directors can finally be a talking point even among HDB aunties.

The first short film character that deserves a lot of mention is also a highly sought after face among independent films. You might have seen him in Blackboard White Shoes, Pleasure Factory and Old Times. Vincent Tee plays an abusive father who is addicted to porn in ‘My Blue Heaven’. It is a refreshing character because fatherly figures are seldom funny in the Singapore context. I blame on the patriachial society we live in. While his toilet ‘business’ was a riot, the golden moment was his haggling with the video-tape woman. Watch how he goes from ‘Tai-Chi-ing’ away the woman to picking up that title flick on tape.

I must explain that for the next character, the film is an old film that happened to be screened many times this year and has regained some loyalty points. ‘Kichiro’ is a classic. There are so many characters we like to mimick or watch them over and over again. There are so many classic characters…Kichiro’s pineapple-haired, smirky-faced partner-in-crime, Kichiro’s theatrical parents, Kelvin Sng’s cameo in the gore video with the knife-twisting act in his mouth. But nobody loves anyone more than the biology teacher who stands up to Kichiro’s first hammering shot with so much righteousness and a touch of vulgarity. For that, her jaw was pounded and her teeth crushed under the weight of a swinging hammer.

‘Kallang Roar’ was to me an underrated movie. Theatrics aside, the film was like a little well-made packet of ready-to-cook laksa paste that you can bring overseas and savour it when the need arises. Nothing too mind-blowing, just sweet like Kueh Lapis. And Uncle Choo was very much like the movie, predictable but consistent. He actually turned out very bearable to watch despite the stagey acting. It helped that a script that showcased Uncle in a variety of situations turned our attention on the character and not the actor, who is already a face too familiar. It’s a pity though that Cages was a 2007 movie, otherwise, we could draw interesting comparison on on-screen theatrics.

When your narrative film is based on your life story, it is like wearing form-fitting clothes, they suggest to people how you are shaped like. When you are a character in your own documentary, it is like taking it off. Eng Yee Peng returns with ‘Diminishing Memories II’, a sequel to DMI, also having a strong narrative voice in it. This time, she is angrier, and also more self-assured. After every interview, you can listen to her own opinion about what’s being shared by the unsuspecting interviewee. There are also tender moments e.g. when she stands behind the moving truck looking like Kate Winslet in Titanic. And not to forget the Cai Xin plucking session where she fails quite embarrasingly. No filmmaker has come close to baring their soul like Yee Peng and she well-deserves the media attention on her films. Lastly, please forget I mentioned the analogy about clothes.

This character from ‘Pak and Sons Travel’ is so freaky I was frothing at my mouth while watching this little Moulin Rouge by Wesley Leon. Actually by character itself, it can compete with Xia Fei Xia of 12 Lotus. If they fight like Papaya sister vs Durian sister, this one will win surely. I am talking about the son from Pak and Sons. This is a short film about a father staging a birthday bash for the son. Apparently, the son has a grudge against the dad. They both run a tour group business and the son is on his way from work to the party (in Brady Bunch-like clothes). Watching the son find his way to the party was like having an ecstasy overdose. One moment, he is rolling on grass like in a Hindi movie, the other moment he is whining and pulling his mop-like hair out. If my description has not given you any drift of the character, You are probably following my writing well. But guess Wesley’s succeeded in leaving an impression.

Among, the many characters seen this year, there was only one moving skeleton. The idea is not that fresh because I have seen animate skeletons in several Hollywood films or foreign animation productions. But I guess they can’t masturbate, spank buttocks and sleep with you. So these little talents really made it very adorable. If you were around at Short Cuts, Short Circuit and SiFF Shorts, no prizes for guessing which film this is.

Everyone’s talked about the sparkle in the eyes of this boy. I watched it to verify if it was true. It was. The magic in Eric Khoo’s Cannes entry, ‘My Magic’ owed a lot to the natural and unassuming charm of this boy. I was told by the translator that the actual Tamil dialogue used was TV-like and a bit stilted. So thank goodness, I only understood subtitles and body language. For me, this boy was a combination of an innocent heart with a tenacious spirit, a touch of prodigious talent and mischief. And that makes him very sweet. The only moments the magic in the character drop are his wireless teleconferences with his late grandmother. But that last gaze (in halluncination of his parents), probably made up $5 of the $8 ticket.

