The City Never Sleeps

Yesterday was the 3rd time i am seeing Royston Tan in person. And frankly speaking, i am feeling some kind of unspeakable happiness after the 15min conversation with him.

The 3rd time? Reminds me of the Chinese classic folktale The Three Smiles. When The Three words appears on my mind, this is the image pictured in my brain: it was the classic made into a movie by Shaw Brothers in the 60's, with Ivy Ling Po who plays Tang Bo Hu, the talented scholar who was attracted to a maid named Qiu Xiang, potrayed by Li Ching. Qiu Xiang smiles at Tang Bo Hu three times when they bump each other on the streets, and Tang Bo Hu decided to woo Qiu Xiang by becoming a male servant in the household Qiu Xiang works for.

The 1st smile:

China (centuries ago) : Tang Bo Hu met Qiu Xiang at a fair, and she smiles at him.

Singapore (Oct 2006) : Royston and i met at his seminar with Kelvin Tong and Lawrence, when Lawrence and i were in the seminar at National Library.

The 2nd smile:

China (centuries ago) : Qiu Xiang smiles at Tang Bo Hu at a temple.

Singapore (____ 2007) : Royston was in Bedok Camp with his crew doing a filming of a short film, and he step out of the camp while i was on the phone in the guardroom.

The 3rd smile:

China (centuries ago) : Qiu Xiang smiles at Tang Bo Hu at a fair again.

Singapore (21st Jul 2007) : Royston smiles at me and i smile back at me when i was in the seminar on his upcming movie, 881.

Back to reality, the attandance for the seminar was above average. Nevertheless, there are always a group of supporters who appreciates his film.

Kate Hudson teaches a woman to lose a guy in 10 days in reel life, and Royston takes 22 days to made a movie in real life.

Not too sure what is 881 about? Simple. The movie is a tribute to the late Hokkien getai singer, Chen Jin Lang, who passed away in Jul 2006. Getai, or stage of songs, is a unique culture which can only be seen in Malaysia and Singapore during the 7th Lunar month, also known as Hungry Ghosts Festival. The singers would perform songs for the dead, where it was believed that during this month, the gates at Hell will open, and ghosts will wonder around for 30 days. As for the story, it is about 2 sisters who aspires to be a getai singer. The sisters, named themselves the Papaya sisters (note: 881 in Mandarin was pronounced as ba ba yiao, which sounds like papaya. Seems that Royston has the penchant of naming his full length feature using numbers.), performs in the getai during the 7th month, and the difficulties they are facing.

After watching the trailer, i am amazed, and really looking forward to the arrival of 881 on Aug 9 aka National Day. Though Royston is facing the fierce competition of Jackie Chan and his ang moh monkeyshow aka Rush Hour 3 and Jay Chou's directorial debut Secret with Anthony Wong, 881 is definitely worth the wait. My two cents worth of comment on the trailer: a true blue Singapore movie that truly reflects Singapore after Singapore Dreaming and Money No Enough.

And now, Ladies and Gentlemen...

That's me and the cutie! :P

Want to know what is our conversation?

Ask me. Haha.

Now playing: La Nage Indienne - Etienne Daho

Queue

Harry Potter has once again, hit the cinemas in Singapore! And expected, the teenage Harry has driven every Singaporeans out to the cinemas to catch him and his pals, Ron and Hermione, and some of their classmates for a rebellion against the evil power.

Yes! Yes! Yes! I could heard some girls screaming behind me over the cute Harry aka Daniel Radcliffe.

Unfortunately, The Order of the Phoenix wasn't really that exciting, compared to the previous series. So, some disappointments are inevitable.

And what do i mean by the queue? Just head down to any cinemas in Singapore and you will get what i mean. Not forgetting that Transformers and Die Hard 4.0 are competing against Harry.

And what happens when you couldn't get the tickets to the show you wanted? Either you wait for the next available show time, or just simply catch Ang Pagadadalaga Ni Maximo Oliveros aka The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros at The Picturehouse. Unsurprisingly, i see several full house sessions on the weekends too. Sigh...

Dream

Rented the DVD of Singapore Dreaming, a movie that won the Singapore couple Colin Goh (the founder of TalkingCock.com) and his wife Woo Yen Yen (an assistant professor in NUS) Best New Screenwriter award in San Sebastian International Film Featival 2006.

Featuring Richard Low, the veteran actor from Mediacorp, together with Lim Yu Beng, Dick Su, Alice Lim, Serene Chan and Yeo Yann Yann, Singapore Dreaming is a slice of Singaporean life with a big Singapore dream that has turn sour, just like how Kevin Spacey found his American Dream turned sour in American Beauty.

Set in a old 3 room HDB flat in Toa Payoh, the story surrounds the father (Low) , who works as a clerk in a law firm with lots of gambling debts. He buys TOTO and 4D frequently, and enjoys cutting out pictures of posh branded cars from newspapers. His wife (Alice Lim), who is a housewife, boils herbal tea daily and they lived together with their son's girlfriend Irene (Chan).

His son, Seng (Su), was a uni grduate from US, and his daughter, Mei (Yeo), a secretary, lives with her husband CK (Lim Yu Beng), a former Army Regular with Guards turned insurance agent.

Everything seems normal till the father strikes the $2 million TOTO. His dreams has come true, and very soon, he will fufill his wishes. Getting a apartment, buying a car, setting up his own business... without realising that disaster will soon fall on the family.

The father died in a sudden heart attack while waiting for a interview in a prestigeous country club. Leaving his shocked wife, Seng, Mei, Irene and CK to handle the funeral, the family comes to a collapse when everyone vent their anger on each other over the $2 million which could not be drawn out due to the money being placed in a joint account between the parents. Seng is particular about his image and reputation, while Mei is stressing up over handling various issues at a go. CK vent his anger on Mei after he could no longer tolerate Mei's attitude over him, while Irene breaks out with Seng after overheard that Seng actually did not completed his university education in US.

Sounds like the dysfunctional family in American Beauty, minus the sex and drugs.

SALE

Now how i love this 4 character word, SALE.

Metro Century Square is having a closing down sale. Yes, a closing down sale. Everything (not everything i would say. About 70% of it) are now clearing at half price plus 20% off.

So i bought myself 2 Skinxwear briefs at $4.50 each, from the usual $10.90. And 20% + 20% off for Calvin Klein briefs! I got myself 2 instantly. Hee...