Ah Long Pte Ltd (Singapore)
The GistMark Lee accidentally marries Fann Wong, a triad leader, without realizing she is one. He is not able to get out of the marriage so he becomes part of the Ah Longs that he once hated so much. Richard Low as Wong’s predecessor, is unhappy with her new style of management.
What Do I Think?Jack Neo is indeed a commercial filmmaker. He knows very well how to capture the demographics accurately. The fact that this film still packs full halls after one month of release and that Mid Valley’s GSC is still utilizing double prints for the show, we know very well that Ah Long is in good business.
Ah Long Pte Ltd reminds me very much of Wong Jing’s 1980’s comedy works. Neo himself is quite like Wong, managing and mixing comedy, violence and emotional moments very well. The problem is, I don’t really enjoy his song and dance segments. I’m sure he will do more of them though, since he got a nomination in the Golden Horse awards for his theme in The Best Bet.
The dialogue has 50% in Cantonese since most gangsters presumably can’t speak Mandarin. And oh, how convenient to have the whole film shot in Malaysia because Singapore does not have gangsters. Even if they have, they are all from Malaysia. I’m totally surprised that this film wasn’t banned here. Perhaps it would be banned in Singapore if the gangsters in the film are Singaporeans.
Having all that, the film succeeds profitably in Malaysia. Audiences are having a great time to relate to the script and especially the filming locations. Oh look, there’s Taman Midah’s Old Town Kopitiam (Jack Neo and Mark Lee bought the Singaporean franchise rights)! Oh, I have been to this food court, it’s in Taman Desa! Mentions of Jalan Imbi and Petaling Street strike great familiar chords.
Mark Lee does a great job of acting as a sissy. He acts like one, he doesn’t do imitations. Fann Wong doesn’t really convince as a triad leader. The tattooed fierce eye brows didn’t really help either. Richard Low as an ex-triad leader really amuses most of time. His role is reportedly modeled after Tun Dr Mahathir as a disappointed ex-Prime Minister of Malaysia. What a great inside joke.
What’s most impressive is Jack Lim’s (MyFM’s Lum Tuck Weng) portrayal as the rival triad leader. He could have passed as a Hong Kong actor easily with his excellent Hong Kong accented Cantonese dialogue. He should be acting more.
The story is quite laugh-a-minute most of the time. There are also many moments of graphic emotional moments that could possibly make viewers cry. Thankfully there is moral to the whole story, which we could always get from Jack Neo. My complaint is; the extreme sad moments come too soon after the hysterical laughters he causes to break into. Ah Jack Neo ah, it's kinda stressful for my emotional notch to fluctuate from the funny ones so sudden y'know. I'm trying to enjoy a simple movie-leh. ;)
Rating: 7/10
Last updated: 2009-08-12 01:10:40 by joekhor