Every seventh month, apart from the Papaya sisters, Durian sisters, Liu Ling Ling, Mindee Ong and Qi Yu Wu, you can now look forward to a new entertainment figure. No he does not sing, dance or wear feather boas. At an affordable price, you can hire him to give you a full body massage. This is especially effective if you happen to see ghosts during the seventh month. His massage has the ability to exorcise these spooky thoughts. You just have to bear with his changing into toy-boy like underwear and pointing a video camera at you. He is only recording the session ‘for training purposes’. But give him a bit of time, rent a room out to him, share your master bed and he will become your best pal. Just don’t kiss him in your dreams. For more information, please watch ‘The Spirit Compendium’.

The ‘15′ of 2008, ‘The Days’ has a motley bunch of colourful characters. In this film, you get to watch a dog, a cockroach, a parrot, a rat and a baby get into fights that even involves beancurd skin. And despite physical differences (they were very physically differentiated indeed!), the fights were close and very ferocious. Even the women can kick ass. There was one who stopped my heartbeat and left me with the strongest after-taste among the other characters. This is Yeo Yann Yann’s role of 2008 (no prizes for guessing her ‘2007′ role). She played a beer girl with a cutting coffeeshop accent. If women who rule coffeeshops with their skin-tight denim shorts, clogs and nasal barks ring a bell to you, she played it to perfection. I reckon you could turn a door knob with that pair of swinging hips.

There are 2 soccer uncles in my line up. The first is Uncle ‘dramatic as his batik prints’ Choo in Kallang Roar. The second is ‘Hongkee’ Uncle Chor Pat in ‘Homeless FC’. Chor Pat stands out in this luminous documentary about homeless people who formed a soccer team in HK. He was loud, brash but uncompromsingly brotherly. Though half the time, his tummy stole airtime, his big heart made up the half time. I would not be surprised if his own life story could feed into a feature film idea.

In a land decimated by civil war and totalitarian brutality, Cambodia to be exact, lives Ratana and her…. over-nourished mother. This is Cambodia, as faithfully portrayed in ‘To Speak’. Okay, before the ’size-ists’ throw shoes at me, I must explain that the consistency and even intensity of her character drew me into the drama that was happening in the small family. She personified so much bitterness that I feel she anchored much of the issues that were presented. The Oscar moment is certainly the note-book tearing sequence. To see that tiny notebook wrenched into bits by her robust fingers sent shudders down me.

While many made me laugh, cry, cheeky or depressed, this one made me want to be a stronger man. At the Speaker’s Corner, a human barricade forms around a thinly-built lady. Everywhere she went, the barricade follows and maintains its circular formation. Sometimes, the circle morphs into a diamond or an amoeba. Its precision is commendable though some ideas seemed recycled from previous year’s National Day Parades. And the team performed so seamlessly that choreography does not even change when the lady’s attempts to go to the washroom. I am writing this as a tribte to her and women in general as well. She was stoic and made so much effort at being composed. Men do lack the composure and grace under the circumstances portrayed in ‘Speakers Cornered’. And because women in general fight in a different battle style, her confrontations with a female police officer became a highlight of the whole episode.

Other characters that intrigue:

Juliet Toh, in ‘Love Me, Love My Dogs’ – She is a dog lover whose dogs seem to use Vidal Sasson.

Schoolmate of Wei Tian in ‘Dreams of Youth’ – Knowing that Wei Tian was going overseas to study was sour enough, wait till he finds out what happened between Wei Tian and Miss South Africa.

Goose-bump young man in ‘The New World’ – He is the teenager who gets his first kiss from a Caberet dancer.

Priti in ‘Road to Mecca’ – Perched on top of a tower overlooking Pakistan, she confirms her name to a stunned Singaporean.

Goddess of Mercy in ‘My Keys’ – Can compete with Guan Yin Ma in ‘12 Lotus’

Army Boy in ‘Clouds in a Shell’ – Ice cubes provide relief from National Service

Cross Dresser in ‘10 Commandments of a Cross Dresser’ (Fly By Night 2008 entry) – Quote from the film ‘ Everbody is sooooo fat these days, where can a skinny girl like me find my clothes!?’

English Language Coach in ‘Mad about English’ – He wants to help 1 million Chinese people speak English…. well, at least, that’s what the lamp post hears every morning.

