What makes a Singaporean film, Singaporean? The fact that a Singaporean made it? Or because the film was shot in Singapore? Maybe the colloquial ‘Wa Laus’, ‘Lors’ and ‘Lars’ that are present in the film play a part?

Singapore Dreaming is a local film by husband-and-wife filmmaking team, Colin Goh and Woo Yen Yen. The film was opened in Singapore towards the end of 2006 and was inherently touted as one of the most affective and accurate pictures of the Singaporean community. The publicity materials of the film even boasts a short review by President S.R Nathan, President of Singapore, that Singapore Dreaming represented ‘Life in its reality’. So, is Singapore Dreaming a truly Singaporean Film?

As I thought about these words, I came to one understanding. It is true that the film was one that stood out and was in its unique way different from the many Singaporean movies that have existed. For one, they had a quote from President Nathan… alright, but on a deeper level, I feel that Singapore Dreaming is a film that represents the Singaporean Voice most accurately.

The sincerity in which the directors portrayed in wanting to comment on the Singaporean Culture was probably one of the key reasons why the film was rather effective and affective to many. According to the filmmakers, the film was first inspired and conceptualised by an essay they wrote for the Singapore International Foundation, with its contents about how the ‘Singaporean Dream’ was slowly turning into the ‘Singaporean Plan’ instead. According to Colin, the duo felt that the “dream which everyone shares about attaining personal fulfilment, has been transformed into the Singapore Plan, with prescribed steps of what kind of school you should go to, what degree you should get, what career you should pursue, maybe even who you should marry”. Fuelled by the heart warming responses of many in Singapore who felt the same way and came forward to share their own personal lives, the couple decided to make a film based on these stories which they received.

I am also glad that Singapore Dreaming was not at all restrictive and self-censored in displaying an accurate side (although this may mean a side which most of us are not proud of) of the Singaporean Society, in order to bring these stories to life.

Singapore Dreaming is a satire of the obsessions of the middle-class Singaporean, told through a quintessentially mellow approach. When compared to films by Jack Neo, who is also an active ‘commentator’ about the Singaporean Society in his films, Colin Goh and Woo Yen Yen has achieved a much mature approach in discussing Singaporean issues. The humour written in Singapore Dreaming is far from the clichéd ‘slapstick’ humour generated from the quirky and sometimes unnatural acting by the actors in Jack Neo’s movies. The humour in Singapore Dreaming is instead a more intellectual one. For example, the communication gaps between the mother and the father, seen through one of the scenes where the father asks for the mother to mock up a quick club interview, is done tastefully. Due to her ignorance and Chinese background, the first thing the mother asks is ‘Have you eaten?’, which is something accurate to how the local Chinese generally greet each other. In my opinion, using humour with a local context is a good approach to writing this film and in tackling the presentation of the local characteristics of our community.

The film also introduces a typical Singaporean Family and how the individual members relate to each other. The family dynamics portrayed in the film is one that can be easily related to. In the case of this film, we have characters like the patient ‘mother’, who patiently picks up after the family without complains, the ‘father’, that demands respect and authority in the family (even when his children are old enough to start a family of their own), the favored and spoilt child of the family (usually a boy) and the daughter who suffers silently with the issue of biasness. In my opinion, these are the characters which many in Singapore would easily relate to as they are all so applicable, even to their relatives and friends.

These personalities were also well explored and developed through each of their reactions to Seng’s (Dick Su) return from Idaho, where he apparently went to study in. From this small event, we could see the Mother clearing up the family’s mess to prepare for her son’s return, the father trying to exude authority by constantly announcing, ‘I have brought up such a successful son’ and the daughter who is mildly bitter from the opportunity that Seng was given. This is of course achieved through proper story development by the Colin and Yen Yen.

I have always believed that the true nature of men, and in particular the true Singaporean nature, will surface when a conflict or a drastic event is forced onto the individuals. In my opinion therefore, Colin and Yen Yen’s decision to inflict the father’s death in the story and their act of bringing up the potential lost of financial stability in the family, helped to display and explore what the Singaporean voice is like. It was also a spot-on for me that the issue was very much because of financial problems as ‘money’ is something I feel, which is close to many Singaporeans’ heart. The struggle for the son to sustain his spending habits and the sibling rivalry that occurs due to the conflict over who should get what portion of the father’s assets is indeed a familiar story for many in Singapore. This has allowed for the film to explore how Singaporeans would react in family related situations and how things are solved.

If there was a Singapore New Wave, maybe our films can be distinguished by the true Singaporean voice present in it, a voice that would shout to the world about our Singaporean lives, our Singaporean families or maybe just simply, us, Singaporeans. What makes a Singaporean film a truly Singaporean one? It might just be the fact that our voices can be distinguished and heard in the particular film, and I think that Singapore Dreaming particularly, is a great representation of this.

This review was written by Josiah Ng. We can’t find his details right now. So if you want to contact him, go make yourself a cup of joe.