Ah Ma in ‘Keluar Baris’ – I have a feeling this Ah Ma is going to be famous.

The film, a Singapore heritage documentary by independent filmmaker Eng Yee Peng, will be priced at S$8.50 and will be screened from October 15 to November 1. Discounts are available for students and senior citizens.

Diminishing Memories I & II are two sincere yet provocative documentaries that seek to capture facets of Singapore’s heritage and history of Lim Chu Kang from the Eng Yee Peng’s perspective. This inaugural dual-film public was timed to coincide with the launch of the agri-tainment hub in Lim Chu Kang in September.

Diminishing Memories I traces Eng Yee Peng’s journey as a filmmaker and her attempts to recapture and relive her childhood memories of growing up in Lim Chu Kang. Diminishing Memories II is a sequel which sees her returning to Lim Chu Kang to interview both the new and old tenants and document the changes that have taken place since the first film.

Tickets are available for purchase at The Arts House Box Office or email tickets@toph.com.sg.

Trailer for Diminishing Memories I
[quicktime width="370" height="303"]http://www.sinema.sg/video/sm_dm1tr.mov[/quicktime]

Remember how Chinatown has been kneaded through years of `reinvention’ to its present state of a mildly bustling gathering point for various people. It sure lacks the spontaneity of yesteryears but it is very slowly taking on a new identity. If they keep working at it, it could grow to become gloriously busy… in another 50 years.

So given time, the agri-tainment business in Lim Chu Kang may not be such a bad thing. To be fair, the worst has already happened – kampong families have been uprooted. So, if left to rot, it could suffer a much worse fate.

It seems maybe Yee Peng came to terms with the government’s agri-tainment plan in this way. But prior to arriving at this resolution, she took us on a big detour of disillusionment and even delusion for a good one hour or less. Not the best way for the audience to assess the situation objectively, but an intriguing way of engaging us nonetheless.

The government made known to the public its plan to redevelop Lim Chu Kang into an agri-tainment hub. To Yee Peng, she is not too enthusiastic of the rather familiar high-handed approach. So she decided to find out how this beloved part of Singapore will change under the plan. Her initial hopes of getting information from the horses’ mouth were dashed when the development companies rejected her request for an interview. So like her previous documentary Diminishing Memories I (DMI), she took the matter from ground up again, interviewing selected individuals at close proximity.

First up was a quail egg farmer. He was a very strong-headed and passionate character (it’s a mystery why Yee Peng did not interview him for the DMI) He is very senior but yet is still shrewd and well in touch with the market. I fondly remember his comment about how chicken droppings in Malaysia can fetch money to feed more meals than the same amount of chicken droppings in Singapore! Interestingly, inch by inch, his voice of righteousness (as opposed to political correctness) becomes louder as the questions deepen in content.

Ivy Singh Lim, the owner of Bollywood veggies was next. For all her commanding presence and individualism, she was cleverly placed early in the line up of interviewees to give the topic muscle. Some muscle indeed. Often dressed in her signature tank-top and occasionally the Crocodile-Dundee hat, she is already a familiar fixture on the media. But it gets more interesting when the serious questions were posed to her. And as if in hidden protest, she questions, in a composed, almost monotonous voice, the fortitude of the government’s plan on redeveloping Lim Chu Kang and also self-sufficiency in food production. For the muscle that she lends to the proposition of the documentary, it is rather unsettling that Yee Peng undermines Ivy’s spirit by questioning the nuts and bolts that do not fit into a certain idealism that only existed in Yee Peng’s mind.

In fact, it was at this point, that one could either start taking the propositions with a pinch of salt or continue to follow the arguments and await a twist to be revealed later on. There were 3 redevelopment projects open for bidding to the public and Yee Peng managed to interview one of the successful bidders. This was another `Eng’ family (Yee Peng is also an `Eng’), who had been running farming activities for ages. Having met through the Kranji Countryside Association, she visited his modern farm and soon-to-be spa. From an outsider’s point of view, the farm looked very much a green sanctuary that had the potential to educate younger Singaporeans about a slowly disappearing type of life. But again, through the filmmaker’s coloured perspective, the plants grew thorns and the owners grew horns.

Indeed, there is no right answer to everything, from the questions we ask and the people we choose, we can already control the answers and hear what we want to hear. Kuan Hua is an old neighbour of Yee Peng’s who was not interviewed in DMI. He still runs a farm but in a more tech-savvy operation, specialising in cai xin. He is a mild-mannered, soft-spoken boy-next-door who appears like Yee Peng’s last hope for kampung-purity. Shot over heart-stirring visuals of the moving scenery whizzing past Yee Peng and Kuan Hua perched on the lorry and the trailing comet of fumes from the jetplane, there was something lyrical about Kuan Hua’s screen time. But even Yee Peng had to surrender to his survival intentions – that he farms purely for commercial reasons and actually lives in a HDB flat away from Lim Chu Kang.

So one wonders if this second trip back to Lim Chu Kang was a misguided investigation. While Yee Peng continues to be adamant about finding people who could give her the answers she wanted, reality keeps slapping her back on her face, telling her this sequel, is reading more like Diminishing Returns*. Like DMI, she continues to be the film subject rather than a bystanding observer despite the more professional and impers! onal sounding narration. This time, she is more grown up, assertive and adept with her storytelling tools.  So if the facts undermined her stand, one wonders where she is driving us to.

Army boys who book into Sungei Gedong Camp will know that somewhere in Lim Chu Kang lie a few acres of cemetery land. In a shot of Chinese tombstones packed like HDB flats, Yee Peng poured what she felt was the answer to her journey of diminishing returns.  The Chinese believed that if there was no proper funeral held for a death, the spirit will continue to roam the earth and haunt the living. Going back to Lim Chu Kang was Yee Peng’s effort to hold that funeral and douse the flames of her adamant spirit. So in fact, the documentary was not so interesting from a factual nor argumentative perpective but rather more from an personal and esoteric one. Interestingly, DMI and DMII can be compared in the following way: DMI milks personal subjects with little personal intervention while DMII milks more impersonal subjects with a visibly greater amount of intervention. Somehow, this exposed the filmmaker in more vulnerable way, like a tour guide who loses her way and says sorry.

* Diminishing returns is an economic theory that states that when you start to have more of one thing, your satisfaction from it starts to decrease.

The 21st Singapore International Film Festival kicks off in two week’s time on 4 April 2008 with The Princess of Nebraska (directed by Wayne Wang, co-starring Singaporean female actress Pamelyn Chee) at Lido, 9.15pm and continues on for the next ten days.

Sinema Old School is proud to be part of this year’s SIFF and will play host to the premiering Singapore Panorama section which houses a total of 16 films.

Listed below (read on!) is the updated screening schedule (as of 26 March) of the Singapore Panorama section listed according to the screening dates. Tickets are available from Sistic.

5 April (Sat)

11:00am – Women Who Love Women / 65min / Lim Mayling

2:00pm – Lucky 7 / 83min / Sun Koh and friends

4:15pm – Dance of a Modern Marriage (Short film preceding Road to Mecca) / 30min / Ellery Ngiam

4:15pm – Road to Mecca / 60min / Harman Hussin
7:00pm – Women Who Love Women / 65min / Lim Mayling
9:15pm – Women Who Love Women / 65min / Lim Mayling

6 April (Sun)
2:00pm – Homeless FC / 103min / James Leong, Lynn Lee
4:15pm – Hashi / 113min / Sherman Ong

7:00pm – Women Who Love Women / 65min / Lim Mayling

9:15pm – Dreams From The Third World / 86min / Kan Lume

7 April (Mon)

7:00pm – Haze (Short film preceding Veil of Dreams) / 14min / Anthony Chen

7:00pm – Veil of Dreams / 64min / Zaihirat Babu Codelli
9:15pm – Dirt Out / 74min / Yousry Mansour

8 April (Tue)
7:00pm – Homeless FC / 103min / James Leong, Lynn Lee

9:15pm – Vivid (Short film preceding Diminishing Memories II) / 30min / Sam Loh

9:15pm – Diminishing Memories II / 48min / Eng Yee Peng

9 April (Wed)

7:00pm - Dance of a Modern Marriage (Short film preceding Road to Mecca) / 30min / Ellery Ngiam
7:00pm – Road to Mecca / 60min / Harman Hussin
9:15pm – Boomtown Beijing / 70min / Tan Siok Siok

10 April (Thu)
7:00pm – To Speak / 104min / Craig Ower

9:15pm – After the Rain (Short film preceding Keronchong For Pak Bakar) / 13min / Royston Tan

9:15pm – Keronchong For Pak Bakar / 55min / Abdul Nizam Hamid

11 April (Fri)
7:00pm – Dirt Out / 74min / Yousry Mansour
9:15pm – Homeless FC / 103min / James Leong, Lynn Lee

12 April (Sat)

11:00am – Lucky7 / 83min / Sun Koh and friends
2:00pm – Boomtown Beijing / 70min / Tan Siok Siok

4:15pm – Vivid (Short film preceding Diminishing Memories II) / 30min / Sam Loh
4:15pm – Diminishing Memories II / 48min / Eng Yee Peng
7:00pm – Lucky7 / 83min / Sun Koh and friends
9:15pm – 18 Grams of Love / 85min / Han Yew Kwang

13 April (Sun)

11:00am – After the Rain (Short film preceding Keronchong For Pak Bakar) / 13min / Royston Tan

11:00am – Keronchong For Pak Bakar / 55min / Abdul Nizam Hamid
2:00pm – To Speak / 104min / Craig Ower

4:15pm – Haze (Short film preceding Veil of Dreams) / 14min / Anthony Chen
4:15pm – Veil of Dreams / 64min / Zaihirat Banu Codelli

7:00pm – Hashi / 113min / Sherman Ong

9:15pm – After the Rain (Short film preceding Keronchong For Pak Bakar) / 13min / Royston Tan
9:15pm – Keronchong For Pak Bakar / 55min / Abdul Nizam Hamid

The 21st SIFF concludes on 14 April with the film Road to Dawn at Lido, 9:15pm. So free your calendars and take this chance to show your support for Made-in-Singapore films!

The 21st Singapore International Film Festival kicks off in about a month’s time on 4 April 2008 with The Princess of Nebraska (directed by Wayne Wang, co-starring Singaporean female actor Pamelyn Chee) at Lido, 9.15pm and continues on for the next ten days.

Sinema Old School is proud to be part of this year’s SIFF and will play host to the premiering Singapore Panorama section which houses a total of 18 films.

Listed below (read on!) is the tentative screening schedule of the Singapore Panorama section listed according to the screening dates (to be confirmed on 1 March 2008). Tickets will be available soon from Sistic.

5 April (Sat)
4:15pm – Road to Mecca / 60min / Harman Hussin
7:00pm – Women Who Love Women / 65min / Lim Mayling
9:15pm – Women Who Love Women / 65min / Lim Mayling

6 April (Sun)
2:00pm – Homeless FC / 103min / James Leong, Lynn Lee
4:15pm – Hashi / 113min / Sherman Ong
9:15pm – Dreams From The Third World / 86min / Kan Lume

7 April (Mon)
7:00pm – Veil of Dreams / 64min / Zaihirat Babu Codelli
9:15pm – Dirt Out / 74min / Yousry Mansour

8 April (Tue)
7:00pm – Homeless FC / 103min / James Leong, Lynn Lee
9:15pm – Diminishing Memories II / 48min / Eng Yee Peng

9 April (Wed)
7:00pm – Road to Mecca / 60min / Harman Hussin
9:15pm – Boomtown Beijing / 70min / Tan Siok Siok

10 April (Thu)
7:00pm – To Speak / 104min / Craig Ower
9:15pm – Keronchong For Pak Bakar / 55min / Abdul Nizam Hamid

11 April (Fri)
7:00pm – Dirt Out / 74min / Yousry Mansour
9:15pm – Homeless FC / 103min / James Leong, Lynn Lee

12 April (Sat)
2:00pm – Boomtown Beijing / 70min / Tan Siok Siok
4:15pm – Diminishing Memories II / 48min / Eng Yee Peng
7:00pm – Lucky7 / 83min / Sun Koh and friends
9:15pm – 18 Grams of Love / 85min / Han Yew Kwang

13 April (Sun)
2:00pm – Keronchong For Pak Bakar / 55min / Abdul Nizam Hamid
4:15pm – To Speak / 104min / Craig Ower
7:00pm – Veil of Dreams / 64min / Zaihirat Banu Codelli
9:15pm – Keronchong For Pak Bakar / 55min / Abdul Nizam Hamid

The 21st SIFF concludes on 14 April with the film Road to Dawn at Lido, 9:15pm. So free your calendars and take this chance to show your support for Made-in-Singapore films!